Toilet Paper, the Good the Bad, the Ugly

Toilet paper is not just a modern convenience. There are different brands with different consistencies, nuances of texture, thickness & pliability. One certainly can be a toilet paper maven and I'm certain many of us have very definite opinions about the brand that suits them best. In some cultures they have no toilet paper. That's where the use of only the right hand to shake hands comes from, you can guess what the left hand is used for. Yes, it's true, disgusting but true. Not much toilet paper in the deserts. Not many trees.

A little look into the history of toilet paper and you find that Scott tissue was produced by Irvin and Clarence Scott in 1879. It certainly revolutionized bathroom clean up. We've all heard of the newspaper used as wipes, I wonder what made this clever pair think up something soft and smooth.

When you purchase toilet paper it's not always about what's on sale. For those of us who have septic systems it's extremely important to buy septic safe toilet paper. Scott Tissue (they don't call it toilet paper on the wrapper) is our brand of choice. We have had a number of really awful experiences with other brands causing plugged up toilets. It's always too late when you realize a particular brand of tissue (toilet paper) is all wrong for your system. We've had flooding that soaked the carpeting in the adjoining bedroom, more than once. Part of the problem was the paper and part of the problem was the amount of paper. My Mom was a real offender when it came to overuse. Granted, nowhere on most toilet paper packages did it advise the amount of sheets to use but she would use scads. I've learned it does advise a cut off amount on some brands. We finally had to make a deal with her, she had to discard her used paper in a bag we'd keep near the toilet. Not terrific idea but cheaper and less disgusting than doing a mop up or calling the plumber. Then we switched to Scott and tiled her floor as well, just in case. Luckily the Scott paper did the trick , no more floods