Essential Life Lesson #1: Over is Right, Under is Wrong

As part of our ongoing effort here at Current Configuration to make your life not only better, but also 10% more crunchy, we’re offering you this first installment of what will be an ongoing series of Essential Life Lessons. Kicking off this series will be a critical but even-handed examination of a common misunderstanding that occurs in a realm of many misunderstandings: the bathroom.

Put simply, there is a right way to hang the toilet paper, and a wrong way. Read on to determine the status of your own roll.


Toilet paper has a natural curve, a way of being that lends itself to certain orientations on the toilet paper spool.* If handled with skill and knowledge, it can provide an abundance of both sanitation and comfort, quilted together in each square of pillowy ply. If handled with clumsy ignorance, or worse, carelessness, it will beset the user with pain, filth, and frustration. Don’t let it end this way, with you curled on the tile floor of the stall, weeping in frustration, covered in wasted papier de toilette. To convince you, we’ve created some diagrams, harnessing the power of SCIENCE, to demonstrate the natural benefits of the over hanging method. First, we examine the optimal viewing benefits of the over hanging method.

Below are examples of the helpful and fruitful over-hung method on the left and the annoying and detrimental under-hung method on the right.

Right vs. Wrong

Free Sheetage Viewing diagram

Notice the dramatic difference in the amount of visible toilet paper. Ironically, it is the over-hung toilet paper that has both the most visible free sheetage and the least amount of sheetage free from the roll to do it. Now, this may not seem like a big deal on its own, but in these extra sheets lies your undoing. Observe.

Paper Positioning diagram

We here at Current Configuration, for the purposes of ease and expediency, do the one-handed tear (okay, really, it’s just me, but bear with me, er, us). The one-handed tear is a quick maneuver that takes advantage of the perforated squares, allowing your bundle of toilet paper to be liberated with one quick swipe of the arm. This is the foundation of bathroom ease, the cottony bedrock on which enjoyment rests in the restrooms of many nations.

Mechanics of the One-Handed Tear diagram

The one-handed tear relies on a quick and forceful motion directed either away from or towards the tear-er. The forces applied in this motion are great and, like the atom, are not to be trifled with. The natural curve of the over-hung method allows the roll to stand fast after a one-handed tear, but the under-hung method creates a calamitous tendency in the roll. This tendency can only lead to this:

End Result diagram

Wasted paper, frustration, the destruction of our forests. While we realize that it is possible to execute a one-handed tear on an under-hung roll, this is a game of sanitary Russian roulette. You are bound to lose eventually, and there is no re-rolling an unwound toilet paper roll. The results will only cause you grief. Don’t let this happen to you. Restroom attendants, janitors, maids, facilities crews, and responsible toiletowners take note: Don’t use the under-hung method for your toilet paper rolls. It leads to the destruction of our precious resources and the pillars of civilization as we know it!

*Does that thing have a proper name?

IMPORTANT UPDATE: Because you demanded it, we bring you the Overhanging Public Service Hanger Brochure.

380 responses to “Essential Life Lesson #1: Over is Right, Under is Wrong”

  1. In the southern hemisphere is “over” over, or is “over” under?

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  2. Ah. We are forgetting the new TP stand. Where the TP sits vertical. So should the TP scroll from the left or the right?

    This is is getting complicated.

    I still agree with all the free roll players. I think we have it right. Full control of the roll.

    Yes. There is the question of sanitary conditions of the roll, but I look at that issue this way. If your not washing your hands when you leave the bathroom there is something flawed in your upbringing and this debate is useless to you.

    Sparrowhawk

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  3. I told her this is the way it should be. over is good under is bad as soon as I saw the title I said that’s the way the TP rolls. it was good enough for Archie Bunker its good for America

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  4. nice useful information.

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  5. ha this is awesome, pure genius.

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  6. Who gives a crap?!

    Ha-ha

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  7. Who the fuck cares, just wipe ur ass and flush!

