Toilet lid: up or down?

[Orville mogul]

This has bugged me for a long time, but I decided not to put it in the Pit because I realized that it might be me who is the odd one. So instead, I figured a bit of research would be a good starting point.

Here’s the question: Toilet lid up or down? I was raised always to put the lid down after I use the toilet. No one wants to have to look at the inside of your bowl, no matter how clean you think it is. But I was surprised as an adult to see that, almost without exception, my guests, and people I visit, leave the lid up after use.

So this poll is to see who prefers which lid position, and ideally, some explanation of why. I should add that we keep our bathroom very clean, so there shouldn’t be any issue of our guests not wanting to touch our lid. Let’s limit the poll to private toilets (your own and the people you visit). Public loos are a different matter….

Oh, and tell me your gender if you feel like. I am a guy.

[corkboard]

I always close the lid when I'm done, partially for aesthetics and partially for practicality- so nothing that is accidentally dropped will end up in there.

[Anecdote]I have used a Sonicare toothbrush for about ten years now. Every new brush head comes with its own little plastic cover that snaps on and off, and I always use it. One night a long time ago, I pulled the cover off so I could use the brush, and the cover slipped out of my hand- *bounce* on the vanity, *bounce* on the floor, and *plunk!* in the bowl, which someone had left up. And that was the end of that.[/a]

[robardin]

Originally Posted by corkboard

I always close the lid when I'm done, partially for aesthetics and partially for practicality- so nothing that is accidentally dropped will end up in there.

This. Most of my bathroom toilets have shelving over them or a spare roll of TP on top of the water tank behind the seat. In my 40+ years of life I have more than once accidentally knocked or dropped something into the toilet. I like to think I can learn from experience.

[FairyChatMom]

I want our lids closed. Apart from the chance of things falling in as mentioned already, we have 2 cats. The last thing I need is a soaking wet cat who fell into the toilet or a wet seat from a cat who was playing in the water.

Plus I think it looks tacky.

[kayaker]

Always down, that's way it exists.

[luv2draw]

I used to leave the lid up. A toilet is a normal thing so who cares if you see inside?

BUT recently, after seeing some health type TV programs, I now put it down when I flush. It seems that flushing causes a big flume of "stuff" to rise up in your bathroom. Think germs settling on your exposed toothbrush, your towels, etc. Yuck!

[tdn]

It depends on where I am. My own? Up. Anyone else's? Down.

[tdn]

Originally Posted by luv2draw

BUT recently, after seeing some health type TV programs, I now put it down when I flush. It seems that flushing causes a big flume of "stuff" to rise up in your bathroom. Think germs settling on your exposed toothbrush, your towels, etc. Yuck!

You sure about that?

[gotpasswords]

Lid down also prevents the dog from waking us up at 2 AM with her license tag clinking against the toilet while she's slurping up a drink.

[FatBaldGuy]

When I first read the OP, I was thinking the question was the perennial one about the toilet seat being left up or down, and my answer to that is, it depends on whether I use the toilet in a standing or sitting position. Of course the lid gets left up. I just looks unnatural the other way.

[Yorikke]

At home, I always put it down, because one of the cats likes to jump up on the seat, and he's awfully stupid. Perhaps stupid enough to just leap up and into the toilet if the lid were up.

Out, I never think about it.

Joe

[shiftless]

I'm a guy. I adjust the toilet each time I use it, sometimes the seat needs to be up, sometimes it needs to be down. I assume others adjust the seat and lid before use. When I'm done I flush and leave. Perhaps the next person will want things the way I left them and that would save a step for them. If the lid automatically reset itself I wouldn't mind, just don't want to bother myself.

[Orville mogul]

Originally Posted by tdn

It depends on where I am. My own? Up. Anyone else's? Down.

Interesting. Can you elaborate a bit? Why the difference?

[Orville mogul]

Originally Posted by FatBaldGuy

Of course the lid gets left up. I just looks unnatural the other way.

I am intrigued. What's unnatural about it? Not to judge or anything, but I would assume the lid was put there for a reason?

