British vs American Toilets

Here's a brief look at some of the ways British and American toilets differ.
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[@deborahdanhauer8525]

This video couldn't have been done without the elbow length pink gloves.😊🐝❤

[@julienielsen3746]

Yes. Nice touch.

[@sweeterrace]

“A towel, [The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy] says, is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have.” You’ve always got to know where your towel is! ❤️

[@kathyastrom1315]

Well, Lawrence is one hoopy frood, so of course he knows where his towel is!

[@bethotoole6569]

He has some similarities to Arthur Dent.....

[@monikag1323]

Ooh! I was the 42nd person to like this comment!

[@cephasmartin8593]

Definitely a great movie.

[@thebigdawg61]

Spend a penny...as an American the only time I've heard the phrase was from Mrs. Slocum. Rest in peace Molly Sugden.

[@renferal5290]

I loved her!! I still watch Are you being served.

[@KB4QAA]

I can remember some pay toilets in the US in the late 60's-early 70's.

[@conniewojahn6445]

@@KB4QAA So do I. Remember, that is. People don't believe me. I remember going into public restrooms when I was a little kid (with mother, of course), and there would be 3-6 toilets and one would be a pay toilet. Everyone would line up for the freebie toilets. Anyone would was in a hurry had to pay because that toilet would be the most likely to be empty. Oh well! So much for the good old days.

[@barillius]

@@renferal5290 Mr. Humphries... Are you free?

[@babsbylow6869]

Being a little one in those days, my mom never paid. We kids crawled under the doors. 😅

[@afc358]

I was endlessly fascinated by American toilets on my first visit (to the country, not the toilet) The way everything just.....whoosh. The toilet in my hotel room at the Hard Rock Café in Las Vegas had such a powerful whoosh it made my ears pop.

[@pacmanc8103]

You never want to be sitting when you flush - people have gotten stuck.

[@robertsitch1415]

I find that hospital toilets often have a loud flush.

[@80sGamerLady]

Ive been to the Hard Rock because I had my Bachelorette party there in '07 and live in the area. Public toilets are usually that powerful to make sure co tents go down the first time. It's considered unsightly to see other people's skiddies.

[@tonys1636]

Some modern UK toilets are the same, they use the flow of water from the cistern to create a vacuum in the waste outlet to provide a more efficient flush. It does not mean one can flush anything that should not be flushed, i.e. anything that does not begin with a P, the 3 P's, Paper, poo, and pee.

[@sophierobinson2738]

In Chicago, in high winds the Sears tower sways enough that the water in the toilet sloshes.

[@guyorsini1044]

When we lived in Germany with the toilet we had you made your "deposit" on what amounted to a shelf with a tiny amount of water on it and the flush would, hopefully, wash it off of the shelf and down the drain. I much prefer even American low flow toilets to that one.

[@monikag1323]

The first time i saw a German platform toilet i actually CRIED. I thought it was as bad as it got until i spent a week in the galapagos on a motor yacht with pump toilets. That made me ugly cry for two days until i got used to it!

[@bigdog8008]

Yep, I definitely prefer the high water level toilets to many EU "poop shelf" toilets.

[@R.M.MacFru]

Thank you for this brief plunge into the realm of johns.

[@celestialskye1]

I see what you did there 😒

[@gben7084]

so called because of the name of the Inventor of the flush toilet (WC)....a certain Mr. Crapper

[@jillhobson6128]

@@gben7084 He was Thomas, not John

[@ubergeek1968]

Prince John, to be precise

[@dugswank]

Douglas Adams was right about always having your towel with you!

[@blindleader42]

My life has been saved on several occasions when encountering Ravenous Bugblatter Beasts of Traal.

[@elultimo102]

Towely on South Park: "Don't forget your towel....You never know when you're gonna need a towel!"

[@spindalis79]

Pay toilet poetry- "Here I sit, broken hearted, paid a dime, and only farted."

[@mplwy]

🤣

[@Feslmogh]

One for the public toilets... "If you sprinkle when you tinkle, please be neat and wipe the seat."

[@Milesco]

Then one day I took a chance; Tried to fart and filled my pants!

[@jillhobson6128]

@@Feslmogh If you sprinkle when you tinkle, be a sweetie and wipe the seatie.

[@townie4226]

More Bathroom poetry... If you stand like paul not sit like sis lift the seat before you piss!

[@johnstevenson9956]

I've lived here all my life and I'll never get used to the barbaric lack of privacy in public toilets.

[@randynelson2265]

I guess you were never in the military.

