Toilet seat logic
Up or down?
Logic dictates that you leave it the way you like it. If everyone did that, then the toilet seat would be in each user’s preferred position in proportion to their frequency of use.
As usual, logic and etiquette only have the faintest connection. There are any number of arguments I could give for why you should leave the seat down — from midnight surprises to the visibility of splashbacks — but in fact, the only real reason is convention. If you leave the seat up, in any toilet facility that a woman may use, then you’ll be considered uncivilised… even if it’s illogical.
16 comments16 Comments so far
Never mind the seat, why don’t people ever put the _lid_ down? Women actually seem to be worse offenders here than men, in my experience.
There are plenty of good reasons for closing the lid (hygiene, prevent dropping things down the toilet, prevent pets drinking from it, etc), but the best one has to be that if you always close the lid then everyone has to do more or less the same amount of work before they use the toilet, i.e. lift one thing (or set of things – one motion, anyway).
Closed (lid down, cover down). Because I’ve read of the “mushroom clouds of germs” that erupt from the toilet when you flush. And regardless of the accuracy of that statement, I’d rather not take the risk of brushing my teeth with germs. So it’s become a habit for me to push both lid and cover down before flushing.
For me, it has more to do with that the toilet seat looks “prettier” with the seat down. Which is one of the main reasons why I always close the lid even though I live alone.
On, preview: ditto. Except for the part where I’m a woman, and I haven’t noticed the same male/female split which may be influenced by the number of women I know who specifically shut the lid for their pet.
Ah, was thinking lid = rim-thing-a-ma-bobber that you sit on. And cover = ‘lid’ as Denny’s using it. What are the technical terms for toilet parts anyways…? ::goes to poke google::
Benjamin: I’d call the rim-thing-a-ma-bobber the “seat”, and the solid disk that closes over it the “lid”.
I am female, and put the lid down when I am done, because this is what my parents taught me to do… probably because our bathroom was so small that the toilet was often used as a seat (when giving a child a bath, for example). I now leave it closed to keep my pets from trying to drink from it, as well.
It only annoys me when people leave the seat/lid up when I’m at my own house. Everywhere else I go, I try to leave the seat/lid in the position I found it.
Count me as another vote for lid down, not just seat down. Better for germ control (my personal turning point was when I read how much bacteria lands on things like one’s toothbrush as a result of toilet flushing), pets, aesthetics, stuff not falling in, and even feng shui, so I’m told.
And another vote for lid down.
I always wonder at guests who leave the lid up when they visit us; surely regardless of your personal preference, “leave it the way you found it” is typical etiquette?
Please, please, please. Leave public toilet seats UP. When I’m in someone’s home or private office toilet, I try to leave things how I found them, and if I don’t remember how that was, I close the lid.
BUT! In public, if men use the bathroom, leave the seat up. Far too many men will be happy to try to urinate through the seat and into the bowl, leading to a disgusting seat for future visitors. Leave the seat up unless you’re going to sit, and put it back up when you’re done.
I used to live in a flat with two bathrooms, right next to each other (insane public housing architects), each with a shower and a toilet. They were labelled Gods and Goddesses. You were welcome to use either one at need, but the rule was: always leave the seat down in the Goddesses’ bathroom, and always leave it up in the Gods’ bathroom. Worked quite well.
Apart from that, I really don’t see the issue. Leave the seat down. The amount of energy expended in arguing about it far exceeds the effort required to do that. In fact, if people were required to tailor the length of their arguments to the importance of the topic, nobody would be able to complain about this in any more than four words, total.
I’ve left the lid up since Katrina – it’s an irrational desire to be sure my cats will always have water, even if it’s not the best water, as long as it lets them survive.
Beyond that, I insist on having the seat left down, on the grounds that it’s the least likely to surprise the most number of people. If somebody forgets that the lid is down, and pees, the result is messy and nasty. If somebody forgets that the seat is up, and sits down, the result is loud and nasty. Leaving the seat down means the least amount of chaos overall.
I leave my lid down because it is bad Feng Shui to leave it up. :)
Snoskred
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I’m pretty sure that if a lady is likely to use the lavatory, it is a social sin to leave it up. In anycase the aerosol effect means that it is best practice to close the lid before you flush so why bother lifting it again?
On the other hand in a batchelar pad… (especially if there has been some boozing…)
I think the more important thing is to wash your hands afterwards. I’m pretty laid back but if I hear someone coming down the stairs immediately after the flush it makes me shudder.
We started putting lids down when we didn’t want dogs drinking from the toilet. At this point, while toilet-training children, we leave the lids up but seats down in the bathrooms that they use, and lids down in the bathrooms that they don’t.
In someone else’s house, I try to remember how things were arranged when I got there, and leave them that way when I’m done.
BTW, I didn’t know about the Feng Shui thing of keeping the lid down — thanks for the tip, I may find that useful in the future!
I started recently at a new job with a unisex bathroom. The long time mostly male group insists on leaving the seat up which I find inconsiderate and disgusting. Even though I have a physical condition that makes it tough to walk any distance, I walk all the way to the other end of the building to use the ladies (only) room. I was making myself crazy over this issue and having very negative thoughts about the immaturity of “these boys” and their inconsiderate ways.