# Flush the toilets. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 2, 2009, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459 "2009-06-02T05:26:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Carnacki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b5e925/32.png) [@Carnacki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnacki)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/41 "2009-06-02T23:15:25Z")
> [@corkboard](#): > > Wait- what’s this about washing your hands? You so crazy. At San Dimas City College, they teach us to wash our hands after we urinate… ---
**Author:** ![Algorithm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/algorithm/32/12204_2.png) [@Algorithm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algorithm)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2009, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/42 "2009-06-02T23:58:23Z")
Just pee in the sink, or the tub (if applicable). A quick rinse and you’re on your way. No standing urine and no wasted water. ---
**Author:** ![hroark2112](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6a8cbe/32.png) [@hroark2112](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hroark2112)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/43 "2009-06-03T02:01:06Z")
Regarding the jar of rocks in the toilet tanks: Toilets are designed to use the height of the water in the tank to provide the force to push the waste through the toilet. Once it is out of the toilet, gravity takes over. When someone wants to save water, I always tell them to take a spaghetti sauce jar and put it in the tank. No lid is needed, just set it in there with the top open. The water in the jar will hold it in place. This allows you to keep the water level in the tank high enough to provide enough force to get the waste out while saving water with every flush. If you have 3 or more people in the house, you’ll see a savings on your water bill by doing this. A lot of people try to save water by lowering the water level in the tank (mostly by bending the rod going to the toilet float). This is the worst thing you can do, as it means you’ll have more double flushes due to the lower force associated with the lower tank level. ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/44 "2009-06-03T02:07:45Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > A hearty… > > EAT FLAMING DEATH! > > …to those men who walk past a row of open urinals to go piss standing up in a stall. You fucking pussies! Nobody is going to stare at your widdle pee-pee! Use a urinal like a fucking man! > > Why does this matter? Because I’ve noticed a 1:1 correlation between those who pee standing up in toilet stalls and those who pee on the fucking seat! No, you only think you’ve noticed that: there’s an obvious selection bias in your sample, i.e., you only notice when someone \*has \*pissed on the seat, not when they haven’t. I prefer to use the stalls – I have a shy bladder, what can I say? It’d take me three times as long to use a urinal in an occupied bathroom. That said, you’re right that there’s no excuse for leaving urine on the toilet seat, which is why I always wipe it off after I’m done, even if none of whatever urine is there is mine. OTOH, while it’s obviously not your job to clean other people’s urine off of the toilet, nor should it be that big of a deal to you. It’s urine, so it’s sterile: just wipe it off and sit down. And even if it’s somehow not sterile, it really doesn’t pose any risk to you unless you have abrasions on your cheeks, or are in the habit of cleaning your ass with your own tongue. Like they say: _You fucking pussy! Be a man!_ ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/45 "2009-06-03T02:17:08Z")
> [@Myrrajh](#): > > The newest building at my college has toilets with two buttons on top of the tank. One is for a very small flush just for pee (probably 1/4 tank, maybe less), and the other is a full flush for solids. That’s been pretty standard here for quite a while. We’re all very water conscious. The urinals at my workplace have been flushless for a number of years now. ---
**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/46 "2009-06-03T02:35:22Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > The urinals at my workplace have been flushless for a number of years now. How are those working out for you? They are starting to be more common in the Western US. I am hearing the same sort pissing and moaning that happened when low flush toilets were introduced. They don’t work etc. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/47 "2009-06-03T02:59:17Z")
> [@gazpacho](#): > > How are those working out for you? They work fine. They don’t smell and they obviously save heaps of water. ---
**Author:** ![cwthree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9de0a6/32.png) [@cwthree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cwthree)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/48 "2009-06-03T03:40:19Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > The urinals at my workplace have been flushless for a number of years now. Is that the same as the waterless urinals that **hroark2112** mentioned, or something else altogether? ---
**Author:** ![panaccione](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/94ad74/32.png) [@panaccione](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panaccione)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/49 "2009-06-03T04:12:20Z")
I always flush a toilet cause I can use my foot. I never flush a urinal cause I have to use my hand. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/50 "2009-06-03T04:13:34Z")
> [@cwthree](#): > > Is that the same as the waterless urinals that **hroark2112** mentioned, or something else altogether? The same, I expect. ---
