Most bathroom adaptations solve the problem you have right now. A grab rail helps with balance today. A toilet seat riser addresses the height issue you're currently experiencing. These are good, practical products, but they're reactive. They respond to a need that has already arrived.
The Washloo Levitate works differently. It's a product designed around the needs you don't have yet just as much as the ones you do. That's not a marketing line; it's a description of how it is physically built and what it is mechanically capable of. A height-adjustable smart toilet that rises and falls at the touch of a button, combines full wash and dry functionality, and carries fold-flat support arms that can be installed the day you need them rather than the day you buy it - that's a bathroom fixture with a genuinely long future ahead of it.
This piece looks at what the Levitate is, what makes it different from a standard rise and fall WC, and why, for a growing number of households, it represents one of the most considered long-term bathroom decisions available.
What the Washloo Levitate Actually Is
The Levitate is a wall-hung toilet system that combines two components: a motorised, height-adjustable cistern unit and a Washloo smart toilet pan. Together, they form a complete toilet that can be raised or lowered across a range of 400mm to 600mm - controlled entirely by remote, operable with either hand or by a carer.
The cistern unit houses the motor, the flush mechanism and the height adjustment electronics. Its design is notably slimmer than earlier rise and fall systems (roughly half the depth of comparable units), which means it sits closer to the wall and takes up less room. For smaller bathrooms or those being adapted without full renovation, that difference in footprint matters.
The smart toilet pan attached to it is a rimless Washloo unit with the full suite of wash and dry features: rear and front wash, oscillating spray, adjustable water temperature and pressure, warm air dryer, heated seat, night light, deodoriser and one-touch Auto function. It is not a stripped-back accessible toilet bolted to a height mechanism. It is a fully specified smart toilet that also moves up and down.
The Height Range: Who It Actually Covers
A standard UK toilet pan sits at approximately 400mm from floor to seat. A comfort height toilet sits at around 450mm to 480mm.
The Levitate's range of 400mm to 600mm spans everything from a low, accessible position through to a height practical for very tall users, for wheelchair transfer, and for people whose clinical requirements sit outside the range a fixed toilet can ever accommodate. Adjusting within that range is immediate; there is no waiting for a carer, no manual repositioning, no additional equipment. One button press on the remote and the pan moves.
For households where more than one person uses the same toilet (a wheelchair user and a standing partner, or two family members with different mobility needs) the ability to set the height differently for each user without any physical effort is, in practical terms, a significant change to daily life.
The Support Arms: The Cleverest Part of the Design
Every rise and fall toilet needs support arms. Where the Levitate departs from older approaches is in how it handles them when they're not needed yet.
The support arms on the Levitate are removable. They can be folded flat against the wall when not in use, or detached altogether. For users who don't currently need lateral support when using the toilet, the Levitate can be installed without the arms in place at all. The mounting points are covered with flat plastic covers that are flush with the cistern unit, and the toilet looks and functions like a contemporary wall-hung bathroom fixture.
When the time comes to add the arms, for example, after a diagnosis, following a fall, post-surgery, or simply as mobility gradually changes, they can be fitted without any major building work or plumber involvement. The infrastructure is already there, waiting.
This matters more than it might seem at first. One of the most common patterns in home adaptation is the reluctance to install something that "looks like a disabled toilet" before it's strictly necessary. With the Levitate, that reluctance doesn't have to translate into delay. The toilet is aesthetically indistinguishable from a high-end standard bathroom fitting. The clinical capability is built invisibly, ready to be activated when needed.
The Finish and the Aesthetics
Earlier generations of rise and fall toilets shared a visual language with healthcare settings. White and beige plastics, chunky mechanisms and an unmistakably clinical feel. The Levitate has moved a long way from that. The cistern unit has a white glass front panel and a silver-finish frame that integrates naturally with the chrome or brushed steel fixtures found in modern UK bathrooms. It reads as a premium bathroom product, not an assistive device.
That's not a superficial concern. For people living at home who want to maintain a sense of normality and dignity in their environment, or for households where the bathroom is shared and nobody wants it to feel like a hospital annexe, the way equipment looks has a direct bearing on how readily it is accepted and used.
The Smart Toilet Element: Why It Belongs Here
Many rise and fall WCs on the market pair their height mechanism with a standard toilet pan. The Levitate pairs it with a full Washloo smart toilet, and the logic behind that is worth spelling out.