[@Sgt_SealCluber]

@@randynelson2265 The toilet near the CS gas chamber on Fort Jackson, for those that know I salute you. #MeToo 😁

[@mayawynn3799]

The argument for the doors not going all the way down is acceptable - if someone is locked in there and needs help (heart attack, aneurism, etc.) it's good that someone could crawl under. But the gaps. The gaps are hell. When I'm in a stall, I look through the gap at anyone out there. If they make eye contact with me through the gap, I scream.

[@StanSwan]

No one is going to look in at you and they don't want people spending all day in there camping out, turning tricks, or shooting up.

[@FLATBUSHPLAY]

@@StanSwan I've never had a problem with people looking in though there may be some weirdos out there who might try. It's an unwritten rule among men at the urinals, eyes and head forward and the same would follow with the stall. Most of us make a conscious effort NOT to look in the cracks when we see feet below.

[@scottnix4991]

One drawback to the deeper U.S. toilets is the rare but not unheard occurrence of suddenly internalizing a perfectly vertical splash of cold water before the extruder has reached the fully closed and locked position. Usually followed in quick succession by a rapid intake of air, a twitch and a high pitched squeal.

[@bobellingson4025]

That is known as "Neptune's Kiss"...

[@scottnix4991]

@@bobellingson4025 At last I have a name for it. A perfect name at that. A name that caused a fine single malt scotch whisky to erupt from my nasal cavities.Well done Sir.

[@torfrida6663]

Beautifully and elegantly expressed

[@jillhobson6128]

@@bobellingson4025 I'm English. That once happened to me in the US . I thought a rat had come up through the drain,especially as there was a TV programme a couple of days earlier explaining how common that was.

[@alexpollock6932]

When I fly into Heathrow I always appreciate how the doors in the airport bathrooms are tall, go all the way to the floor and don’t have gaps.

[@marieclaudebedard6728]

Yes, because they mind the gap...😉

[@Rob-vy6zx]

Use the family bathroom.

[@vixkal]

That’s one of the things that bothers me the most about American public loos. WHY must there be an inch gap all around the door?!

[@tanyawales5445]

The first time my five year old sister used a public toilet with a locking door the flush was so loud she screamed and scooted back out under the door. I couldn't convince her to crawl under the door and unlock it from the inside so I had to shimmy under the door myself. I was 21. Thank God the floor was clean.

[@SenoraCardgage]

Bathroom stalls where the door goes all the way to the floor make me claustrophobic

[@LeveyHere]

I can already see Lav Luka reacting to this lol. Good video as usual!

[@Fridge56Vet]

"Oh, $hit! Oh, my days...." Sorry, couldn't resist.

[@elgatofelix8917]

Who?

[@amymarvel5309]

I was thinking that too! Lol

[@amymarvel5309]

@@Fridge56Vet I love when he says oh my days, so British! Lmao i love it

[@Lilactime402]

@@elgatofelix8917 A Brit kid who is riding on Lawrence's coattails.

[@billsimonis]

what I did notice when I visited London. I was a bit surprised about the need to pay to use the toilet but I soon learned that the public toilets in London appeared cleaner than public toilets in the USA

[@deannculver7969]

I know someone who is in the exact opposite situation. She goes by Yorkshire Peach on tiktok and is an American adjusting to life on the other side. I never knew the little things were so different until I started watching you two!

[@antonycharnock2993]

Coming from Yorkshire, I've just seen her on the local media. Her Yorkshire accents coming on a treat! 😂

[@Joeybagofdonuts76]

You'd be down at the Sears Tower? Do you have a time machine we don't know about? 😂 Just kidding, I will always call it that.

[@MagentaOtterTravels]

Same! I grew up visiting the Sears Tower. And so shall it always be called!

[@scott_meyer]

What you talkin' bout Willis?

[@MagentaOtterTravels]

@@scott_meyer haha, EXACTLY!

[@LaShumbraBates]

Chicago born & raised. It will always be the Sears Tower no matter what anybody says.

[@jimclark1131]

@@LaShumbraBates - Me too, and I completely agree. My Grandmother worked at The Sears Tower back in the late 70s. It was a shame when they changed the name. I don't think I can ever accept the new name. That place is a landmark.

[@adde9506]

The higher water level helps to keep the smell down. Practical experience.

[@alexpollock6932]

I learned that from Joey Diaz

[@StrawberryCopper]

....that and courtesy flushes....

[@virginiacharlotte7007]

Is the water level in US toilets high enough that some men might have their block and tackle get a little damp? Just curious.

[@duckster313]

Once the water level covers the drain hole, it stops mattering.

[@duckster313]

@@virginiacharlotte7007 Yes. It's quite unpleasant during winter.

[@braingasim]

"You take a towel wherever you go" Arthur Dent would approve!

[@tomlinn7227]

I’m glad you flushed that out for us.

[@captainnegativity9269]

I cannot believe how long it took you to start a video in the bathroom. I feel like I lost a bet.

