# Black Toilet Seats - Common in Your Area? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 1, 2021, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773 "2021-08-01T15:33:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/1 "2021-08-01T15:33:44Z")
I have had a phobia for most of my life. Black toilet seats on white public toilets freak me the heck right out. [I posted about it all the way back in 2000!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-your-mom-warned-you-about/14749/27) Now this hasn’t been much of a problem because in my area (NJ/NY), virtually all public toilets have had white seats for ages. I typically only find them if I happen upon some out-of-the-way bathroom that hasn’t been renovated since 1965 or something. I can’t remember seeing them anyplace else recently in my assorted travels either. Until now. I’ve been in Rochester, MN for the last couple of weeks. (My mom is visiting the Mayo Clinic.) I was SHOCKED to see black toilet seats at the hospital! And the rehab facility. And the airports. The cursed things are everyplace! I’ve been forced to engage in a form of self-directed exposure therapy due to the fact that I have no choice in the matter. I can now use them with only minor anxiety, though I absolutely do not like it and I shudder each and every time I see one. So I have two questions for you all: - Are black public toilet seats common in your area? - Does anybody have any idea why one area would have black toilet seats everywhere when so many others don’t? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/2 "2021-08-01T15:35:41Z")
I had to stop and think about this for a minute, but yes, I think that they are still pretty common in public restrooms that I see. I live in the Midwest, but I have no idea if it’s a regional thing. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/3 "2021-08-01T15:43:40Z")
Could you be a little more specific about where you live? The midwest is pretty huge. Thanks ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/4 "2021-08-01T15:45:47Z")
I live in the Chicago area, but (at least until the past year) travel regularly to Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, etc. I honestly can’t tell you how common black toilet seats are around here (and, honestly, it’s not something I pay a whole lot of attention to), but it’s definitely common enough to not be noteworthy. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/5 "2021-08-01T16:01:52Z")
I’m pretty sure I’ve seen these often enough in the NY area though I really can’t remember. It doesn’t strike me as being unusual enough to stand out. ---
**Author:** ![Somethingwitty1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/somethingwitty1/32/8899_2.png) [@Somethingwitty1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Somethingwitty1)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/6 "2021-08-01T16:51:03Z")
My impression is that these are more common in public (government) type toilets. Parks/Beaches/Airports/Subway stations. I share a bit with your phobia about them. I always assumed the black seats hid a certain degree of uncleanliness that would be more apparent with a white seat. A private business such as a restaurant or gas station has people who tend to the bathrooms. Not always of course, I’ve been to some nasty bathrooms. But the rest stop on the interstate doesn’t get serviced every few hours. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/7 "2021-08-01T17:53:39Z")
I’ve just seen white toilet seats in the Rochester and Minneapolis airports. Rochester definitely had both black-seat bathrooms and white-seat bathrooms. This is getting more and more curious. I’m starting to think Minnesota is trying to mess with my head. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/8 "2021-08-01T18:00:00Z")
> [@Somethingwitty1](#): > > My impression is that these are more common in public (government) type toilets. Parks/Beaches/Airports/Subway stations. Where are you located? You may be on to something with the “government buildings” thing though. The only ones I can remember in the NY/NJ area at any recent time were in a school and a municipal building. Both bathrooms hadn’t been renovated in a VERY long time. (Makes me wonder how old those toilet seats were.) But white seats are almost universally used in public settings in my area. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/9 "2021-08-01T18:01:28Z")
> [@Somethingwitty1](#): > > . I always assumed the black seats hid a certain degree of uncleanliness that would be more apparent with a white seat. > > A private business such as a restaurant or gas station has people who tend to the bathrooms. Out of sight; out of mind … ? Unless you have cuts or open sores on your backside, or are rubbing your genitals on the seat, it’s difficult to catch anything from a toilet. Presumably, you sit with unbroken skin against the seat, and human skin is a fairly strong barrier against the cooties everyone worries about. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/10 "2021-08-01T19:38:50Z")
At first I thought I’d never seen a black toilet seat outside of a plumbing store. But now that you describe it… yeah, maybe back in elementary school we had them. Maybe even middle school? I haven’t seen one in a public place in a long time. I live in the northeast. I wouldn’t think much about it if I saw a black seat. In fact, maybe I have and I just don’t remember. But I don’t think I’ve seen any in a while. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/11 "2021-08-01T22:22:09Z")
In England they used to be common when we mostly had toilets with those high-mounted gravity flush cisterns. I think the only ones I’ve seen since have been in municipal facilities too - I’m fairly sure I’ve seen them recently-ish in school loos. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/12 "2021-08-01T23:16:00Z")
> [@Green\_Bean](#): > > You may be on to something with the “government buildings” thing though. Maybe so. As I’m trying to picture them, I’m mostly picturing the restrooms at highway rest areas. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/13 "2021-08-01T23:18:12Z")
> [@Green\_Bean](#): > > I have had a phobia for most of my life. Black toilet seats on white public toilets freak me the heck right out. Okay, I know what I’m wearing to your Halloween party. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2021, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/14 "2021-08-02T01:09:56Z")
I live in New Hampshire. Both black and white toilet seats are common to public restrooms. I haven’t noticed one color being vastly more common, so I’d guess there’s a fairly even split. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2021, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/16 "2021-08-02T01:32:46Z")
I don’t remember where or how long ago, but I know I’ve seen them, because the OP’s mention conjured up images in my mind of a black toilet seat in a public restroom (the kind with an open front and no lid). ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2021, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/17 "2021-08-02T02:59:50Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > > [@Green\_Bean](#): > > > > You may be on to something with the “government buildings” thing though. > > Maybe so. As I’m trying to picture them, I’m mostly picturing the restrooms at highway rest areas. Yeah, I can picture them as being the ones in public restrooms in the parks or at beaches. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2021, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/18 "2021-08-02T07:17:02Z")
Nope. Only ones I see have brown stripes and yellow spots. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2021, 10:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/19 "2021-08-02T10:29:30Z")
I was gonna say, i think the crusty white of dried urine shows more in the black seats than on the white ones. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21825_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2021, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/20 "2021-08-02T11:10:58Z")
Semi-related to the topic - when I was a kid and my folks had new tile put in our bathroom, my mom bought a black toilet seat to complete the decor (the tiles were a white/gray/black “plaid” layout.) I thought it was pretty cool and I was telling my grandfather about it. His response to pre-teen me: _Is it supposed to put you in a better mood to shit?_ Yeah, he was a character… As to the OP, I honestly can’t recall the last time I saw a black seat in a public toilet, but then I don’t know that I pay that much attention anyway. I check to make sure the seat isn’t wet before sitting, but that’s about it. I live in southern Merrylande, FWIW. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2021, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773/21 "2021-08-02T11:15:20Z")
I’ve never even seen one. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-toilet-seats-common-in-your-area/947773.md?page=2)