I am over the top person - the fiance was the opposite until he got sick of me changing it and finally went with me - LOL. I always found it more sanitary and neater...the other way just screams fraternity to me for some reason. I've been known to change it at other people's houses if it's different...though it seems like most people I know do it the "correct" way.

For me this is a great way to check compatibility! if the person says "yes", I know we wouldn't be a good fit!!! i would drive them crazy!

LOL!!!!

Sadly enough this has been a topic in my household too. We both think we are right and I am cool to drop it. My husband keeps bringing it up. I go under, he goes over. So when he brings it up it goes in one ear and out the other. He can change it if he wants, but I'll keep doing it the way I always have.

I don't actually care, personally. My partner does, highly. He'll switch it if it's "wrong" (in our own house, only!) We've been together uh... 17 years this year I guess it is... so I hang it the waterfall way. ;)

And, I'm sorry, but it makes me think of this web page, wherein toilet paper hanging direction is the number 1 issue: http://www.polyfamilies.com/polycohab.html

LEFT! OK, I'm obsessive about this. And yes, I will "correct" it if I visit the toilet in your home.

This debate is over the top!

It's a no brainer. right is right (over the top) of course. although I will admit that when pets are in the house wrong saves paper.

As long as your wiping yourself the RIGHT way, does the direction of the toilet paper really matter?

I actually want to hear from those who have "Joan Crawford Moments" when they see that toilet paper is placed the "wrong" way.

I think it should be OVER.....meaning, nearest to the 'user'

That way, one is not 'clawing' at the wall for paper.

Yep!

I once saw an interview with a woman who recently lost her beloved husband. She said she would give absolutely anything to find the toilet paper on the "wrong" way because that would mean he was still there with her. Don't sweat the small stuff.

I've always done the waterfall and I remember years ago on some show, this debate came up so the went to a toilet paper manufactures and they said that the waterfall is the correct way, that's why they put the designs on the outside so it always shows. Also, when it's that way, it's easier to grab, especially if it's in one of those "In Wall" dispensers.

But, I guess since it's your toilet paper and your...
You can do what ever you want.

Wow, find it very interesting that something as benign as this could be considered right or wrong. I too used to hang it the "so called" correct way. Not for any real reason. But I also have TP crazy cats, and turning it the opposite way does stop the little devils. My cats will unroll the paper in all three bathrooms if they can. So, I opt to be in the "wrong"

OMFG, you are so wrong. It is over the top, not from the bottom. Think of anytime you've ever been to a proper hotel: have you EVERY had the paper put on backwards?! The main reason for this is not only appearance (you don't have that odd dangling bit from behind but at worse from the front where you can see it) but because many times you do not need toilet paper in the bathroom to wipe your ass: you need it to blow your nose, maybe swipe a bit of stray toothpaste on the floor, etc. From behind it is MUCH more difficult to paw, especially when sleepy.

DO NOT EVER PUT IT ON FROM BEHIND EVER AGAIN!

I just have to say that I am absolutely dumbfounded at the number of people who have stated that they will actually switch the toilet paper roll in somebody else's home if they don't like the direction it is going. How utterly petty not to mention rude and downright controlling. Just because it doesn't meet your aesthetics - whats next? Repainting a wall you don't like the color of, or tossing out a photograph because you don't like the person in it?

Over the top.
But this is so minor compared to the real TP problem: the horrid TP holders in public places. The ones with the huge rolls of TP locked inside monstrous holders. You can never grab hold of enough TP to pull any out. Or you can't get any at all when starting a new roll. Or the front cover falls down and almost kills you. I think there should be legislation on these things.

my mom has been on me about this my whole life. i don't care! it's stupid to have it come over the top. it's easier to wind up with too much tissue and have to wind it back up. it looks stupid. it is so annoying to have hotels do it that way with those little folded points. i can find the freaking end of the roll, thanks.

if someone switched my roll, i would call them out. get your own damn house.

The real worry in my part of the country is if you fold it or wadd it. haha gross

I don't think I could live with someone who cared about this.

Such a strange argument. I've always done it over the top and never thought about it. Then my MIL (who is very particular about that kind of thing) always does it the opposite. And I've always wondered why. Now, I'm going to have to ask her.