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  8. I have to disagree completely. Here’s why:

    Because of the fact that most toilet paper dispensers are designed with two fundamental design flaws: 1, the capture rod is typically smaller than the inner diameter of the TP’s cardboard tube, and 2, the fact that most are not designed for today’s larger format rolls.

    Pulling down on an overhung roll causes the inner cardboard TP tube to rotate asymmetrically around the smaller carrier rod. This produces a camming action that pushes to bottom of the roll away from the user. With today’s extra large rolls of toilet paper (or even with just any particularly voluminous roll), recessed toilet paper holders may not give adequate clearance for a fully cammed toilet paper roll. This can cause a large TP roll to bind against the back of the dispenser, and cause the paper to tear prematurely. I can’t tell you how often I’ve had the misfortune to attempt to pull down on a fully-loaded roll of toilet paper, only to have it cam away, bind, and rip immediately, leaving me with a tiny scrap of TP.

    When toilet paper is underhung, pulling on the paper causes the camming action to move the bottom of the roll -away- from the TP dispenser, and no bind can occur.

    Secondly, your line-of-sight rationale is completely flawed because it’s not just surface area that makes the edge of the TP easier to find, it’s contrast between the edge and the surrounding material. Often, you can look right at an overhung roll and not see the edge because there is no contrast, no line, no shadow, between the edge and the rest of the roll. This is not so with an underhung roll. A mere sliver of the roll exposed underneath is more than enough to cue you into what to grab.

    As for the wasted material because of over-rolling. Hogwash. I’ve seen lots of overhand rolls do the same thing.

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  9. I have two very important questions that often cross my mind.

    During an outdoor adventure like fishing or hunting with other people and I am the only one who has brought toilet paper, at what price should I sell the toilet paper….(cost per sheet)?
    I find that toilet paper is better than that tissue stuff they sell in boxes. I often pull a good length of toilet paper off the roll in the bathroom before going out on the town. When I need to blow my nose, I just pull out the bum wad from my hip pocket and unwind the length I need for the nose job. My wife says that doing this is quite uncouth. I am positive that I am very couth because when I pick my nose in public, I always use 1 or 2 sheets of bum wad. Who is right….me or my wife?

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  10. For the record, this is a lot of B.S. These idiots have obviously never used a modern toilet and paper dispenser.

    The fact is, when using either method the edge of the tissue does not naturally disengage itself from the roll. It clings to the roll. The TP user of an overhung roll must study the roll carefully to determine where the edge of the tissue is, differentiating the true edge from a simple perforation line. Then, the hapless person must hold the roll in place with one hand while reaching around his/her person with the other hand to attempt to scrape the edge of the paper off of the roll in order to access the quantity desired. All this, while keeping one’s buttocks attached to the commode, and, in the case of male toilet paper users, keeping the knees sufficiently separated so as to prevent the trousers from dropping all the way to the floor; a contortionist’s endeavor, to be sure.

    The under roll method is simpler. The user rotates the paper (in either direction); when the edge of the paper (now easily observed due to the fact that the edge is facing UP), the user blows a gentle gust of air on the tissue to separate the edge from the roll. The rest of the business is easily completed.

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  11. Chris,
    Regarding you article on corporate logos and unusual interpretations, I kindly submit the A-Style fashion company’s logo. Now I realize it’s an Italian company and all, but I don’t believe that that letter exists in the Italian alphabet. How did this logo make it past the censors?
    All I see are two people having sex doggie style.
    Maybe A-Style is Italian slang for doggie style?

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  12. Chris,
    Regarding you article on corporate logos and unusual interpretations, I kindly submit the A-Style fashion company’s logo.
    http://www.brandsoftheworld.com/download/brand/110070.html
    Now I realize it’s an Italian company and all, but I don’t believe that that letter exists in the Italian alphabet. How did this logo make it past the censors?
    All I see are two people having sex doggie style.
    Maybe A-Style is Italian slang for doggie style?

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  13. Our dispenser is vertical.