**Author:** ![curlcoat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea5d25/32.png) [@curlcoat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curlcoat)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/51 "2009-06-03T04:15:08Z")
> [@lavenderviolet](#): > > What, am I the only one who flushes public toilets with my foot? That solves the problem of the grossness of touching a public toilet handle without leaving any grossness for others to deal with. Win-win. Except for those of us who are unable to balance on one foot to use the other one to flush with. Or the person who uses the toilet after it has finally decided it can no longer take the abuse of being kicked to flush. There are no magical germs on the toilet handle that are worse than most of the stuff out there - use your dang hand! ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/52 "2009-06-03T05:58:24Z")
> [@curlcoat](#): > > Except for those of us who are unable to balance on one foot to use the other one to flush with. Or the person who uses the toilet after it has finally decided it can no longer take the abuse of being kicked to flush. > > There are no magical germs on the toilet handle that are worse than most of the stuff out there - use your dang hand! Or if you must, use a piece of TP or tissue between your hand and the handle. But not your foot, dammit. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/53 "2009-06-03T06:12:48Z")
> [@VarlosZ](#): > > It’s urine, so it’s sterile: just wipe it off and sit down. “Sterile” does not mean “free of smell”. I know my piss smells. I’m sure the piss of the barely tolerable sub-humans who piss on the seats smells also. Sorry, but people who have not been potty trained should not be allowed out in public. ---
**Author:** ![tr0psn4j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@tr0psn4j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tr0psn4j)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 6:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/54 "2009-06-03T06:55:30Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > So, you’re one of those guys who piss on the seats? > > As I said, nobody is gonna look at your widdle pee-pee. I’m like all the other grown-up men, and follow the rules of urinal spacing - if there are five urinals and the right-most one is occupied, I’ll use the left-most one. The only time I’ll use the urinal next to you is when all the other urinals are in use. The only time I’ll use a stall is if I have to take a shit. And there better not be any fucking piss on the seat! Yeah I occasionally piss on a seat. I wipe it off when that happens though. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/55 "2009-06-03T08:03:38Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > “Sterile” does not mean “free of smell”. I know my piss smells. I’m sure the piss of the barely tolerable sub-humans who piss on the seats smells also. Sorry, but people who have not been potty trained should not be allowed out in public. You seem inappropriately angry about this. Were your parents, perhaps, murdered by a man who peed in stalls? Did you lose a promotion because your boss falsely believed you were responsible for some urine splatter? The psychology behind this is fascinating. More seriously, if you just take a few seconds to wipe off the toilet seat, then your ass will be neither stinky nor wet. Again, obviously you shouldn’t \*have \*to wipe off the seat, but it’s a minor inconvenience, not an occasion for rage. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/56 "2009-06-03T08:24:19Z")
> [@VarlosZ](#): > > More seriously, if you just take a few seconds to wipe off the toilet seat, then your ass will be neither stinky nor wet. Again, obviously you shouldn’t \*have \*to wipe off the seat, but it’s a minor inconvenience, not an occasion for rage. I take it you have never had the occasion to have to hurry to a toilet stall with an urgent need to shit, only to find the seat saturated with piss, a turd (or even worse, diarrhea) announcing it’s immediate arrival? You’ve never had that happen, your treacherous bowels having decided that they’ve waited long enough and shits gotta happen right fucking now? And you have to clean up after some motherfucking piece of human refuse has pissed all over the seat? If that has never happened to you, your life has truly been blessed. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/57 "2009-06-03T12:51:37Z")
> [@tr0psn4j](#): > > Yeah I occasionally piss on a seat. I wipe it off when that happens though. 🙂 Why not lift the seat before you piss? ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/58 "2009-06-03T13:16:17Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > Seriously - who doesn’t flush the toilet? 😕 People who were raised in a barn. Or under one. And sadly, that seems to be at least 2/3 of the population these days. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/59 "2009-06-03T13:37:17Z")
> [@corkboard](#): > > Why not lift the seat before you piss? People who do that should kindly wipe the edge of the bowl before putting the seat back down, please. The cleaning lady or janitor will appreciate it. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2009, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459/60 "2009-06-03T16:46:09Z")
> [@VarlosZ](#): > > More seriously, if you just take a few seconds to wipe off the toilet seat, then your ass will be neither stinky nor wet. Again, obviously you shouldn’t \*have \*to wipe off the seat, but it’s a minor inconvenience, not an occasion for rage. It takes less time to left the seat, so why don’t you do that? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flush-the-toilets/498459.md?page=4)