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Ahh, potty training. A time full of promise of diaper-free days… A time rife with frustration, tears (for the parents), and thrilling new skills (for the child) with many hits and even more misses. A time full of a dizzying array of choices for potty chairs. Some that sing, some that are exceedingly simplistic, and some like the Boon Potty Bench which are amazingly multi-functional.

Living in an apartment, our bathroom is roughly half the size of your average broom closet. So when we started looking into potties we wanted something that would do its job, do its job well, and… well.. Do more than its job. The Boom potty fit the bill by serving as an appealing comfortable and safe potty seat, doubling as storage for potty supplies and then by tripling its function by being a step stool strong enough for use by an average adult.

AESTHETIC

Funky, slick, and modern with colors that appeal to children without making adults retch. The Boon Potty Bench has a white base, a vibrant neon green lid, and a soft flexible orange splash shield for keeping potty-stuff inside of the potty area.

CHILD APPEAL

The Potty Bench is a very friendly way to start potty training. Many kids start off slightly afraid of sitting on a potty.

Boon does several things to make the experience less intimidating:

Height: The seat of the potty chair is just about 6″ off of the ground. This close-to-the-ground height of the potty chair makes it feel safe and secure for a young child.

Width of seat/brim: All around the opening is a brim that measures between 2-3 inches. Around THAT is a sloping raised area about 1/2″ higher that adds a 1″ rim around the seat. This wide seating area is unusual for potties and allows the child to feel comfortable scooting around to seat himself without fear of falling.

Size of potty hole: The potty hole itself is only 5″ wide by about 6 1/2″ long. Most popular potty models that I measured are 6-7″ wide by about 7″ long. For a youngster that can be quite intimidating! I like Boon’s slightly smaller but still functional potty opening. My son does, too. He’s refused to sit on other potty chairs, but is right at home sitting on this one.

Smooth Seat & Flexible splash guard: Some potty chairs have a hard molded plastic surface that is uneven and that the child has to climb over in order to seat himself on the potty. The Boon potty has a smooth flat seat with a flexible rubber splash guard to make it easier for a younger child to climb onto the potty chair

Lid: Some children are terrified of the potty and will not sit on anything that has a hole in it. The potty bench allows these timid youngsters to start off by sitting on the bench with the lid closed, allowing them to inch closer to the potty experience. The lid also provides a surface behind the potty, alleviating fears of falling off of the back of the potty.

Step Stool: When the child’s done pottying, using the step stool to get up to sink height is as easy as closing the lid and stepping up.

PARENT APPEAL

This potty not only teaches your child “use the potty”, but it also reinforces other things: use of toilet paper (stored to the right on an easy to use toilet paper holder), and washing one’s hands when one is done pottying (close the lid, step up onto the step stool and wash one’s hands in the sink).

The generous storage compartments on either side make it a breeze for parents to store a fresh supply of pullups or underwear, or simply a stash of potty training rewards on one side, and clean-up supplies on the other. In the right side compartment of the bench is an easy to use toilet paper roll holder that accommodates a full sized roll of toilet paper. Each of the two side storage compartments offer a space roughly 11″ wide, 7″ deep and 6 1/2″ tall. (Note that the storage compartments have sloped walls, so these are the maximum dimensions of the space.) A standard pop-up wipes dispenser fits well inside of the storage area.

EASE OF USE & CLEANING

The lid is lightweight and easy for a child as young as 12 months to open and close on their own. The low height, wide seat and flexible splash guard make it easy for children to climb onto and off of even before they reach potty training age. My son learned how to walk at 12 months, and by 15 months old he could climb onto the potty and move the splash guard into place without much coaching at all.

Parent-wise, the potty is very easy to use as well. The side storage compartments make it a breeze to store all your potty training supplies: Toilet paper and wipes on the right side, and stickers or rewards, or a fresh supply of pull-ups on the left.

Cleaning this potty is a breeze. The seat is made of a shiny plastic that wipes clean with a cloth and that is impervious to staining or dried-on gunk. Your child’s potty.. ahh.. stuff.. ends up in a bowl that is removable for quick flushing of its contents. The guard slides off as well, allowing you to rinse the bowl and the guard at the same time.

SAFETY

Rubber no-slip feet, a low profile, a broad (12″ deep by 11 1/2″ wide) textured standing surface, and a wide stable base (20″ wide by 12 1/2″ deep) make this an excellent step stool. The textured surface is made up of a grid of 1″ circles spaced slightly less than 1″ apart across the entire step stool surface. These raised circles have a rough surface texture that makes it very slip-proof even when wet.

A flexible rubber splash guard helps keep your little one safe while keeping your home clean and preventing accidents.

The only possible safety issue is that the rounded doors of the storage areas on each side are not meant to be stepped on and can open if enough force is applied. However, their slanted surface discourages the child from stepping on them, and when the lid is closed it requires more weight to open them than a young child is likely to apply. Older children that are heavy enough to make this an issue can simply be taught “do not step on the doors”. A message that is reinforced by the foot icon with a line through it that appears on the recessed grab-handle of each sliding door.

COMPANY RESPONSIVENESS

Having read other reviews of the Boon Potty Bench on the internet, I was slightly confused by the reviews that mentioned that the Potty Bench didn’t have rubberized feet, so I wrote in to Boon and asked them about it and was told that rubberized feet were added in response to customer feedback. They also made the potty opening slightly larger to increase comfort for larger children without making the potty intimidating for younger ones. Boon is a uniquely responsive company when it comes to customer feedback and product design.

FEEL-GOOD ASPECTS

Worth mentioning, is the fact that Boon donates 10% of profits to charity. Currently they are donating to the Child Crisis Center of Arizona, a charity that works to prevent child abuse and strengthen families through education.

BOTTOM LINE

Boon is a wonderful innovative and thoughtful company that designs really interesting products that try to solve the problems of modern day parenting. The potty chair is a great example of parent-inspired design. If you’re looking for something that can multi-task while giving your little one a safe and non-intimidating potty training experience, the Boon Potty Bench is the way to go. It does many things, and it does them well.