This is how I needed this dilemma explained to me.
If you don’t shut the lid before you flush it sends poopoo peee particles flying around the bathroom onto your toothbrush
Mythbusters found it makes virtually no difference, and lid down can actually make particles go further due to the pressure forcing them through a smaller gap.
This is terrible news
Please look this up for yourself- these responses are sus
Every source I could find says that closing the lid is better.
They also, for some reason, last about 11minutes longer in the air when closed. The studies are misleading because they say there are fewer visible particles, but the bacteria count remains the same.
What episode was this? I can only find evidence of the opposite of what you’re claiming here
The plumbing authority link? Yeah, they leave out the part where the Mythbusters found poop everywhere when flushing with the lid closed as well.
Uh no, like literally any link 🤣
Yes, I followed the ones posted. None of them say the opposite, they all leave out the results from the lidded flushes. And someone else posted a paper that showed that although lid closed produced fewer particles, they were larger, and lasted longer, so flushing lid closed was not particularly more hygienic.
That’s not a research article, it’s an opinion piece with no published data and no references.
here’s a real research article that found lidded flushing still produced large aerosolized droplets on flushing:
https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/acmi/10.1099/acmi.fis2019.po0192
Myth Busters are not a solid scientific source. I discussed the issue a bit, linking to some papers in another comment here: https://feddit.de/comment/5298414
Although Mythbusters is not a peer reviewed scientific source, they do employ reasonable standards of experimentation.
And the first source you posted is particularly interesting, with similar conclusions to what I remember from Mythbusters; that lids reduce the total number of particles found, but that the particles produced from lid use last longer and are larger. So a lid closed situation can;t really be said to be more hygienic.
Unfortunately on a cursory skimming of the other articles none of them seem compare toilets with lid down to lid up, they all seem to look at lidless toilets only. Thus, they can;t really speak to the topic of lid use being more hygienic without the direct comparison.
This is legit the reason I started putting the lid down as a kid lmao
Because as we all know, bacteria stay put and do not travel to anything else, even if it touches the bacteria laden surface.
Chair height, elongated bowl for the win.
my toilet in rented apartment doesn’t have a lid
You can buy lids at Home Depot/Lowes.
Pro tip; keep an umbrella in the corner, pop it open and set it upside down on the turlet before you flush
Best reason to close the lid: The things you do in the toilet smell. Lid keeps the smells from spreading.
Flushing is a thing.
Tell me you haven’t owned a house without telling me you haven’t owned a house
I own two houses and seven toilets and I can’t say that I have ever had my toilets stink unless they are broken or not cleaned regularly.
Also, they might be stinky if I was to get my nose all up in there, but I tend not to do that.
As far as I know, my bathrooms all have working fans as well. That could cause issues if they were broken.
Cleaning regularly is the one, your short comment above insinuated flushing is all you need to do.
The short comment I posted should be classified as a quip.
What it actually insinuated is there is a very short list of operating and maintenance procedures for toilets. If you are to the point of closing the lid to contain odors, some of those basic steps might be getting missed. Hence, the quip.
Actually it doesn’t, flushing with the lid closed can leave the particles in the air for up to around 11minutes longer as they exit the side of the toilet with more velocity and pressure. It’s not a sealed system.
Yeah, I’m aware that toilet lids are not an airtight system, I’ve seen them. It still does slow down airflow enough for most of the poop to settle instead of spreading to your whole house.
No it actually does not, it increases the spread and creates a pressure build up compared to being open, you are initially adding volume into the toilet when you flush with the lid closed this pressure build up is greater and spreada the particles further. You are essentially creating a shit nozzle on the sides of your toilet. All the lid does is help the particles become bigger so there are fewer visible particles but they are bigger and travel further, while remaining airborne longer due to their velocity.
I do it to prevent my dog from drinking from the toilet
Plus it hides the nasty stuff you leave behind, when you don’t know how to operate a toilet brush.
Real pros streamline and take off the seat and lid altogether.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squat_toilet
Especially common for public bathrooms in Asia and parts of Europe, specifically because there is no direct skin contact which reduces risk of infection. There are also claims that you poop easier squatting than sitting.
- unhygienic
Look at this plebian making contact with the toilet when shitting. What’s wrong, not enough thigh strength?
/s
What if you need to sit? I’m gonna guess this is a joke
Free kegels!!
on your personal toilet that(is) the only way
Quit ya bitching and roll the math.
Some stand to pee. Some sit to pee. everyone sits to shit. In a mixed gender household the seat gets most use down.
Not at all what the meme is talking about
The meme is making it look like seat down is presumptuous, which it is not. It has the least effort vs hygiene trade-off, since sitting to pee is much more hygienic.
The point the meme is making is that the lid should be closed. It equally derides both seat up and seat down
I agree, and I propose a second reason: it is too easy (for my dumb self, at least) to not realize the seat is up, try to sit down, and go for an unexpected swim
They don’t have Washlets (bidet seats) so they’re all a fail from me :P
Though 100% on closing the lid.
Everyone else dribbles all over the seat and doesn’t clean it so I leave it up.
Plus, it’s more mysterious and potentially surprising.
Well now I’m going to expect something surprising
Then it’s just gross any way you’d flip the lid.
Yeah that coworker who never removes his stains loves to make people focus on it.
Seat AND lid go down, always, no exceptions. Other than having a fundamental redesign of the entire structure, this is the only correct solution.
I’ve always thought that toilets should be more like shower stalls.
care to elaborate?
Nah
'aight then.
Get one of those non-slamming lids and it’s too easy to knock if down while flushing. It’s half closed as you leave the room.
Only downside is when you’re at a friend’s place and realize too late that they don’t have such an awesome amenity. You end up being the toilet slamming asshole, yet again.
I immediately imagined it being a heavy seat that gets slammed too XD
I’m feeling déjà vu reading this comment
I have a solution to our hygiene problems, everyone: poop hoses. Dropping a spooky dookie into a bowl of water is outdated and gross. We can just attach a poop hose to our bee hinds and wham! Hygiene.