[@AC-er6vz]

I asked a waiter in Tokyo where the bathroom was. He said down the street at a hotel. My friend then asked where are the toilets and the waiter pointed to a door across the room. Facing toward the door or away from the door in a squat toilet? I chose the door to my back. Drunk Sailors always had communication problems.

[@victorwaddell6530]

Iwas an MP , CFAY Security in Yokosuka , for two years . Toide wa , Doko Desu Ka?

[@ssjup81]

Ugh, I *hate* squat toilets. While living there, the only way I would bother with those types of toilets, is if I were wearing a skirt. Easier with a skirt. I also didn't know how to properly use it and was too embarrassed to ask. If I knew certain places had squat toilets, I would avoid eating/drinking if in that area or would find a nearby conbini. If you go to a park, you'll probably end up with squat toilets. That aside, bathroom and toilets are different. Bathroom is literally a bathroom...a room for bathing. The toilets mean that, toilets or the WC. I would've said, "Sumimasen, o-teai wa doko?" or "Sumimasen, toire wa doko?"

[@conniewojahn6445]

OK, here's the explanation. Bathroom has a bath tub in it and usually has toilet and a sink in there with it. Toilet has a toilet only, maybe a sink to wash up. Got it?

[@shasita3361]

In Japan (and also here in the Netherlands), toilets are seperate from the bathroom (where the bath/shower is). A lot of Japanese people will likely not even know that this can be different in some other countries. I had no issue with the squat toilets. At school, they only had 1 Western style toilet near our classroom, and 3 squat toilets. I happily walked past the line of other exchange students to use the squat toilet instead.

[@t71024]

Squat toilets ... I first saw one in Italy on a business trip in the 1990's at a customer's office. I didn't know how to use it and I didn't even know for sure if it was a toilet or a historic Roman shrine. I called it a day and went back to the hotel. :-(

[@robertgambling502]

I find that automatic flush toilets are a horrible waste of water. One time at the airport in Phoenix, Arizona, I headed to the men's room before my flight. I entered the toilet stall, the toilet flushed. I took off my coat the toilet flushed again. I lowered my pants, sat down and the toilet flushed again. I did my business, wiped down and the toilet flushed again. I got up, pulled up my pants and the toilet flushed again. I put on my coat and the toilet flushed again. I juggled my suitcase around, the toilet flushed again. I opened the stall door to exit and the toilet flushed again. I'm sure the toilet was nice and clean. All this in a water shortage state of Arizona.

[@stevethepocket]

You'd think someone would figure out how to rig them to the door latch instead.

[@annbsirius1703]

I agree, but it is also awkward when you're using a motion sensor toilet that doesn't flush. Then you start waving your hand or standing in different places hoping you don't have to explain to the next person.

[@robertgambling502]

@@annbsirius1703 Most motion sensor toilets I encountered have an alternative push pad to manually flush.

[@amymarvel5309]

I absolutely love your humor! I'm American, in Michigan to be exact. But I laughed so hard when u said it took hours to scrub the American flags off your toilet 🤣🤣

[@trinkab]

😁👍👍 Greets from A2!

[@FellaHAILIRA]

American bathrooms (toilets) are the size of British bedroom😂

[@paddington1670]

When I was waiting for a train in Liverpool station, while fumbling with coins to use the public washroom, 4 young guys jumped over at once like a herd of sheep, so I just jumped over right after them. I felt like such a criminal.

[@HelloLonna]

Nice pajama pants… as I looked down and realized I am wearing the same ones. 🙈

[@LostinthePond]

Haha!

[@thudthud5423]

YOU STOLE HIS PAJAMA PANTS AFTER HE MADE THIS VIDEO??? *YOU FIEND!!*

[@johnp139]

But at 6’-1”, his are much longer!

[@HelloLonna]

@@johnp139 I’m around 6’ myself. #tallgirlproblems lol

[@MagentaOtterTravels]

Epic!

[@caitlinbures4802]

Something I would love to know is what things your British friends and family ask you or tease you about now that you’ve lived in the US for over a decade?? I grow up in Wisconsin, then as a adult moved to California, and now live in Washington state where my midwestern accent and terms get picked up on fairly often. But I also get comments when I travel back home to Wisconsin about the things I’ve picked up since moving 15 years ago. 😁

[@chouseification]

you have plenty of ammo - most of them call the place you live Warsh-ing-ton... poke at that one all day long when they tease you for loving cheese curds (everybody should love them after all) :P Ask them why do they say some words like they're from Boston... it gets to them. :D

[@samanthab1923]

You know what's funny? We grew up in suburban NJ with parents from Yonkers & the Bronx. No NY accent. Even when I traveled people would say "you don't sound like you're from Jersey" My bro goes to school in NYC & stays working & raising a family. I worked in the city but commuted from NJ. It was my brother who would point out changes in my lingo from working with guys from Brooklyn.