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  14. This is PERFECT! I have been fighting this battle alone for so with every roommate, and now my husband. Thank you!! hahaha..

    Now how about the correct configurations of which way blinds should be? Light pointing up or down?

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  15. I understand what your trying to say but….
    Does it really matter?
    The job gets done either way.

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  16. I have 6 cats and I’ve never found any of them swatting at the toilet paper.
    Maybe you ought to buy your cat a toy.

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  17. right on right on

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  18. This is indeed the correct way of dispensing toilet paper. If you’re in doubt, check into a 5 star hotel and see how they do it. They’re paid to be correct, and if their toilet paper was loaded wrong, you can bet they’d lose a star over it.

    When there are cats in the household who enjoy unrolling the toilet paper, one must use the “under” method of installing paper. If they paw the paper roll, and it spins downward, the paper won’t unroll if it’s loaded “under” like it will when it’s loaded “over”. Load the paper “over” and any self respecting cat will have the paper all over the floor in minutes.

    As far as buying cats toys, there is no better toy to a cat than a roll of toilet paper.

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  19. This is all well and good… I myself much prefer over instead of under…

    HOWEVER…

    If you’ve ever had a rambunctious kitty, you might want to consider either

    Making SURE SURE SURE the bathroom door is closed, or
    Hanging your toilet paper in the “under” position, thus making it far less likely that you’ll come home to TP’d living room.

    When kitty grows out of it or learns it’s a no-no, go back to the over position.

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  20. typical bigotry from a right-handed persion.

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  21. haha

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  22. butter side up!!

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  23. And there was light…

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  24. THIS IS MY PET PEEVE!

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  25. .

    .. also ::

    (depending on how you fold)

    .. With the overhand method .. you end up wiping with the inside of the paper.

    .. While the underhand (if you fold up once) will give you the softer side of the paper.

    .

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  26. HELLOO MY NAME IS MURAT I am FROM TURKEY.İS GOOD

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  27. HELLOO MY NAME IS MURAT I am FROM TURKEY.BİLER COK GUZSELDİİ THANKS AND YOU GOOD BYE

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  28. I refuse to believe this. Under is better.

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  29. Being a non-conformist in a world of mindless sheep, I would just like to take this opportunity to say fuckyou. Not only Fuckyou! but how dare you, you bunchy little ass scrunch!! There IS NO right way or wrong way to do any such thing and if you and your fellow micro-managing toilet Nazis are too much a group of MORONS to be able to deal with which way the TP faces then you should get off of your computer; give it to a local elementary school so that someone with a brain bigger than yours can actually make some use of it; and while we are at it you should probably stay away from sharp objects all together as the likelyhood of you injuring your self or others is extrodinarily high!! Further, it astounds me that you have SO much time on your hands to even address such an “issue”. Go get a life, or at the very least a job.

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  30. Actually, I’ve had more tp in the floor accidents with the under method. You yank on the roll to tear off your paper and the roll begins to spin and gravity takes over and the roll just unrolls all over the floor. I prefet the over method, that is when the tp get hung on the holder.

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  31. You guys got this all wrong. The proper procedure is to eliminate the need for a roll holder to begin with.

    Here’s what you do.

    Grasp toilet roll in hand, unwind the needed amount paper, tear off portion and replace on lid of toilet reservoir. Wipe as needed. Done? If not, repeat as necessary.

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  32. Everyone, please say hello to one of our newest commenters, MyNameIsRob (see a few posts up). Hi, Rob. Feeling a little stressed?

    If someone could please take the time to explain to him what humor is, we’d all really appreciate it. Also, while you’re at it, if you could explain irony as well, that’d be great. Unfortunately, I don’t have time to, what with my job and all.

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  33. öööööööööööööö

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  34. this was the best. my coworker called a meeting to discuss this, no kidding.

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  35. oh always|

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  36. I disagree with this analysis, and here’s why…

    My toilet roll is on the right. When the toilet paper is in the under position, all I need to do is use my right hand (which is my dominant hand) to spin the toilet roll from the top of the roll.