The conditions and circumstances that lead someone to need a height-adjustable toilet (progressive neurological conditions, degenerative joint disease, post-surgical rehabilitation, advancing age) are frequently the same ones that also make wiping difficult, painful, or impossible. Reaching behind and below the body after using the toilet requires flexibility in the hips and spine, grip strength in the hands, and a range of movement in the shoulders that many people with mobility conditions simply don't have, or don't have reliably every day.
A toilet that adjusts to the right height but still requires the user to wipe addresses only half of the toileting challenge. Combining the height adjustment with wash and dry functionality means both elements (getting on and off the toilet and completing the hygiene routine) are handled without manual assistance, without reaching, and without relying on another person.
For carers, this has a direct physical benefit too. The manual handling involved in assisting someone to wipe is one of the more injury-prone aspects of personal care, for both the carer and the person being cared for. Removing it from the routine reduces strain and preserves dignity on both sides of that interaction.
One customer who purchased the Levitate for a family member with motor neurone disease noted that after two weeks of use, features including adjustable wash spray temperature and pressure, air dryer temperature, nozzle arm positions, heated seat, night light and half and full flush were all being used - all via the remote control. That breadth of usable functionality, in a condition as physically demanding as MND, reflects what the combination of height adjustment and smart toilet features can achieve when they're designed to work together.
The Remote Control: Why It's Designed the Way It Is
The Levitate is operated remotely. Not by a panel on the arm but by a separate handheld remote that works from either hand. This distinction is intentional. Fixed arm-mounted controls require the user to reach to a specific side, which can be difficult or impossible depending on the condition affecting them. A remote can be handed to a carer, placed on a surface within easy reach, or held in whichever hand the user has better function in on a given day.
For conditions that affect one side of the body more than the other (stroke, hemiplegia, certain presentations of Parkinson's or MS), this flexibility is not incidental. It's the difference between independent operation and dependence on someone else to activate basic functions.
The Warranty: What 15 Years on Ceramics Actually Means
The Levitate comes with a 15-year warranty on ceramics and a 24-month comprehensive warranty on electrical components, with parts and labour covered and in-house technicians who typically resolve issues within five days.
The 15-year ceramic warranty is worth pausing on. A toilet installed as part of a long-term accessibility adaptation isn't being bought for a short horizon. It's being bought by someone planning to stay in their home for the foreseeable future, and it needs to function reliably for a long time. A 15-year warranty on the ceramic components provides meaningful reassurance that the product is backed for the long term, not just sold for it.
Who the Levitate Is For
There is no single profile. The Levitate is used by:
People with progressive neurological conditions (MS, Parkinson's, MND) who need a toilet that can adapt as their needs change without requiring further bathroom works each time something changes.
People who have had, or are planning, hip or knee replacement surgery and want a permanent solution rather than a series of temporary fixes.
Wheelchair users who need specific seat heights for safe side transfer, and who also benefit from the wash and dry function, reducing the manual handling involved in post-transfer hygiene.
Older adults living alone who want to remain at home long term and are making one well-specified adaptation rather than incremental changes every few years.
Households where two people with different mobility levels share a bathroom and need the same toilet to work correctly for both of them.
And people who simply don't want to compromise on either the aesthetics or the functionality of their bathroom, who want something that does what it needs to do clinically while still feeling like a considered, well-designed home.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the Levitate be used without the smart toilet features? Yes. The Levitate cistern unit can be paired with a standard wall-hung toilet pan if the wash and dry features aren't needed or wanted. The height adjustment mechanism works independently of the smart toilet functions.
Does the height adjustment work during a power cut? The motorised height mechanism requires power to operate. The toilet can still be used normally during a power cut (the cistern flush functions conventionally) but the pan will remain at whatever height it was set to until power is restored.
How long does it take to change the height? Height adjustment via the remote is smooth and relatively quick. The exact speed will vary, but the mechanism is designed for regular daily use rather than occasional settings.
Can the support arms be added later if not fitted initially? Yes. This is a deliberate feature of the Levitate's design. The mounting points for the support arms are built into the cistern unit from the outset, covered with flat plastic covers when not in use. Arms can be added at any point without structural alteration.
What is the minimum water pressure required? A mains-equivalent minimum of 0.8 bar is required for the smart toilet functions to operate correctly.
The Levitate is not the right product for everyone. For someone who needs a modest height increase and has no progressive condition or long-term changing needs, a toilet seat riser will do the job for a fraction of the cost. But for those whose situation involves complexity, change over time, or the genuine need for a bathroom that stays ahead of their needs rather than perpetually catching up with them, the Levitate is the product that makes the most sense. Not just now, but for the years ahead.