Gransnet forums

Chat

Loo Roll in Public Toilets

(71 Posts)
Marmight Thu 08-Feb-18 10:52:36

Does anyone else have this problem? Loo rolls in public conveniences are encased in large metal/plastic holders and 9 times out of 10 I find it impossible to find the end/beginning of the roll and have to scrabble about like a hamster until I find it, or not as was the case in Reading Services yesterday. When you do strike lucky and pull, you land up with 2 thin pieces, the end disappears and the hamster game starts all over again blush. Most of the time I am equipped with a pocket full of tissues but there are occasions when I'm not grin ...

Auntieflo Thu 08-Feb-18 10:57:36

Marmight, we were in Camberley on Monday. There was a woman attendant pottering about, but she had missed the fact that the roll of paper was missing in 'my' cubicle. Like you I usually have pockets full of tissues.

Elegran Thu 08-Feb-18 11:04:01

The other annoyance is when one of those ginormous holders is fixed to the wall in the triangle formed by the loo, the wall and the semicircle of the closing door. You have to stand there to get the door closed, and with a great metal contraption taking up half the space, you have to squeeze up against the loo to get the door past you. Do the men who fit them always leave the door open while they perform?
I have started reporting such misplacements to the management - they probably think I am a difficult old bat, but usually act grateful for the information.

Jalima1108 Thu 08-Feb-18 11:04:44

M&S loo roll holders are designed to stop you accessing the toilet paper.

Elegran Thu 08-Feb-18 11:05:53

PS If they fitted it on the opposite wall, it would be in line with the open door, and not get in the way at all (I point this out when reporting it - woman always agree with me, men say the equivalent of "Yes, dear".)

NannyInTheKitchen Fri 09-Feb-18 09:50:51

Marmight, I have exactly the same problem as you, I'm so glad I am not alone

Charleygirl Fri 09-Feb-18 09:57:45

You are not alone at all, it happens regularly to me. I also have a plentiful supply of tissues because I cannot be bothered fighting with a tin bin.

GrandmaMoira Fri 09-Feb-18 09:58:40

I agree about the loo roll holders and the opening and closing of the door. If you have shopping as well it's very difficult to get in and out of some loos. I always wonder how large women manage. It's all so badly designed.

Mumsyface Fri 09-Feb-18 10:01:57

Last year Vueling (supposedly cheap airline) lost my suitcase on a flight to Sicily. As I was there to work I had to purchase a cheap outfit which included underwear. Knickers purchased from a Chinese shop at €1 per pair had a small zip pocket in the front. Incredibly useful for carrying a few sheets of loo paper, a spare pantry liner or other essential protective items ?. Bought several pairs, but now realise I should hVe bought a lifetime supply ?.

Grandma70s Fri 09-Feb-18 10:01:58

I don’t use their paper. I alway take tissues and the ‘moist wipes’ available from Andrex and Tesco. I also take sanitising hand gel rather than use their washing facilities.

What puzzles me is why there always seem to be sheets of unused (thank heaven) loo roll on the floor of public loos. What are people doing with it? Why is it on the floor?

BlueBelle Fri 09-Feb-18 10:02:26

Yes it’s a fight with these new machines give me a cheap and normal loo roll holder

Katek Fri 09-Feb-18 10:06:38

Can’t remember where it was, but in one loo I had to reach behind me for the loo roll and activated the hand drier! That was a shock to the system I can tell you! What was it doing on the wall beside the toilet and in front of the loo roll anyway?

S001 Fri 09-Feb-18 10:11:09

And then there are the "tardis" loos at outside events......

bluebellwoods Fri 09-Feb-18 10:19:18

Yes! This happens all the time to me!!! I'm usually on the way to hairdressers/meeting a friend etc & haven't got time to scrabble around for the end of the toilet roll !!! Always got tissues!!

