Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Over is Right , Under is Wrong

There is a right way to hang the toilet paper, and a wrong way.Below are examples of the helpful and fruitful over-hung method on the left and the annoying and detrimental under-hung method on the right.






Link

66 comments:

  1. Over is right in Japan because we have these toilet paper holders with an over hanging flap. Unrolling from the underneath would stop the roll.

    But outside Japan... who gives a? :-)

    Interesting graphics and post.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anyone with pets who discover how easy it is to bat the roll or toilet paper knows that this is incorrect. If you select the under, the roll will always move towards the animal's paw and the loose end will not unroll. If you select the over, you'll come home to a mess and a waste of paper for future butt wipeage.

    ReplyDelete
  3. If you have a problem with your pet unrolling toilet paper, the toilet paper is the least of your worries. Teach your damn pet some obedience. I'm sure others would appreciate it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thank you for diagramming this!! You do a perfect job of showing the folly of under. Hopefully they will learn from your fine pictures.

    Also, I agree with anynymous' response to sheepshagger.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I was teaching vocabulary to a fifth-grade class using a Monday, New York Times crossword puzzle. One of the clues was: "Like toilet paper rolled the wrong way." The answer was "peeve." Fine, but I asked the class what the right way to roll toilet paper was. No one knew for sure, so I asked them how they might find out. One student suggested calling a fancy hotel. So one kid whipped out his cell phone (against school rules, of course, but this was for learning purposes), go the number of the Plaza hotel, asked for housekeeping, introduced himself politely, and asked the maid in charge the question. "Over the top and folded" was her bemused answer.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Under is right when you have a 2 year old son who loves to go into the bathroom and spin the toilet paper roll dry. When it's under he gets bored fast.

    ReplyDelete
  7. If your 2 year old is unwinding the paper, your butt problem isn't wiping them, it's spanking them.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous 12:23PM, please see comment from Anonymous 6:56AM

    ReplyDelete
  9. I don's care what you say but it's under for me!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anonymous 12:29 you still spank your kids?!

    ReplyDelete
  11. @ sheepshagger: Or, you know, you could just CLOSE YOUR BATHROOM DOORS...

    ReplyDelete
  12. No, under works better for the one-hand tear. The friction of the roll against the wall creates a closer shear point to your hand.

    ReplyDelete
  13. In my roller, "over" makes the toilet paper disappear behind the roll and I can't find the starting sheet. "Under" gives it just enough weight to pull the starting sheet down and it always waiting for me like a trusted friend.

    Also when I manage to find the sheet in "over" mode and grab it, the sheets rip off before I have enough sheets in hand. Under lets me tear off all that I want.

    My dispenser in the second bathroom has a couple of clips and is made for the sheets to go under, like some sort of space-age tape dispenser. The instructions on the dispenser even tell you that Under is the preferred method.

    ReplyDelete
  14. No way. I 100% disagree.

    Hanging the roll over makes it always unravel on the floor. it also looks messier because she sheet is hanging down instead of hiding behind the roll.

    Also, it's a thin sheet of tissue... Why can't your tear it?!

    ReplyDelete
  15. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  16. "To each his own" as everything else! Most important; however you hang make sure to use it. ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  17. .. i just went and changed the direction of my tp

    ReplyDelete
  18. gbetel..that is absolutely priceless! I bet you had a tear in your eye you were laughing so hard inside. I would have busted a gut listening to that conversation. Props to your student for being able to respectfully and politely ask the question.

    ReplyDelete
  19. There is a UK school of thought which says that you use LESS paper when the roll is hung "under". I don't believe it, though. This stuff is in the same class as "Do you put the milk in the teacup before you pour, or afterwards?"

    ReplyDelete
  20. Kudos for the nice diagrams, and an admission that I once thought as you do that 'over' is correct. Certainly it is more aesthetic and gives the impression of being generously ready to serve. But there's your problem, right there. Spanking kids and disciplining pets is all very well but unnecessary with the 'under' config.'Over' is just unstable, almost any contact will pull the front of the roll down with gravity giving a concertina of paper on the floor. Physics dictates that the 'under' format, while less pleasing to the eye and hand, is economic and efficient.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Milk goes in the teacup before the tea. Everyone knows that, even this American. If you dump milk into the hot liquid, the milk heats up too quickly and it might subtly alter the molecular structure of the milk such that it causes irreversible damage to your mental capacity, causing you to believe that it is OK to put the tea in first.