[@richardsbrandon5027]

Go Pack Go!!!!

[@jeremynv89523]

I’ve had Midwesterners get angry when asked about their accents. Some of them insist that they don’t have one, in spite of the fact that it’s so strong it’ll knock you down. (Northern Wisconsin, Northern Minnesota, Michigan)

[@chouseification]

@@jeremynv89523 yeah although it has gotten less prominent over time. Back in the mid 90s I was eating with some college friends and a cousin at a Perkin's or similar in Duluth. Up there, you get the slightly longer pronunciation on "bag" and a few words like that, but for the most part no strong accent. Due to this, all of us (including my cousin from Two Harbors who speaks with a slight singsong trait to her voice, a clear sign of the Scandinavians up her family tree) were shocked to the point we had to stifle laughter when our server came to get our order; using the most over the top Marge Gunderson sort of accent possible. She wasn't faking, she was "one of them". We asked her where she came from - "da Range"... yeah, it figures. The other really odd one in the Midwest I've run into, and it's just wrong feeling every time I hear it - people from Iowa farm country who have a full on Southern drawl - not quite the Kentucky style where they're practically speaking under their breath, but the full on accent anyways. Hearing the word Davenport said with that accent is another time when one must stifle laughter or one will get beat. :P

[@xnoiidb]

On behalf of the People of Chicago, allow me to give you a gold star and attaboy for correctly pronouncing the name of our most iconic building.

[@pearlsammo1638]

Pressure assisted, high flow toilets ... will cost you 3x the cheapo gravity-fed low flow Home Depot shitter, but you’ll never deal with clogs or skid marks.

[@janesmith1398]

Could you please do one comparing washing machines. I like the older style top loaders with the centre piece, the ones that use some water and detergent.

[@chicagodaddy1]

Love those Gloves !

[@jlpack62]

In this instance "Lost in The Pond" takes on a whole new meaning.

[@kenbrown2808]

except it should be "lost in the bog" for optimum innuendo.

[@cijmo]

We always laugh at foreigners remarks about the gaps in our stall doors. Unless you're really pervy, you wouldn't even stop to look through the gap, you just look to find an empty one (likewise with the gap in the bottom). We always have visions of foreigners going up to all the gaps in the doors "Hellloooo is this taken?" or crawling on hands and knees and looking under the door "just checking if someone's in here."

[@mdx7460]

Only because your used to it you think that way, I’ve never been to America but omg I would not feel comfortable being able to look outside while doing me business... absolutely no thanks

[@Canalcoholic]

The lock on British stall doors usually displays the words “vacant” or “engaged” on the outside, or green and red indicators.

[@cijmo]

@@mdx7460 Well like you said, it's because I'm used to it. For the record, you can't look outside, the gap is about the width of your pinkie so basically you'd have to stand right next to it and line your eye up with it before you could see through it. Likewise with the people walking by, they have to stand and peek through it...kind of like a peek hole in a door. Kind of like - I lived in a few places where it's perfectly acceptable for guys to piddle against fences. I think it's piggish but it's acceptable there...but I wouldn't dream of stopping and staring.

[@cijmo]

@@Canalcoholic We have those, too. Even less reason to get close enough to the door to see through the crack.

[@jillhobson6128]

@@cijmo People can look over the doors

[@enchantro]

I LOVE your channel! You always make me giggle!!🤣❤️

[@lauralutz4538]

I live in NYC. Several years ago in older apartment buildings the toilets would suck your arm down!! They started replacing them with the tank type like you & we have now. Bad move! The old/good ones used more water but you never flushed twice, no stop ups. It was a beautiful thing! Another great video, thanks!

[@PsRohrbaugh]

Really loved the production quality / cinematography of this video. A lot has changed over the years!

[@cozmogaming1528]

The toilet flush system where you have to pump the lever is a siphon system where the pump of the lever creates a vacuum and pulls the water up and over to create more pressure/flow rate. We also use the push button flush systems (presumably what the usa uses) where you just press a button and a seal lifts up and lets all the water out

[@mariambajelidze8515]

So interesting and hilarious at the same time. I love this channel. Thanks 🤩

[@GoGreen1977]

I've been watching a British produced show called, "Escape to the Country", which showcases people looking to move to more rural areas of the UK. What strikes me is how unconcerned most house hunters are about number of bathrooms in the homes they are looking for. They may want 3, 4, or 5 bedrooms, but not word about how many bathrooms they want. They often don't seem concerned when there is one bathroom for however many bedrooms in a house or that the family bathroom is downstairs while the bedrooms are upstairs. Or they want a big kitchen and several "reception" rooms for entertaining, but don't blink an eye that all of their guests will have to troop up and down the stairs to use the only bathroom in the house. Some master bedrooms have an "en suite" or master/attached bathroom, but many don't. This is often the case even in newer or renovated homes. I know I would never even look at a house that didn't have at least two full or 3/4 bathrooms, and at least a powder room on the main floor in a two story residence. But maybe that's just me....

