# A discussion about toilet seat positioning **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 14, 2016, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685 "2016-12-14T15:31:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/41 "2016-12-16T10:57:51Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > I am always surprised about how much passion this one brings about. I close the seat and to make this “burden” slightly easier, I bought one of those seats which slowly close, so all we need to do is push the thing and it slowly goes down. I’m not feeling any passion, just curiosity. How does putting the seat down ease the burden? If I’m on deck, and I have to take a wicked yes, your action actually increased my workload. Unless you are acknowledging that you are interested in easing only female (and the occasional hunkering male) burdens. But again, my OP has not been addressed. That is, why do many women feel men are being discourteous when they leave the seat raised, but do not consider that they are being discourteous when leaving the seat down? mmm ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/42 "2016-12-16T11:18:02Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > I’m not feeling any passion, just curiosity. > > How does putting the seat down ease the burden? If I’m on deck, and I have to take a wicked yes, your action actually increased my workload. Unless you are acknowledging that you are interested in easing only female (and the occasional hunkering male) burdens. > > But again, my OP has not been addressed. That is, why do many women feel men are being discourteous when they leave the seat raised, but do not consider that they are being discourteous when leaving the seat down? > > mmm My guess to your question is that because if a women asks the man to leave it down, and he routinely forgets and/or ignores the request, that feel rude. Rarely have I heard of a man who actually _asks_ that it be left up. So if a woman doesn’t leave it up, she’s not forgetting/ignoring a request. Whether the guy thinks the request is silly or stupid is beside the point. If he agrees to do it, knows it’s important, and ignores it it feels rude. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/43 "2016-12-16T11:20:27Z")
No, it has, in fact, repeatedly been addressed. You just didn’t get the answer you wanted. Let me repeat for you: it a toilet, NOT a urinal. (If you want a urinal install one.) No one wants to see your toilet bowl proudly on display upon entering the bathroom. Sorry, it’s not about male/female wars over who deserves more consideration, as you so clearly desire. It’s about nobody needing to inspect your freaking toilet bowl! ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/44 "2016-12-16T11:45:42Z")
When the seat is left up, it displays what’s spattered on the rim and underside of the seat, and my wife nags me to clean it more often. Leaving it down gets me out of cleaning it for 6 months or more. ---
**Author:** ![sandra\_nz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@sandra\_nz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sandra_nz)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/45 "2016-12-16T12:02:32Z")
_1. Are you (female) claiming that you actually sit on the toilet without first checking the seat position? And you have actually ‘fallen in’? If not, this argument is moo_.\* Yes I have done this and yes, you can slip in. It’s not a pleasant event. _2. What if the next user is male? Is it not a courtesy to him to leave the seat up? And for that matter, are you (female) ever extending this courtesy to males? That is, do you ever place the seat in the up position after use? I didn’t thinks so. Moo point._ There are four options for the next user: woman wants a wee (seat down), woman wants a poo (seat down), man wants a wee (seat up), man wants a poo (seat down). 75% of those scenarios are seat down. _3. This is, to me, the only reasoning that (ahem) holds some water. I also believe the seat and lid should be closed when not in use. However, the complaints I hear are always about the seat being left raised, never the lid. Another moo point._ What’s with all the moo-ing? I agree that lid down is the only way to ensure a more sanitary environment. For me, leaving the seat up feels the same as leaving a cupboard door open. It’s about the look of the thing. Going into the bathroom when the seat is down helps it look neat and orderly. Going into the bathroom when the seat is up looks messy. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/46 "2016-12-16T12:10:07Z")
> [@Richard\_Pearse](#): > > Here’s how I see it. > > Assume one man and one woman inhabit the house. The woman will always want the seat down while the man will sometimes want it down. Overall the seat needs to be down more than it needs to be up and should therefore be left down. This > [@elbows](#): > > With the seat up the toilet looks like it’s being cleaned, bowl well displayed. > > With the seat down it appears and is, ready to use. Bowl not so ‘on display’. > > And again, lid, up or down, as each per individual preference, no hard fast rule. > > But leaving it seat up, never acceptable IMHO. And this. > [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > But again, my OP has not been addressed. That is, why do many women feel men are being discourteous when they leave the seat raised, but do not consider that they are being discourteous when leaving the seat down? Because this: > [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > My guess to your question is that because if a women asks the man to leave it down, and he routinely forgets and/or ignores the request, that feel rude. Rarely have I heard of a man who actually _asks_ that it be left up. So if a woman doesn’t leave it up, she’s not forgetting/ignoring a request. > > Whether the guy thinks the request is silly or stupid is beside the point. If he agrees to do it, knows it’s important, and ignores it it feels rude. You’ve gotten your answers. You just don’t \*like \*them. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/47 "2016-12-16T12:34:11Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > 1. Are you (female) claiming that you actually sit on the toilet without first checking the seat position? And you have actually ‘fallen in’? If not, this argument is moo\*. Not so much since I got married but… yeah. Two reasons: when I lived alone the seat pretty much always stayed down (barring the occasional male visitor) so no need to check, I knew where it was. Second: unlike men, I do not have to aim when disposing of bodily waste, so there’s less need for me to be observant. Especially when getting up in the middle of the night I’m only half awake and less likely to double-check anything. Yes, I have “fallen in” once or twice. Usually that “middle of the night half awake” thing. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/48 "2016-12-16T12:35:40Z")