    ReplyDelete
  22. In response to anonymous' comment of sheepshagger: Teaching a cat some obedience? You are either naive or delusional. Cat's will only behave in front of you, no matter how well you train them. And what would other's appreciating how well my cat behaves in front of me really accomplish in this matter?

    ReplyDelete
  23. I don't understand why people use physics in this argument. I'm sorry to say but gravity doesn't care which way you hand the roll. It will pull either equally as fast. The fact is that under means the starting sheet is hidden from you, making you have to reach for it. Over puts it right there for the grabbing. So unless you don't know how to keep your bathroom door shut from your kids and pets, over is the only way.

    ReplyDelete
  24. At last its official!

    ReplyDelete
  25. Yes! Now it has been said! I hate it when others do it the WRONG way!

    Thanks for doing this page.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Three words: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.

    You can have my therapist. She's paid for until Christmas.

    I don't need her after reading this blog - compared with you, my grip on reality is rock solid.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Anonymous two above (the one talking about how gravity doesn't care), I tip my hat to you. Your argument is the most logical in this whole thing. If it's under, you just have to do an awkward reach for it. Also, if it's over (and therefore further out from the wall), it's easier to grab onto.

    ReplyDelete
  28. I have to hang my paper under, else my cat plays with it all day, shredding and unrolling it.

    ReplyDelete
  29. maybe you should just be happy your cat wipes at all, instead of bitching about his technique

    ReplyDelete
  30. No no no; what about us lefties? Its under the roll for us.

    ReplyDelete
  31. haha!
    i agree! over is better
    its just so much easier!

    ReplyDelete
  32. It's been my experience that -men- prefer the paper over, while -women- prefer it under. Informal poll here? I'm a man, I prefer it over.

    ReplyDelete
  33. "The fight the right coalition", or whatever the hell your name is, what the hell does handed-ness have to do with it? I'm a leftie and over's always better. In fact, if it's under and you're trying to reach it with your left hand, there'll be more distance, more grabbing difficulty, and just more overall awkwardness.

    ReplyDelete
  34. I don't know about a "right" or "wrong" way, but I just find that sitting it on top of the toilet is easier.......

    ReplyDelete
  35. I prefer not to put it on the holder, rather just leave it standing upright and leaning against the wall. No kitty or kiddy problems.

    ReplyDelete
  36. This is not unique, it was taken from here http://currentconfig.com/archives/000083.html

    ReplyDelete
  37. I change all 'under' fitted rolls to 'over' in our factory's dunnys.... I find it harder to find the start with 'under' rolls and harder to tear off....

    ReplyDelete
  38. obviously, many of us have way too much time on their hands(which I hope are clean).

    Just get one of those pedestal type holders & you can postion the roll whichever way you like.. good luck toall!

    ReplyDelete
  39. how cool would Comic Toilet paper be?
    u'd WANT to go to the toilet ...
    or the newspaper, whichever is more interesting to your agegroup...

    ReplyDelete
  40. Dudes... It's just toilet paper, As long as it is at least 2 ply, I don't care!

    ReplyDelete
  41. Fun = changing the direction at people homes.

    ReplyDelete
  42. i'm glad i'm not the only one who feels so strongly about this.

    i've seen public facilities with holders specifically built for the overhang that for some UNGODLY reason have it underhanging. completely pointless.

    ReplyDelete
  43. You are all arguing about which direction to unroll your toilet paper...does this strike no one else as odd?

    ReplyDelete
  44. What strikes me as odd is that you're commenting on these comments.

    ReplyDelete
  45. Jesus! Put the paper on anyway you want to! Or don't put it on at all: set the whole roll on the floor!

    ReplyDelete
  46. If you are going post someone else's work at least link back to them. Otherwise, you are merely a thief. I repeat: This was stolen from http://currentconfig.com/archives/000083.html

    ReplyDelete
  47. I am printing these pictures and making a sign.