[@k.b.tidwell]

Hey, the Brady Bunch got one bathroom for nine people and no toilet. Talk about not asking the right questions...

[@Serenity_yt]

I never even thought about that but it is true for most Europeans (Im German). Two toilets are nice but not required bedrooms are far more important but I guess our houses are also generally smaller so the guest bathroom may just be 2 doors or one small flight of stairs down from the main one and those few extra seconds never hurt anyone. On top of that many houses are a few hundred years old which means plumbing was also not built with many bathrooms in mind, if any at all. (also the reason we dont use air conditiong and have different heating systems)

[@carolynhotchkiss4760]

That's a relatively modern convenience, multiple bathrooms, even in the good old US. My husband grew up in a household as one of five children. Three of whom were girls. House was built in the early 1900s. One bathroom on the second floor for all of 'em. Dad finally had a 'convenience' toilet put in the basement next to the washer, and I do mean next to the washer. Out in front of God and everyone, and in a Minnesota basement, so in the winter you really had to weigh how badly you had to go. They managed. Mostly by he and his brother doing evening showers, so he says. Potty breaks? Well, I guess you took turns or went to the Convenience Toilet.

[@beth8775]

1.5 baths is really going to be sufficient unless you have a very large family. We have 4 kids and 1 bathroom. Most homes don't have the water pressure to run 2 showers at once anyway.

[@christinecolson1221]

I love your sense of humor!

[@ilovewwe45]

When I visited New York in 2019 the water level in the toilet really did shock me

[@karenhackney9920]

Love the towel comment! 🤣

[@elgatofelix8917]

Last time I was this early it was still "only 2 weeks to flatten muh curve"

[@JessieMillerUnboxingsandMore]

"And Yorkshire Puddings." 😂 I love this channel.

[@brucewalton1886]

I have heard complaints about the gaps in the stall of public toilets here, but I saw them when I went to London back in Oct '19. I was only there a couple of days so I did not see very many, but they did no appear much different that here in the US.

[@LindaC616]

Also, people from other countries are shocked that there is such a large gap between the bottom of the door and the floor.

[@Utoober729]

My new toilet in US is different than my toilet from the 1970s. The 70s toilet emptied with the water rising and swirling around then pushing down the drain. The new one has water bursting from the front area down toward the drain. I learned for solids to keep the lever held down a bit longer or there will be blockage. I finally found great vids on YT to use Dawn dish soap and a small pail. No plunger required.

[@kenbrown2808]

if you bother to read the instructions that come with a modern toilet, you will find that that is exactly what the manual tells you to do. for liquids, one press clears the bowl with minimal water use, and for solids, hold the lever for a full volume flush. but nobody ever bothers telling the new owner how that works.

[@Utoober729]

@@kenbrown2808 😂 you ASSume too much. I never had to replace a toilet, ever until this year. The installer didn't supply any instructions.

[@kenbrown2808]

@@Utoober729 and please, since this is my first day speaking english, explain to me how "nobody tells the owner how that works" is different from "The installer didn't supply any instructions"

[@Msfeathers7]

Love it! TY for the smiles.

[@mohhughes4870]

We ran into public pay-to-go loos in Ireland (specifically, outside Nenagh Castle in Co. Tipperary). Then again, one might bet their mortality in dropping a bouy in a public W/C in any major US city (if you can find them). And, yes, in the US a plunger is a wonderful thing indeed.

[@kimbain4368]

Laurence, no matter the topic, you never disappoint. Thanks for that!

[@marzxbarz]

I can relate to the free vs paid public toilet situation in Europe. After traveling via the Eurostar rail from London to Amsterdam (4+ hour trip), I needed to use the restroom, but quickly found out all the public restrooms were paid facilities. It wasn't so much the cost (the restrooms are infinitely cleaner than the free public restrooms you'd use in the States) but the fact that it was cash-only, and the last thing I wanted to do was to find a place to exchange currency (my plan was to use an ATM without any extra fees). Anyway, I held it in until I got to my hotel. I appreciate how clean the water closet/restroom is, but it reaches a certain point where you don't really care about the cleanliness and be able to walk in and relieve yourself. Add language barriers and not having the right currency and it can be a recipe for disaster!

[@johnp139]

Piss on the walls of the station. Oh, the humanity!