[tdn]

Originally Posted by Endemic

Interesting. Can you elaborate a bit? Why the difference?

In other peoples' homes, it's polite to put it down. In my home (assuming I have no guests), it's convenient to keep the lid and seat up.

[Lacunae Matata]

Lid down. I don't want stuff to fall in, I don't want the dogs drinking from the bowls, and I prefer that the lid be closed when I flush. Plus, this way I never get the "Surprise, honey! I left the seat up so you could fall in when you're not fully awake! You're welcome!" in case Mr. M forgets, because I'm programmed to raise the lid before I go.

[Dewey Finn]

I've gotten into the habit of closing the lid before flushing, because I read somewhere about what is kicked into the air when the thing flushes and the lid is open.

[RedWood]

After a brief but thoughtful discussion with my partner, we agreed that the position of both seat and lid would be Down when not in use; neatly avoiding cats drinking from it and anything/one falling in... including me at 3 am
My plumbing is old, so it does look nicer closed - I did not think of that aspect before this thread. :thoughtful smiley:
oh yeah - I am female, partner's not >^.^< ~

FCM: ever seen kitty mistake the open toilet for a landing zone? She went three feet straight up...

[secretsmile36]

Woman and lid up.

[Procrustus]

I said I "never think about it," so in practice that means I actually leave it up, since closing it would require some thought. Our toilet is not near our toothbrushes or towels, so I don't care about that (I don't think I would anyway). The dog likes to have a drink now and then. Plus, it's just easier if it's up the next time someone needs to use it. Male

[Wheelz]

Up, for two reasons:

1. The cats like to drink the nice cool water. Relax, we keep all the toilets very clean, and the kitties have been quite healthy for many years, so it's clearly not that big a deal. If they want a drink and the lid is down, believe me, they'll let us know.

2. The toilets must be in "ready-to-use" mode for my wife at all times. This means seat down, lid up. I've never come close to winning an argument about this, so that's the way it is, period.

[Dewey Finn]

Originally Posted by Dewey Finn

I've gotten into the habit of closing the lid before flushing, because I read somewhere about what is kicked into the air when the thing flushes and the lid is open.

Actually, I think the "somewhere" I read about what happens when the toilet flushes was this Straight Dope column.

[Rhiannon8404]

Lid down. For me, it's like this...you don't leave the cabinets open or the lid of the washing machine up, why leave the toilet lid up? Things should be closed when not in use.

[delphica]

I was raised to keep the lid down.

Which I did for many years, until 9/11, when I read that having access to water in toilets made the difference for some pets stranded in apartments for a few days in unsafe residential areas.

I know that's a little weird in terms of being one's main take-away from 9/11, but still ... it got me thinking about what would happen if we were in a car accident or something and it took a few days for anyone to find our cat.

So for about 10 years, the lid was always up to provide emergency water for the cat, which worked because the cat didn't seem too otherwise interested in it.

Now we have a toddler, who likes to drop things in the toilet so the lid is down again.

[Anne Neville]

I don't want the cats drinking from the toilets, so the lids go down. We don't keep our toilets very clean (our housecleaner handles most toilet cleaning), and, even if we did, the stuff that is used to clean toilets is probably not intended to be ingested by cats.

This also makes it much less likely that things will fall into the toilet. In a small master bathroom used by two klutzes, this is an issue.

In someone else's house, I often put the lid down. If not, I leave it the way I found it.

[Al Bundy]

I'm not that concerned what people think. I want things ready to go. If I use certain dishes, bowls or utensils, they are left out on the counter too. I have a variety of tools (pliers, drivers, knives,VOM, flashlight, etc.) right on my desk. That's how I roll.

[kath94]

Originally Posted by tdn

In other peoples' homes, it's polite to put it down. In my home (assuming I have no guests), it's convenient to keep the lid and seat up.

I responded to the poll with "lid up," but this is more accurate.

I thought this thread was going to be more about male/female toilet etiquette. You know, guys should put the seat down when done. Unless, of course, you're married to my stubborn husband who feels that it's MY duty to leave the seat UP for him. If I leave the seat down he's threatened to pee on it. And has. Jeez.

