# Going without toilet paper: Meet the adults switching to a reusable cloth **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 29, 2014, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033 "2014-01-29T14:28:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![GaryM](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garym/32/241_2.png) [@GaryM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaryM)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/41 "2014-01-30T02:45:48Z")
I was in the airport in Riyadh back in '94 and needed the facilities. All I found was a hole and a hose. I decided to wait until I was on the plane. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![InsomniaMama](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ad7895/32.png) [@InsomniaMama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InsomniaMama)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/42 "2014-01-30T13:57:21Z")
> [@SerafinaPekala](#): > > Theres a reason we’ve evolved to using disposable things imho. Are these “butt cloth” women still using those nasty [Diva Cups](http://www.amazon.com/Diva-Cup-Model-1-Pre-Childbirth/product-reviews/B000FAG6X0/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?showViewpoints=1) I wonder? Huh? What does a Diva Cup have to do with anything? Much cleaner and hygienic than other options. ---
**Author:** ![amijane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f0a364/32.png) [@amijane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amijane)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/43 "2014-01-30T14:06:43Z")
> [@InsomniaMama](#): > > Huh? What does a Diva Cup have to do with anything? Much cleaner and hygienic than other options. Yep. I’ve lost mine and my vagina is bereft. ---
**Author:** ![SerafinaPekala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@SerafinaPekala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SerafinaPekala)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/44 "2014-01-30T14:14:45Z")
> [@InsomniaMama](#): > > Huh? What does a Diva Cup have to do with anything? Much cleaner and hygienic than other options. 🙂 Well nice if you like it. Its one of those “non disposables” so is pertinent to this discussion imho. As far as it being “cleaner” … fishing around for it and emptying it while at work or out in a social situation does not seem “clean” or “hygienic” but thats just my $0.02 ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/45 "2014-01-30T14:57:46Z")
If you get desperate, you could always use [corncobs.](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/572/what-did-people-use-before-toilet-paper-was-invented) ---
**Author:** ![SerafinaPekala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@SerafinaPekala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SerafinaPekala)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/46 "2014-01-30T15:03:13Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > If you get desperate, you could always use [corncobs.](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/572/what-did-people-use-before-toilet-paper-was-invented) Instead of tampons you mean? :eek: ---
**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:** [January 30, 2014, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/47 "2014-01-30T15:05:55Z")
> [@bengangmo](#): > > It’s common in these parts to see a hose and no paper. Cleveland? ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/48 "2014-01-30T15:38:28Z")
Ugh. Just the other day, someone on my wife’s Facebook feed posted a link to [this list](http://www.crunchymoms.com/you-might-be-a-crunchy-mom-if/) which lists using a “family cloth” as #11. There are several items on that list that’ll make most people gag. And #33 is just plain dumb. ---
**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:** [January 30, 2014, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/49 "2014-01-30T15:39:41Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > Maybe they should bring back the Roman sponge stick? > > [History Mysteries of Caroline Lawrence: So what's with the sponge-stick?](http://flavias.blogspot.com/2008/10/so-whats-with-sponge-stick.html) I know an outdoor adventure instructor who gets paid to teach people how to use sticks to wipe their bums. Not sticks with sponges; just plain sticks. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/50 "2014-01-30T15:47:44Z")
Bidet’s are God’s gift to people who poop. I bought a bidet attachment from Amazon after reading a previous post about them. I used to get itchy as the day wore on- no more! AFA drying off afterwards, 2 or 3 squares is all it takes, and seeing them come back spotless is worth the price of admission. ---
**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:** [January 30, 2014, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/51 "2014-01-30T15:58:03Z")
To be fair, they have stacks of flannel cloths at hand. Once used, a cloth is put in a hamper for laundering, rather than being flushed as a paper would be. It’s not like they are re-using cloths without laundering them first. All in all, it is no worse than having a diaper hamper and laundering cloth diapers. That being said, would I like to live in a home with a permanent shit-cloth hamper? Nope. ---
**Author:** ![SerafinaPekala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@SerafinaPekala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SerafinaPekala)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/52 "2014-01-30T16:19:36Z")
It would be a Snack Bar for the housecat here! ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/53 "2014-01-30T16:33:15Z")
> [@monstro](#): > > [Wet wipes are bad for sewage systems, apparently.](http://nymag.com/news/intelligencer/flushable-wipes-2013-10/) Well duh. If you use wet wipes you don’t flush them down the pan. That’s what the bin is for. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/54 "2014-01-30T16:38:09Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > I know an outdoor adventure instructor who gets paid to teach people how to use sticks to wipe their bums. Not sticks with sponges; just plain sticks. …_mumble_ like you’ve got a stick up your ass\* mumble\*… ---
**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:** [January 30, 2014, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/55 "2014-01-30T16:41:54Z")
> [@SerafinaPekala](#): > > It would be a Snack Bar for the housecat here! Why use flannel cloths when you can use a cat – after all, cat’s are pretty much self-cleaning. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/56 "2014-01-30T16:58:37Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > Why use flannel cloths when you can use a cat – after all, cat’s are pretty much self-cleaning. A cat will do in a pinch, but what you really want, according to the experts, is a goose. ---
**Author:** ![SerafinaPekala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@SerafinaPekala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SerafinaPekala)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/57 "2014-01-30T17:08:13Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > A cat will do in a pinch, but what you really want, according to the experts, is a goose. How do you catch them to wipe on them? ---
**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:** [January 30, 2014, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/58 "2014-01-30T17:15:10Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > Well duh. If you use wet wipes you don’t flush them down the pan. That’s what the bin is for. Duh? The packaging proclaims them to be flushable, as well as septic safe. Turns out the claims are not true. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/59 "2014-01-30T17:29:16Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > A cat will do in a pinch, but what you really want, according to the experts, is a goose. No, they get really fowl quickly ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033/60 "2014-01-30T17:38:25Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > No, they get really fowl quickly And they’re really greasy. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-without-toilet-paper-meet-the-adults-switching-to-a-reusable-cloth/680033.md?page=4)