I keep mine, free floating, on a fluted 1950's promotional saucer from the Hershey's corporation that is about 'How to make chocolate'. This renders me very obviously - and very happily - too declasee for this WHOLE conversation.

Waterfall always. Unless you have a cat. Then underhand so they can't unravel the whole roll.

'Waterfall'. Can't find the end of the roll in the middle of the night the other way and end up spinning the stupid thing around and around.

I will also replace the roll at people's houses if I use the last, as long as they have a roll around. I feel strongly that one should be curteous and leave the bathroom so the next person has a pleasant experience. Yes, I will replace it in the 'waterfall' fashion even if they had it on wrong.

C'mon Joeshottie. You wouldn't let a baby walk in front of a truck would you? It's the same thing. God put us superior beings here for just that reason, to protect our inferiors, even from themselves. We are shining beacons, lighting the way to enlightenment, Namaste!,

@Joeshottie:

whats next? Repainting a wall you don't like the color of, or tossing out a photograph because you don't like the person in it?

OMG I ONLY DID THAT ONCE!! ONCE!! OK, TWICE, WHATEVER! But will you ever stop bringing it up? NooOOOooo!!!

I am sorry but I absolutely hate HATE!!! when the toilet paper is "backwards" (which is when it feeds facing away from you). It bothers me to the degree that I will switch around toilet paper in people's houses to suit my liking.

I have never seen so many posts so quickly! Hot topic! The waterfall is the correct way... of course.

I like the "right way", the Hilton hotel way, over the top. My kitten hasn't discovered it yet. I think the main thing is to do it the same way, whatever way you pick, every time. The last thing I want to do, half asleep, in the dark, is to grope for paper to unroll.

I think the switching t.p. positions is a little OCD. I am guilty of wiping up sink areas in others' homes, but don't care about their t.p.

I think the poll numbers have spoken. Waterfall is, and always has been, the way to go. Heck, even before TP when we were running naked through the forest and used leaves, the leaves FACED OUT!

The answer is technical.

Most of the time the "right" way is the waterfall, but that's because of the typical location of most toilet paper holders.

It depends on where the holder is, vertically relative to your hand once you reach for it.

If the holder is at or below your hand, then the waterfall method is better because you can grab the end sheet at the right angle, and easily rip the paper between straight out or straight up.

If the holder is really high, then the underhand method is better because you're approaching from below. Then you can rip anywhere between straight out and straight down.

Also the overhand method is typically more aesthetically pleasing, because most of the time you look at the toilet paper from above, because you're standing. That's probably why most people prefer it. In hotels, if you fold a triangle in the end sheet, nobody's going to notice if it's under the roll.

It's simple physics, really.

Unless you have a cat, Hoobichu. Then, it's self-preservation to hang it "wrong"!

Hmmm... I have a tendency to do underhand for t.p., and waterfall for paper towels...

Oh my dear lord - BeckyM just took it to another level.

FINALLY! Someone who said it!!! :D

PS: I switch it around at other people's houses too.....hihi!

If you're OCD like me it's enough to drive you insane. My gf constantly puts it in underhanded and I switch it around to waterfall. This and leaving time on the microwave drives me insane. But it's very endearing...

At any rate, it's not that big of a deal to switch, which I do every time :).

All hotels I've stayed in waterfall their TP.
As a place that makes money from people staying in them, I'd say their way is the right way.

The poll results are skewed towards an over-represented minority! Only the crazed TP arrangers came out to vote...

I learned a while back that general restroom etiquette has taught us to hang toilet paper using the waterfall method. However, I say fuck that. I'm used to the underhand method, and it's way easier to tear that way. I also think that there shouldn't be a right or wrong way, it should be based on comfortableness, how the toilet paper looks doesn't change the overall decor of the bathroom.

I really can't believe this is an issue. It's toilet paper! The only time I think about it for longer than 10 seconds is when it's run out and I've just sat down. Then the yelling commences.

I really can't believe this is going to be the number one post of the weekend roundup- let alone 2009.

There's no "correct" way. People can do whatever they want.