    ReplyDelete
  48. hey subone and anonymous, get a life. I have no idea what the adress you're referring to is. I'm a bachelor and standing it up on the holder is the bachelor's way. In the real world.

    ReplyDelete
  49. Basically, this is completely WRONG!
    The correct way to place the toilet roll is with the end of the roll hanging down underneath. This way, you can be sure that you are wiping your 'you know what' with paper that is clean.
    It also means that the paper tears more easily at the perforations. When you pul on the paper, the weight of the roll acts against your pull anf the paper tears at its weakest point (the perforation). If you pull with the roll held in the position you suggest, the paper will just keep on coming and coming!

    ReplyDelete
  50. The psychology of how one places the TP roll is: The 'right' way says a person is more outgoing. The latter you would be thought an introvert.

    ReplyDelete
  51. Under is worse than wrong...it's downright communistic. Might as well live in China!

    ReplyDelete
  52. brilliant - I may hang this in my bathroom.

    ReplyDelete
  53. A lefty here voting for OVER. Physics aside, I cant stand feeling behind the roll for the free sheet. Roll it over and it's right there for you. D-U-N DUN.

    ReplyDelete
  54. So, Doug Woods, you're saying that the wall (the thing the next sheet rubs against while you're struggling to pull out one while it's under) is cleaner than the air (the only thing between you and wiping when it's over)? That's a rather bold notion. Also, there's something called HOLDING THE ROLL which you can do to prevent it from going everywhere. I actually find that it goes all over the place even worse when it's under.

    Jordan, that's complete BS. I'm one of the most introverted, sit-alone-in-my-room people I know and I'm insanely strongly against Under.

    And Jackazz, you're an idiot, do you know anything about Communism? "Oh, it was a joke." Well, I could say that doing the Under method is comparable to Islam, but then I'd just be murdered for racism.

    ReplyDelete
  55. I like to see the end of the paper because I once used a public bathroom and was reaching for the end when it was rolled under. When I did grab it I found that the last person who used it left feces on the paper which I had just put my hand in. I don't care what anyone thinks because after that experience the only way to hang toilet paper is over the top for me.

    ReplyDelete
  56. I am a heathen then. I actually prefer the under roll

    ReplyDelete
  57. All the above answers are wrong.

    The correct way is to take the new roll of toilet paper and place it vertically on top of the horizontal TP bar, propping it against the wall.

    I know this correct, since I am a man. Trust me on it.

    Evil cats and demonic toddlers can't roll it to the floor.

    Women who love to use huge gobs and wads of TP will not be able to blame their excessive usage on a bad pull or a too-free-rolling roll ... they will have to be feel accountable for every unit of tisssue used, and most women will therefore use less.

    Just because there is a horizontal bar there that happens to fit into the inner tube of the TP roll does not mean that you have to use it for anything! It is just a strange coincidence. Honest!

    Save time and energy by just propping the TP on top of the horizontal bar, no futzing around with the bar mechanism is required! That saves calories required per TP roll installment. Less calories required means less food will have to be consumed to stay at a proper body weight. Less food required means less fossil fuels will be required to feed mankind. Less fossil fuel burned means less CO2 goes into the atmosphere. That means you help prevent global warming by placing the TP roll vertically on end, on top of the horizontal TP bar, and just propping it against the wall.

    So please, place your toilet paper roll vertically on top of the horizontal TP bar, since the future of the earth and mankind depend upon it!

    ReplyDelete
  58. Though, you're ignoring the extra calories you'll use up trying to use that roll effectively. When it's around the bar, you just have to give it a tug and you've got all you need. With it vertical, you have to pull, then rotate, then pull, then rotate, and keep doing that until you have a sufficient amount.

    ReplyDelete
  59. I never saw any establishment that use the wrong way of using tissue.

    ReplyDelete
  60. Toilet T-issue Toilet Paper Direction Poll
    and
    Toothpaste Squeezing Preference Poll
    http://www.judyreiser.com/poll.php

    ReplyDelete
  61. OMG UNDER is SOOOO horrrrrible!!! I just shudder whenever I see it, or at least tsk tsk in disappointment. When I'm at someone else's house that has it under, I CHANGE it to over!!!!!!!

    ReplyDelete