# Mildly gross question about low flow toilet spray

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildly-gross-question-about-low-flow-toilet-spray/913849>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 30, 2020, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildly-gross-question-about-low-flow-toilet-spray/913849 "2020-06-30T21:30:12Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\
**Post date:** [June 30, 2020, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildly-gross-question-about-low-flow-toilet-spray/913849/1 "2020-06-30T21:30:12Z")

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So I’ve read that toilets in general spray water full of, er, toilet matter all over the room upon flushing, even if the lid is down (which I consistently do before flushing). A few years ago, my apartment complex installed a low flow toilet. Because of the water level, my feces breaches the surface of the water, sometimes by a good amount, about half the time. Given the previous facts, am I more at risk for getting diseases from my own waste than someone with a regular toilet?

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**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\
**Post date:** [July 1, 2020, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildly-gross-question-about-low-flow-toilet-spray/913849/2 "2020-07-01T00:05:28Z")

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They are not low flow, they are low volume. I just installed a new toilet with very small water usage and it flushes like a jet engine. It’s over in 2 seconds.

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**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\
**Post date:** [July 1, 2020, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildly-gross-question-about-low-flow-toilet-spray/913849/3 "2020-07-01T05:39:49Z")

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Gross thought it may seem, I don’t suppose you’re going to catch any diseases from your own waste that you don’t already have.

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**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:** [July 2, 2020, 9:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mildly-gross-question-about-low-flow-toilet-spray/913849/4 "2020-07-02T09:34:45Z")

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Cite that leaving the lid down doesn’t block the spray?

In general, I don’t see how the fact that your poop does or doesn’t poke up above the water level makes any difference once you’ve flushed & essentially blender-ized everything.