For me, the main reason to do the "waterfall" version is that if it is torn off such that the "flap" is in the back and behind the roll, it is more effort to fiddle with it to get it to a place where you can grab it. You have to grab the roll and turn it clockwise until the flap hangs down the back. If you do it the other way, the area where the sheet was torn out is in front and you can just grab it easily.

Waterfall.

Definitely.

There really, REALLY, *is* a right way, and a wrong way.

Have been known to switch around toilet rolls while visiting, especially at in-laws.

;-)

I think I really don't pay attention to this at all...

I wish my partner put the toilet paper in the holder, no matter if it is the right way or not :D

Underhand, definitely. Because it's easier to tear the paper.

ok, now *this* is over the top, don't you think, people? *snort*

sersly, what i really want to know, is what does it say about a person when every human in their lives does it (what i call..) "backward". how did i end up w/all family and friends and even neighbors.. who are backward stockers. *rolls eyes*

i don't care whose house i'm in.. i switch it to what i now know is called.. 'waterfall'. i tried once not doing so ("who DOES this!!! *argh*" thought I), and before i left that house.. yups, ended up back in there just to 'correct it.'

i do - for the record - loathe discovering someone has done the folderoony. um, yeah. that's just ocd.

yes, it seems the "waterfallers" are much more passionate about this issue so the vote is skewed.

I voted who gives a fark, because really, it is a non-issue in my life. I have all boys in my house and am happy when the bathroom is semi-clean and at least has tp under the sink with which I can replace the cardboard.

To be perfectly honest I have no idea which way I put it on...I never even noticed.

See, with newspaper on a nail, you don't really have to worry about this - easy...

Waterfall always

I don't understand why anyone would hang it so you have to reach BEHIND something to get the loose end - bizarre

Related topic:
Which way do you have your kitchen foil and cling film running out of the box - over the top or from underneath?

and people with cats - close the bathroom door already!!! - problem solved!

I know cats have been mentioned but how bout toddlers? We keep ours coming from the bottom (the wrong way) ever since my 3 year old DD decided she didn't need our help in the bathroom. Over the top meant a whole lot more on the floor which she would then re roll. Can you really tell me that's more sanitary then having it come out the bottom?

There is one situation (and only one) in which there is a correct way to hang. If the toilet paper dispenser holds two rolls stacked vertically (as many in public restrooms do), it is imperative that the top roll be placed in hanging from the back. This way, when the bottom roll runs out and the top roll slides down (and is in some instances resting on top of the bottom roll's empty tube), when you pull out some paper, it (now coming from behind and kind of under) helps lift the roll up a little so you can pull out paper without it tearing. If the top roll is put in so that it hangs from the front, when you pull, you are kind of also pulling down, and the extra friction of the roll on top of the empty tube below will result in you only getting paper square-by-square (at best). You will never be able to get a good length of paper.

Amusing poll.

Waterfall is correct, under is fine if you have cat or toddler problems, but it's your bathroom, so do what you like!

I will refill a holder in public or at someone's home if it's empty and there is an available replacement roll, because I absolutely HATE it when I discover too late that no paper is available. (One reason I always have facial tissues in my purse.) But I don't flip rolls, even when they are wrong.

One of the maintenance guys at work finds it amusing to do the hotel fold in the staff restroom. Nobody else cares.

I took a trip to Egypt and Libya once, for the solar eclipse a couple of years ago. They often don't provide toilet paper at all -- in some cases, it's held by a person (woman, in my case) to whom you must give baksheesh (a tip) in order to be given any before you enter the stall. It pays to carry a supply in your day pack!

I've always used the "waterfall" method, my entire life and it drives me batty when I find it the other way (underhand).

Its odd, I was just thinking about this whole problem the other day when I came across another underhand setup.

There was a bit on NPR *YEARS* ago (I'm talking sometime in the 80s) where the commentator was going on and on about it. I remember sitting in my Grandpa's Chevrolet Caprice Classic in the front seat with him. We were both laughing so hard about how inane the topic seemed to be.