MawBroon Fri 09-Feb-18 10:19:37

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-42986433

Oh dear grandma70 there is no such thing as a flushable wet wipe. Despite the claims that they are flushable, they DO clog up drains and contribute to potential disasters like this. Please, please do not ever flush wet wipes down the loo!
Although I am finding that public loos seem to be better supplied with paper than they used to be, it is always advisable to have some tissues in your pocket or handbag

inishowen Fri 09-Feb-18 10:23:50

I'm glad it's not just me. If I don't need the toilet urgently I sort out the loo roll before I sit down. I think they're made to stop you stealing the roll! Years ago my cousin worked for the council. They kept getting complaints about no loo roll in the public toilets. They decided to watch to see why they were disappearing. A local restaurant owner was seen leaving with a bag of loo rolls. He'd been doing that every day to use in his restaurant toilets! What a cheek.

hildajenniJ Fri 09-Feb-18 10:30:04

And why oh why do they put the paper into the machine the wrong way round. When you have to scrabble for the end of the paper this is usually the reason. I've been a cleaner in the past and one of my tasks was refilling the toilet paper dispensers, and there is a right and a wrong way of putting in the roll.

Sheilasue Fri 09-Feb-18 10:35:19

So annoying went into toilets yesterday after eating in a cafe. Huge metal roll with a huge toilet roll and couldn’t find the end had to twist and turn the flaming thing till I got the end and all I got was 2 pieces. So I carry tissues with me.

chicken Fri 09-Feb-18 10:35:59

Apart from the inaccessible loo paper, the thing that annoys me about public loos is the mess. There are nearly always wet patches on the floor-( and I don't mean under the hand drier!) and scrumpled tissues and loo paper on the floor, blobs on the toilet seat----would people treat their own bathrooms like this? I've always believed that you should leave public facilities as you would like to find them, but in the local Waitrose the toilets are out of order about one week in four, and when I complained about this, I was told that they are regularly vandalised. This in a supposedly affluent area!

Peardrop50 Fri 09-Feb-18 10:53:09

I agree wholeheartedly with the comments about scrabbling like a hamster for the end of the roll. Such a nuisance. I’m sorry Grandma70 but I have to agree with MawB that any kind of wetwipe is a nono and to add insult to injury the hand gel is not nearly as effective as washing hands with soap and water. Really sorry, not trying to be controversial just informative.
My biggest beef is people who don’t wash hands at all, the rest of us then have to touch the door handle with our washed hands to get out.
I did start using a tissue for the door handle but as there is no bin near the door this went in to my pocket. Blew my nose on said tissue the other day before I remembered it’s previous use!
Won’t be doing that again.

hildajenniJ Fri 09-Feb-18 10:56:45

It would also help with the hygeine aspect if all public loos had hot water in the taps.

lemongrove Fri 09-Feb-18 11:02:29

The doors should open outwards, but rarely do, so you have to wriggle into the narrow gap to get in without touching the loo. ?
I carry tissues as well, as those dispensers drive me crazy.

sarahellenwhitney Fri 09-Feb-18 11:15:26

Mumsyface Imagine the 'pantry liner' grinwould have come in handy with your zip fronts.

Cambia Fri 09-Feb-18 11:19:25

Why does every tap operate differently too? You need a manual to use them. I used the services at Tamworth last week and they had new loos installed complete with instructions. Good job I wasn’t desperate as I couldn’t see how to open the lid without reading them!! I am definitely getting old!

gillyknits Fri 09-Feb-18 11:23:02

I heartily agree with Marmight. Public conveniences are a nightmare. After you have retrieved your one and a half bits of flimsy loo roll you then have to negotiate the new fangled gadgets to dispense soap. Do you wave underneath, on top, press a button or is it just empty? The taps too might be automatic or just not working!
Finally, after blowing half the skin off your hands on the drier, you are ready to emerge, and what do you find? A door that you have to pull to open. Might as well not have washed your hands after all!