Fortunately, we have two bathrooms upstairs now and keep to ourselves.

[Chopper9760]

Woman, lid always up, I wish the damned thing didn't have a lid.

I've never fallen in but I have gone for a midnight run and inadvertently sat on the lid while naked - eww, lid up please.

Toilet Aerosol - I hope that's a myth but if it isn't, well, I haven't been sick yet. I just don't care.

I know Kimber sneaks a toilet drink now and then but that's the least of my worries. She still carting around an elk leg I gave her in October. After her name she probably hears "don't eat that" more than any other phrase.

None of us have keeled over dead so I reckon the risk is not so great.

[Gary "Wombat" Robson]

I picked "lid down," but not for the specified reason. I just want to keep the cats out of it.

[CalMeacham]

We always keep it down, because we have cats, too. Our cats don't have a tendency to seek out the toilet, unlike Robson's, but we have a more compelling reason.

the toilet lid is an essential step up to the bathroom window, where our cats like to hang out. Especially for Lotta, our oldest cat, who now can't jump directly up to the sill.

One day Pepper Mill opened the lid, preparatory to using the toilet, when lotta bounded in, making a run for the window. She jumped up onto the toilet...


...and the lid wasn't there. All the gyrations in the world couldn't change her course, the laws of conservation of momentum and gravity being what they are, so she landed in the water. She immediately scrambled out, shaking off her soaked limbs with every step. Ordinarily Lotta is the kindest and most easygoing feline, but she looked daggers at Pepper Mill that day, certain that this was a deliberate prank on her part.

[wheresmymind]

Lid down, I just think it looks better. I now have a practical reason as well (my cat), but I put the lid down long before I got him.

[panache45]

Didn't we just have a poll on this a couple of weeks ago?

I always leave it up. Many years ago I was suddenly hospitalized, and my cat was left alone in my apartment for two weeks. If the seat had been down, he'd have died of dehydration.

[percypercy]

At my house, the lid is almost always down but I don't freak when it's up. The cats were long ago banned from spending a long time in the bathrooms. One cat likes to think he's really acrobatic, so he jumps from the side of the tub to the top of the toilet and back. He's missed at least twice, ending up in the tub with me. It wasn't fun for either of us. Another likes to use the tub and sink as her personal litter box. Off the top of my head I can't recall anything the other one does, but it's just easier to keep the doors to the two bathrooms closed. I hardly ever use the second bathroom anyway.

[Sierra Indigo]

Lid up. For one, I don't keep my toilet in the bathroom so I'm not paranoid about poop spray getting on my toothbrush, and two, regarding the animals - I have this thing called a "Door" on my toilet, that closes so the dog doesn't get in there. Not because he'll drink out of the toilet, but because apparently bog roll is OMG THE BEST TOY EVER.

[shijinn]

Originally Posted by tdn

You sure about that?

Originally Posted by Dewey Finn

Actually, I think the "somewhere" I read about what happens when the toilet flushes was this Straight Dope column.

i think it is interesting how a link to the same page draws two opposing conclusions. personally, i am reading the column as agreeing that yes, leaving the lid up results in a spray of microbes around the bathroom. that is however, with the caveat that there are worse places in the house in terms of harbouring microorganisms.

[Orville mogul]

Originally Posted by panache45

Didn't we just have a poll on this a couple of weeks ago?

You are right, there was a similar poll back in November. Honestly I did check to see whether it had been done before, but I had been meaning to write it for months and someone beat me to it!

[Rachellelogram]

I leave the lid where it was when I entered the bathroom. I've yet to enter a bathroom where the lid is closed. In fact, many public toilets don't even HAVE lids (I'm guessing that makes them easier to clean, less surface area to worry about + fewer hinges). So, I vote to leave it up. I only put it down when I take a shower, because I need a place to set my dirty clothes after removing them that isn't the floor. I open it back up on my way out.

[BigT]

Originally Posted by kayaker

Always down, that's [why] it exists.