If anyone remembers that NPR bit, by all means please fill me in with some more info. I was but a mere child then, so I don't remember who was talking about it. I just remember sharing the time with my grandpa, laughing about toilet paper :)

My mom taught me that waterfall was the proper way and my husband grew up with the opposite. It's waterfall at my house, but I don't go switching it on my mom-in-law!
See what you think of this: I was told off by my MIL for closing the toilet seat! Seems during her sleepy mid-night visits she expects to be able to plop down without opening the lid. I think it's weird. There's a lid for a reason and I have to consciously correct myself from closing it whenever I visit. People are particular about their bathroom experience, there's no doubt!

The major complaint I've always heard from fans of the "over" option is that the "back" option doesn't let you get enough toilet paper easily.

Which always makes me wonder - just how much freaking toilet paper are they using? Good gravy!

I believe the proper way is to sit the entire roll atop the empty holder.

Another reason waterfall is correct is that is the way the design is printed on.

Yes if I hated the color of a wall at someone's house, I'd tell them it looks horrid - and I have been known to throw out photos because of one certain person being in them.

Over the top is the correct way and the green way!
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/07/green_your_toil.php

Funny. This was just a topic b/n my bf and I. He told me he couldn't have dated me if I put it under.

Sometimes I change it just to mess with him!

cornfrost: They still make printed tp. Most recently, tp that had "Bush" printed on it.

When I started reading through the comments, I almost got up and went to my bathroom to check what position my TP was in. But then I didn't, because IT DOESN'T MATTER.

Here's my method of hanging TP. Pay attention, it's a little technical: I sit on my toilet. I reach with my left hand for paper and find an empty roll (that part of the process is my husband's contribution. If you lack a husband, skip this step). With my right hand, I toss the empty roll into the trash and then grab a new roll from under the sink. I transfer it to my left hand while using my right to open the roll, then finally cram it onto the roller in whichever direction causes my wrist to twist less. Ta-da!

Waterfall is the only correct way for all the reasons stated. And while I won't correct the way someone has hung the TP in their home if they have done it the wrong way, I do think less of them if do it wrong! ;-)

LOL, I think your partner's full of ...snot :P It hardly matters which way the TP comes off the roll as long as there is TP on the roll! If you're leaving him/her without a scrap for use, then...THEN you're in the dog house.

As for me - two cats, one of which loves to tear up TP and paper towels, I point it at the wall to try and 'hide' the tail.

I think who the hell cares? It doesn't matter. End of discussion.

Hoochibu is correct: waterfall is more ergonomic in most bathroom arrangements.

To any readers that don't have pets: not all cats shred toilet paper, I promise!

Anyone with a cat knows the right way. Why tempt the fuzzy little bastards?

Funny topic, and even funnier posts.

I'm a fan of the waterfall method, for purely sanitary (rather than aesthetic) reasons.

Think about it - in order to tear off a piece of TP when it's in the 'under' position, you typically have to brace the roll with your hand. That means you're touching the unused toilet paper... with your hand... um... your UNWASHED hand. Ick.

I remember when I truly didn't notice. And the change for when I started having a sense of right and wrong about this came before I had seen any posts or writings about this. So, there's something moral going on here.

Always waterfall (unless you have cats - toddlers can be trained). Anything else is W-R-O-N-G.

It seems there is still so much intolerance in the world! I mean really- switching the roll in other people's homes if you don't like the way it faces? Shouldn't we have bigger things to worry about?

Did someone seriously just post that the over-the-top method is greener? They are clearly behind on the latest environmental trends. For ethical superiority the "use a leaf" method is best!

My boyfriend will do it underhanded, and I will do it "waterfall". I am the one who usually changes the roll though, so I usually win.

My argument once when I brought up his "wrong underhanded technique" was that I use toilet paper twice as much as he dose, so I should get to choose the hanging method.

I won!

Clearly the underhanded method is superior. It is far less conspicuous, and it is easier to pull down that way.

Obviously.

:)

This is one of those things that most people do whatever mummy did and anything else is just plain WRONG! (see also dish drainers on the counter, sponges vs washcloths, etc.)

my toilet paper is vertical! one of the paper towel-type poles. obviously, more sophisticated.....

I'm of the hang it over to show the expensive decals school.

Oh the hilarity... my hubby and I have this argument alllll the time. I agree with marfa that it is more of a nurture vs. nature argument. You're likely to continue to put the roll on the way your mother did it.

oh, and my kitty leaves the tp alone, thank goodness... now if we could just get her to stop shredding the houseplants...