[@LindaC616]

I overpaid the attendant when they finally opened the restroom in the dining hall at Hamvurg's fischmarkt at 7am (because we'd left Berlin at 10 pm the night before!)

[@amberswafford9305]

I swear I’ve been wanting an answer to this just lately. I questioned it due to a comment made by Karl Pilkington on the Ricky Gervais Show. He said he’d had to buy a plunger which he hadn’t seen one since he was a kid in the back of comic books. When Ricky & Steve let that slide I knew there was some reason Brits didn’t need plungers like everyone I know in the US does. So a sincere thank you from this curious American.

[@shasita3361]

I absolutely hate the gap in the doors in the US. Especially when people look inside when you're in there. It feels so uncomfortable. And when you're looking at the doors to see if it's occupied or not, you often catch a glimpse of the person inside. That's horrible! People should just be able to do their business in peace! And the splashback from US toilets is awful too. And as someone (don't recall where I read this) said: 'it's as if you're peeing in a lake'. Yes it is. And they clog up so often! Though I must admit, that it is convenient that there's free public toilets everywhere in the US. And the ones in the grocery stores are surprisingly clean too. Definitely something Europe should learn from the US.

[@maidenminnesota1]

The "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" also recommends you take a towel with you everywhere you go.

[@angelasaunders3558]

😄 again , information I never knew I needed . Thanks Laurence 😊

[@algernoncalydon3430]

US toilets have more water so we don't have to have a brush next to the toilet to clean it when it gets destroyed.

[@manchestertart5614]

Accidents happen. I taught my kids to clean up after themselves. Lavatory brushes are a necessary evil over here. They can be disgusting dirty things, that's for sure. So it's seat down, flush. Seat up to check for cleanliness. If you have to clean, flush and brush at the same time.No excuse for a dirty brush full of you know what. There should be hardly anything to clean off. Never just brush, as it just transfers the muck onto the brush. The brush should be bleached regularly and replaced often. That's why it is not worth buying expensive brushes. Filthy toilets are the pits,at least with paying to pee you should get an attendant who keeps the place hygienic and supplied with paper, and soap. We have hot air hand dryers. Depending on what you're going to do 😉 a few sheets of paper in the loo cushions the landing, thus avoiding the dreaded splash back.

[@LawrenceOwen]

I thought for sure he was going to refer to the word "John", and it referring to Sir John Harrington (although the British don't generally use the word).

[@OldMan_PJ]

You forgot the most important difference: British toilets push waste out the back whereas American toilets create a suction that pulls waste down.

[@andrewmorris483]

That is a big difference. The mechanics are completely different. But some american toilets, like the commercial building ones, pull it back like that too. More information needed.

[@tootz1950]

That's a generalization, not every household toilet in the UK are backwashers.

[@LoantakaBrook]

suction? My toilet uses gravity.

[@elleeme9451]

You forgot two key differences- American public toilets provide seat covers, which you never see in the UK. American toilets are significantly lower than British toilets ( the pedestal part).

[@MagentaOtterTravels]

Good points!

[@scotpens]

Big deal. Those paper seat covers are useless. They certainly don't guard against germs (which you won't catch from a toilet seat anyway, unless maybe you have a cut or open sore on your bottom). If a public toilet seat looks grungy, just wipe it down with paper towels and water.

[@Fridge56Vet]

Thanks, Laurence, now I have to go find engineering schematics. :D

[@donaldhooper3064]

Love your videos. I visited friends in Hampshire a few years ago and used their bathroom. When I went to flush it, I had to call one of them in to show me how as the button to flush was not part of the toilet but was on the side of the counter. I was so embarrassed to ask how to flush it. lol Love hearing your stories.

[@wandarichardson4213]

In downtown Anchorage, Alaska, most stores require a purchase if you wish to use their restrooms.

[@kimberlyshalaby1134]

I sure needed that laugh.

[@dorismidge8762]

In our double stall staff bathroom, one stall has a large gap between the door and the wall. You must walk past that stall to get to the other stall and even the sink. After hours, I’d cut and tape construction paper strips that laid flat over the gap when you closed the door. Someone kept removing them! One day I overheard two ladies talking about someone putting up construction paper in the bathroom for no reason. They remarked about it being weird because they were skinny strips with nothing written on them! LOL I thought it was weirder that someone kept removing them! The very last time I simply wrote “Don’t remove, official hiny hider”. It still got removed. I gave up.

[@cindyknudson2715]

Probably by cleaning staff. How do you sanitize construction paper?