No, it exists to give you a back while you're sitting on the toilet. Otherwise the tank lid would leave a mark, or you'd have to never lean back.

It also exists to give you a stool to sit on when you need to sit in the bathroom for some reason (like cleaning the tub). Though, admittedly, without being able to lean back, it's far from comfortable.

And it does look wrong to be down. Go look at any toilet pictures in media. Go look at advertisements. It's always up. And look at restrooms: they don't even have lids, so obviously it's not that important to function.

[Sudden Kestrel]

I almost always leave it up, but I'm pretty much the only one who uses the bathroom so no reason not to. The one exception is if I have to leave the bathroom door open for some reason. (If it's colder than -20F, the radiator in there is inadequate.) Then I close the lid to keep the cat from putting stuff in the toilet.

[Mama Zappa]

Always up*. Oddly, we've pretty much never dropped anything in that didn't belong in: not at home anyway... I've dropped things into toilets in public places, twice, both were places where there WAS no toilet lid.

* except when we were sharing digs with toddlers or cats. If you're not a cat person, you won't understand when I say that cats CAN INDEED levitate, when leaping onto the toilet seat and misjudging their trajectory by an inch or so .

[CalMeacham]

Originally Posted by Mama Zappa

Always up*. Oddly, we've pretty much never dropped anything in that didn't belong in: not at home anyway... I've dropped things into toilets in public places, twice, both were places where there WAS no toilet lid.

* except when we were sharing digs with toddlers or cats. If you're not a cat person, you won't understand when I say that cats CAN INDEED levitate, when leaping onto the toilet seat and misjudging their trajectory by an inch or so .

Not our Lotta. See post #30.

[Corcaigh]

Down

Always been that way in our house - Mother's Rules and no one disobeys Mother.

Also we'd a cat who would drink the water, and I didn't want her to drown or anything.

And also, lived near a block of flats where a woman claimed she found a rat climbing out of her toilet.

[chizzuk]

Lid down. Because I saw that same TV show about dirty stuff spraying out of the toilet when you flush, and I have a cat. I don't think she would jump into the toilet, and she has never demonstrated any interest in it, but I don't want to take the chance.

I also like to put my foot on the lid when I'm putting lotion on, which would be kind of hard and disgusting if the lid was up.

[Enright3]

I'm a guy; putting the seat and the lid down was the agreement my wife and I came to regarding toilets. To use my brother-in-law's argument; you you're done using a jar of peanut butter or jelly, you'd close the lid wouldn't you?

[Broomstick]

My preference is for lid down for many reasons: not impressed by seeing the interior of toilets, makes it useful as a seat, fear of pets falling in, fear of other stuff falling in, etc.

My spouse (male) seems to prefer leaving it up. Given that he occasionally has OMIGOD URGENT!URGENT!URGENT! episodes this is partly for ease of access Also, I think he just doesn't think to put it down.

We've agreed to stop arguing over the matter. Leave it as you want, and reconfigure as needed when you return.

[Terra1041]

I keep the lid up. The seat is always down unless I'm cleaning the toilet, as there are no males in this apartment.

[Ibanez]

I keep it up. I'm sure I'm not fooling anyone by keeping the lid down because "it looks better". Oh ya, they know what's going on in there. There also seems to be an inordinate amount of men who are married to women that have lost the use of their limbs, my condolences.

[Broomstick]

Just because I prefer the look with the lid down doesn't mean I'm trying to "fool" anyone. It's just a preference. I'm not pretending there's some great advantage or objective beauty in that configuration.

I know what people do with/in/on toilets, too - that doesn't mean my preference to NOT see them actually doing it indicates any type of "fooling", either. It's a totally natural process that generally leaves one feeling better afterwards than before, I'm all for it. I'd just rather not see it.

[thelabdude]

I put it down to make sure the dog doesn't drink out of it. Also as in the escaping inanimate objects thread, it keeps them out of the bowl.

[kmshrader]

Originally Posted by tdn

It depends on where I am. My own? Up. Anyone else's? Down.

This, but I'd like to add if it was down when I got there.

Also, I'm female.