Definitely over the top. I tend to get too much tp when pulling from the bottom, that and the way you have to tear farther from the roll means that it always dangles down and touches the wall or worse, the floor. Ew. I don't want bathroom-floor germs that close to my girl bits, seriously. Are towards-the-wall people more proportionally male? Because one must remember that people who can't pee standing up use tp for wiping more sensitive and infection-prone areas than men do.

I don't switch in other people's houses (yeah, that's a bit rude) but my roommates don't seem to notice which way they put it on, so I definitely switch when they put a new roll on backwards. And thank goodness, my bf agrees with me.

Plus, for those in the "inconspicuous" camp of towards-the-wall tp, this is one place were function definitely trumps style. You use tp to wipe yourself after you urinate or defecate, get over it.

Haha this is such a funny discussion. I never really thought about it until I heard about the Jennifer Aniston thing. And up until yesterday my cat never paid attention to the toilet paper, but she decided it looked fun to unroll so I'll be putting them on "backwards" from now on. :)

Although after about 10 posts they started to get kinda boring, I'm amused by the argument, especially since my stepfather and brother-in-law had the debate once. Personally, as long as it's there when I need it, I'm not really worried about it. However, out of sheer habit from the way it was growing up, I pull from the bottom. That being said, if a guest in my house took it upon themselves to rearrange something in MY bathroom (or anywhere else for that matter) they would not be invited back. How dare you! I think some people need to put the OCD down, take three steps back, and realize that the planet does not revolve around them. It's toilet paper, for goodness sake, and you don't even live there!

The smaller the issue, the larger the number of comments, eh?

I tend to agree with the over-the-top method, but only an asshole (pun) would actually complain out loud about it being done the other way.

The *correct* way? Over the top, of course. Just like the maids do in most hotel bathrooms.

But sadly, my kooky kitty tends to pull down the toilet paper with his paws -- only when it is positioned this way, and then it puddles (you guessed it), right inside the toilet. So to remedy, I have to load the tp the *incorrect* way, and then try to remember to keep the lid down.

Thank goodness for this poll. Keeps our minds off that pesky recession!

I do it the "right" way. I'm ashamed to admit if I happen to be in a friend's bathroom and theirs isn't..I change it!

I'd like to know how old you are and what rock you've been hiding under to have not heard the TP debate. I barely even believe that you haven't... I haven't done TV in about a decade, so I miss most references to pop-culture. But the TP thing universal and global. Like one's toothpaste-tube ssqeezing technique.

Blynne and Jordan Jennings - LOL! That's what I do. My husband hated it when we shared a bathroom. He got back at me by putting an the empty cardboard roll in my purse. Imagine my surprise when I opened my purse later at work.

I remember reading a copy of Erma Bombeck's "If Life is a Bowl of Cherries, What am I Doing in the Pits?" when I was about 12 (weird kid, I know.)

The only thing I remember from the silly book is this:

"He says up, I say down,
it's becoming quite an issue
On which is the more proper way
To hang the bathroom tissue."

My great-aunt Kaye, may she rest, dressed-down my mother one Christmas when I was a kid, for changing the toilet paper roll when she was in the bathroom - because my mom put it on underhand, and Kaye insisted that overhand was the only correct placement because you could rip off toilet paper without having to use both hands. My mother merely thought she was being a good guest by changing the roll when she used the last of it.

Me, I'm an underhand sort of person. I find that the cats don't pull on it if you don't leave a tail hanging.

That reminds me, need to pick up TP today.

I think the "right" way is dependent on which type of toilet paper holder you have. If it is the set-into-the-wall type of holder, over the top is most functional, but if it is the on-the-wall type of holder the under the bottom is the best.

Oh, dear God.

i had no opinion until a boyfriend told me over was correct. he said the under method can lead to fecal matter accidentally being smudged on the wall as you try to get the end of the tp.

i let the issue go at that one.

we are no longer together.

What ever happened to just wiping the right way?

When I remodeled my bathroom in 2008, I installed a "spindle"-type toilet paper holder; now the question is "should the paper roll out from the right or the left" of the spindle?