Hey, all you macho men, how about cleaning up your mess after you pee standing up. Ya know, your piss-drips on the rim and your piss-drips on the floor (unless you’re one of those guys who packs your pecker away quickly enough to only drip out in your underwear, but that’s a whole other issue). Don’t want to have to clean up after yourself so often? Pee while sitting down on the toilet seat (and take care to remember to sit on the seat, not the rim). Once you are toilet trained, you’ll no longer suffer from the urge to leave the seat up. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/49 "2016-12-16T16:56:22Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > Don’t want to have to clean up after yourself so often? Pee while sitting down on the toilet seat (and take care to remember to sit on the seat, not the rim). You seem to be undereducated on this aspect of male anatomy. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/50 "2016-12-16T23:34:49Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > My guess to your question is that because if a women asks the man to leave it down, and he routinely forgets and/or ignores the request, that feel rude. Rarely have I heard of a man who actually _asks_ that it be left up. So if a woman doesn’t leave it up, she’s not forgetting/ignoring a request. > > Whether the guy thinks the request is silly or stupid is beside the point. If he agrees to do it, knows it’s important, and ignores it it feels rude. After re-reading and reconsidering the thread, I think this is the key answer. FWIW, I have never, ever heard of a man asking that the lid be kept up for his convenience, and I could not imagine a man taking umbrage at the woman who forgot to do so. (at this point I feel the need to make this clear: I believe both the lid AND the seat should be left closed while not in use) mmm ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2016, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/51 "2016-12-17T03:22:58Z")
> [@sandra\_nz](#): > > There are four options for the next user: woman wants a wee (seat down), woman wants a poo (seat down), man wants a wee (seat up), man wants a poo (seat down). 75% of those scenarios are seat down. Sorry, there’s also either one needs to throw up. Seat up for both so we’re back to a tie. Also someone may wish to sit on it with lid down, but that option still loses with only two. What I didn’t include probabilities? Well neither did you. “Weeing” certainly outnumbers pooing by quite a bit I’d think. And what if there are two men and one woman in the house? ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2016, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/52 "2016-12-17T03:41:30Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > You seem to be undereducated on this aspect of male anatomy. You have no idea how mistaken you are on this. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2016, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/53 "2016-12-17T11:58:09Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > You seem to be undereducated on this aspect of male anatomy. > [@Muffin](#): > > You have no idea how mistaken you are on this. I think \*\*eschereal \*\*is 100% correct, you \*do \*seem to be undereducated on this. mmm ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2016, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/54 "2016-12-17T12:58:51Z")
Guys pissing in the sink solves the problem. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2016, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/55 "2016-12-17T16:20:04Z")
Ever hear the adage _No matter how much you dance, the last drip ends in your pants_? Ever notice how after urinating some men clear out the last of the urine by shaking or milking their wangs. Those guys are not whacking off in public – they are trying to clear their urethras. Read up on post-micturation dribble, and consider that a male urethra tends to be about 15 cm longer than a females. Oh, and note that one way of dealing with the drip is to relax and sit on the toilet when urinating. ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2016, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/56 "2016-12-17T16:23:50Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Guys pissing in the sink solves the problem. Added benefit: a forceful spray can help deglaze your pans! ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2016, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/57 "2016-12-17T16:41:06Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > Ever hear the adage _No matter how much you dance, the last drip ends in your pants_? > > Ever notice how after urinating some men clear out the last of the urine by shaking or milking their wangs. Those guys are not whacking off in public – they are trying to clear their urethras. > > Read up on post-micturation dribble, and consider that a male urethra tends to be about 15 cm longer than a females. > > Oh, and note that one way of dealing with the drip is to relax and sit on the toilet when urinating. You must remember, though, that that extra six inches of urethra is best configured for standing micturation. When a man sits, he can, yes, clear his bladder, but there is still some liquid in the tube, which is quite difficult to clear. The easiest way to clear it is _to stand up_. Think about that for a minute. (Luckily, most of the drippage will land on the nose of the seat, which is the part that a sitting person is least likely to come in contact with.) ---
**Author:** ![stretch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@stretch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stretch)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2016, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/58 "2016-12-17T16:49:12Z")
> [@OldGuy](#): > > Sorry, there’s also either one needs to throw up. Seat up for both so we’re back to a tie. Also someone may wish to sit on it with lid down, but that option still loses with only two. Oh, no. Seat down for throwing up. I’ll clean up the seat after, but I’m not leaning on that cold bowl while tossing my cookies. And the less of the underside of the rim that I see while my face is down there is better, too. ☹ I prefer seat and lid down when the toilet is not is use. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2016, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/59 "2016-12-17T16:54:23Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > You must remember, though, that that extra six inches of urethra is best configured for standing micturation. Six and three tenths, I’ll have you know!:mad: ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2016, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685/60 "2016-12-17T17:47:52Z")
> [@stretch](#): > > Oh, no. Seat down for throwing up. I’ll clean up the seat after, but I’m not leaning on that cold bowl while tossing my cookies. Balcony rail. Much more satisfying. The roses love it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-discussion-about-toilet-seat-positioning/774685.md?page=4)