    With a quick and short spin of the roll, the toilet paper unrolls from under the roll. Due to the curvature of the toilet paper from being rolled up, the toilet paper glides out away from the wall and into the awaiting left hand’s grasp.

    Once the desired length is unrolled, the right hand presses down and stops the spinning roll and keeps it stable for the left hand to tear off the toilet paper.

    — This all happens within a split second —

    Works for me and is very easy. If the roll were in the over position, I would have to reach up to position my right hand over the roll before spinning the roll towards me. When the roll is in the under position, I can spin the roll away from me as I am reaching up, all in one movement!

    Speed is key people!

    That is all… Thank you.

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  37. Nope, you’re wrong. Just wrong. I don’t agree at all. Pictures, descriptions or otherwise!
    Under is better than over…. period!!!!

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  38. You are the definition of idiot. Its the complete opposite of what you have here. People who do it the way you are saying are trash.

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  39. I disagree completely and I will give 3 reasons why.

    1: The ability to see the toilet paper is not important because pulling for the paper becomes a muscle memory tactic.

    2: The sideways swipe to pull the sheet off is as much of a Russian Roulette for the over-hung as it is for the under-hung. In fact, I would argue that the over-hung method will more likely allow for over-spin that lets the roll unravel onto the floor.
    By pulling an under-hung roll, your arm is up against the roll itself to keep it from spinning at all so the likeliness of over-spin is zero. To keep the roll static in an over-hung method, you need to use both hands to rip the sheet off!

    3: Finally, in the occurrence of over-spin, it is indeed impossible to re-roll… if you’re using the over-hung method! If it ever occurred while using the under-hung method, all you do is push down on the front of the roll! Easy, simple, and probably never necessary since under-hung is more likely to keep the roll static when going for the pull!

    In the end, if you don’t purposefully pull a specific number of tiles from the roll, you’re being too shoddy with your bathroom habits. It’s incredibly simple with either method to say “I want 2, 3, or 4 tiles” and pull exactly what you want. Going to the bathroom shouldn’t be a race, it should be a relaxing experience taken slowly and ended slowly as well.

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  40. Why is there a flippin’ post about toilet paper?
    The sad thing is, it’s really detailed.
    Who the fuck cares if it’s over or under? I can’t believe people waste time over BS like this.

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  41. So, I guess, the age old debate of over v. under wages on. I think both sides could present convincing evidence. The question remains; what is the correct way to hang the roll?

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  42. The thing that amazes me (other than a detailed post with illustrations) are all of the argumentative comments over toilet paper roll position.

    For the record, I prefer the under-hung method for various, logical reasons already stated here.

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  43. Is there diagram of the proper way to place a toilet seat cover on. There has been an ongoing debate amongst some friends of mine. If you have it, could you e-mail me the pictures or the answer. Thanks.

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  44. The spool is properly called a “Too-too-doo”. The name comes from the sound you can make with it when you hold it up to your mouth.

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  45. LOL, I love you guys.

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  46. Toilet paper on the roll is a thing of the past. Today people leave the roll independently placed anywhere it’s easy to reach (but not on the back of the toilet dammit!) Plus you don’t have to take the three seconds to change it!

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  47. i hear a lot of comments about the fact that you can tear easier from the under-roll position and that it is therefore desired. I disagree with this notion. I’d Much rather have too MUSH than to little… I don’t think many people would disagree with that.

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  48. The proper way (over the top or off the bottom)truly depends on the position of the roll in relation to the sitter. If the holder is mounted low on the wall, over the top works much better as explained in the article. If the holder is high on the wall (above the sitter), one must install the roll “Off the bottom” otherwise the paper tears too soon and you are trying to clean up your act with too few segments. This is especially true in an RV where single ply must be used to prevent clogs in the holding tank (Single ply tears way too easy).
    Any one remember the TV show where this same question was asked? The result was 50/50.
    egad

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  49. who gives a fuck?

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