[@dorismidge8762]

@@cindyknudson2715 😄Not likely. I work in a school. At that time (this was about 5 years ago) our custodial staff was not cleaning the school. They were getting high behind the portables. The principal would come in on weekends to clean bathrooms. She mainly focused on the student restrooms, staff bathrooms were not touched. I don’t blame her of course. I blame the district. (We didn’t know she was coming in on weekends until a few teachers saw her) They wouldn’t let her fire the “whole” custodial staff at once. It was 3 guys. 😒 It was a mess, literally and figuratively. Happy to report that we have a much better staff all around today! 😁

[@sandybarnes887]

I don't get why guys feel the need to stand while doing a piddle. Splashing it and toilet water everywhere. It's not a urinal. Sit down.

[@hairyairey]

In some countries it's the cultural norm to sit.

[@norabradley9108]

I understand it's better for their urinary tract system to stand up.

[@kenr86]

One thing I noticed as a difference between US toilets and Australian dunnies... in Australia, 'dual flush' cisterns are very common. So for a 'number one', you only use a small volume of water, but... I think you can guess where we are going here.

[@SilvaDreams]

We have those in the US too, it's just a matter of people changing over to them because why replace a perfectly good toilet (even if it is decades old) when you just have to replace the internals which are a LOT cheaper. My current place has one and my grandparents had them put in when they built their home in Florida back in 1992.

[@arrgghh1555]

Dual flush was invented in Australia with some government funding in the 80s. They became a requirement soon after to save water and energy cost. So to find a single flush toilet in Australia it would need to have been unchanged in more than 30 years. California has recently (2017) introduced similar regulations to try and counter their water shortages.

[@k.b.tidwell]

I do my best thinking in the bathroom, whether in the shower or baking brownies, pinching a loaf, fishing for wrinkle neck bass, fighting sewer snakes, feeding the Tidy Bowl Man™️, dropping the kids off at the pool, making voodoodoo dolls, or any number of other fun and educational (and sometimes dangerous) activities. It's too bad that after all of the excitement I can't remember a single revolutionary thought I had once I leave the room.

[@k.b.tidwell]

After posting this last night I went to sleep and dreamed that for some reason there was a toilet behind the customer service desk at my job, and I naturally had to go, thinking it quite normal to do that in view of The Public (pronounced in the comedian Ron White's way...look it up). Naturally I ran out of toilet paper. You see what you do to me, Laurence?

[@charleskosyjana1295]

Is anyone old enough to remember when some businesses had coin or token door lock systems on their restrooms ??? I imagine it was to help keep down vandalism and also to aid in paying for the paper products and cleaning. The manufacturer of these devices was Nik-O-Lock. In the beginning the cost was a Nickel, which then increased to a Dime and finally a Quarter if the business wanted to be greedy. These were usually found in gas stations, various stores, parks, really cheap restaurants and even some bars. They disappeared in the late 1980's to 1990's. They were a good idea in some circumstances. Nowadays, a majority of businesses in urban or low income areas simply don't have restrooms available to the public.

[@LindaC616]

I think occasionally you run into restrooms where the latch on the door is so old, you realize it used to be a pay toilet

[@charleskosyjana1295]

@@LindaC616 Yes you can tell if a regular door knob was installed in place of the coin mechanism. On the inside of the door there will still be the elongated T handle and the round lock knob. Haven't seen one for probably 20 years.

[@LindaC616]

@@charleskosyjana1295 I travel 2 hours (in non-Covid years) to a book club. The service area on the freeway at the halfway point has doors like that

[@charleskosyjana1295]

@@LindaC616 Cool !!! The last business I frequented that still had the remains of a coin lock was an old bar where my uncle played in a classic country music band once a month. The bar closed and was torn down in 2002. It is now a Wendy's restaurant. The coin lock was still on the door but the strike plate was taken off so you could just push the door open.

[@brianolson6366]

Surprised it took so long to get around to this one

[@libbytaylor2358]

I feel like this one was lost in the toilet!

[@stephen1991]

I remember one night a few years back in downtown Des Moines, a British family approached and asked if I knew where any public toilets were. I knew there were some restaurants and shops nearby but I explained that there were normally used by the patrons. I gave them directions to a nearby large chain convenience store. I'm not sure how long there had been in the states, but they seemed to expect to find public toilets more readily available. BTW, The last time I saw a pay toilet here was probably early 1970's at an airport. 10 cents was the going rate.

[@ChrisSantino]

Des Moines Iowa? I use to work at an doller general in iowa that had an bathroom in the back that my manager said we have to allow customers to use due to an law, also it is against the law in iowa to charge for an restroom.

[@mcmneverreadsreplys7318]

Local water pressure is a factor in flush quality, but it is also true that the individual toilet makes a difference. To whit: while many American toilets are slightly anemic I have encountered some that were capable of sucking down a raincoat (for the Brits, I believe that would be a Mac.) And this seems to be related to the actual toilet rather than water pressure.

[@danak8185]

Glad to know you always know where your towel is.

[@JustAGalOnTheGo]

I live in California and have a super low flow toilet (.8 gpf) so my water level looks like the uk one. I’ve learned that if you very lightly push on the button for a few seconds (yep, top button flush too) you can fill the bowl with a bit more water without flushing. Fan on ✅ extra toilet water ✅ poopourri spray ✅ 👀 🤦‍♀️

[@susanjohnson9795]

There used to be pay toilets in the USA. They just sort of died out. Maybe because there was always 1 nonpayment toilet. And instead of paying, unless it was an emergency, we all just waited on the free one. The also started having to be "buzzed" into the restrooms. In Boulder Co in the 60's and 70's they used the Buzz in, they said because the "Hippies" were going in and trashing them. Boulder was one of the meccas for Hippies.

[@samanthab1923]

You saw all that stuff on the news about Starbucks bathrooms. Those were buzz ins. I think I saw a McDonalds once too.

[@TrueThanny]

Used to be you had to ask for the key to the bathroom at a gas station, which was usually attached to some ridiculously large object to prevent people from pocketing it easily. The door was always on the outside. Now, just about every gas station has a convenience store with bathrooms inside, and no keys required.

[@susanjohnson9795]

@@TrueThanny Ya those cumbersome key Fobs were a pain. But I'll bet not many people took the keys accidentally.

[@samanthab1923]

Thanny That's the joke now. The key would be attached to a cinder block by a chain! 😂 worst part is the bathroom would disgusting!

[@michaelfink64]

The "paying a penny" thing reminded me of a little poem my Dad taught me: "Here I sit, broken hearted. Paid my penny and only farted."

[@lindah6954]

Depending on where in America. In most of NY State it is 4" sewer pipes for the toilet. I'm a real house flipper. And I had to pay $5,000 to bring a house that had 3" pipes to 4" to meet code.

[@chieromancer]

When I woke up this morning, I hoped someone on youtube would discuss toilets. I was not disappointed.

[@lindawolffkashmir2768]

In Brazil, they do not flush paper down the toilet, they have a can next to the toilet to throw used paper in. Their pipes are a lot more easily clogged.

[@kd1s]

Depends on the toilet - some are 1 gallon per flush, other's are 1.5 gallons. It's usually marked somewhere on toilet as to how many gpf it uses.

[@meganwilkins1692]

Live in Chicago n literally had to have a plumber here on Easter Sunday...can't imagine what that's gonna cost my landlord....haha...love u n ur wife love ur videos...🖤🖤

[@sternsr]

Casually taking a towel with you everywhere. You have truly embraced the Hitchhiker's guide.

[@commanderredhawk7468]

What a bathroom without towels??

[@emmrose6888]

Does anyone else love the fact that he’s wearing Star Wars pajamas

[@tomsdotter3228]

You are hilarious! I haven't seen a pay toilet since I was a kid, back in the 50s-60s. It cost a dime to use it, so my mother would cram me in there with her to save 10 cents. The seat glowed a purplish color. Supposedly that meant it was sanitizing. So, you were getting something for your dime 🥴

[@bracejuice7955]

Currently watching this whilst perched on an American toilet

[@conniewojahn6445]

Oh, that's funny.

[@cathyquigg4454]

After spending a couple of years in the UK the lack of water in the toilet would be my biggest complaint. So glad you've made this video. I can just send it to my friends when I try to explain the need for having to aim your deposit in a UK toilet LOL.

[@trishayamada807]

What I find interesting is my husband who’s not American, asks to use the “toilet”. It makes me cringe. We always ask to use the restroom, bathroom, boys/girls room, or lavatory on an airplane, but no one I know who’s a native born American asks to use the toilet. I don’t know why the word toilet just bothers me. It just sounds somehow, maybe so personal. Restroom is ambiguous....maybe... or I’m just weird.

[@deborahdanhauer8525]

I know exactly what you mean. Americans call it anything but the obvious, such as..."I have to powder my nose". Or "I need the ladies room". There's just something "wrong" about asking for the toilet directly. I know that sounds silly.

[@elgatofelix8917]

@@deborahdanhauer8525 there's a video on what Spanish speakers say. It's quite funny actually

[@Sarah-pp3ww]

I think it is because when we say toilet, we mean the actual receptacle not the room.

[@deborahdanhauer8525]

@@Sarah-pp3ww Yes, and when you ask for the toilet, it brings up that mental image.....ewwww

[@deborahdanhauer8525]

@@elgatofelix8917 really? I'll have to try to find it..😊🐝❤

[@shellyirby9828]

Thanks for sharing: i didn't know that there were any differences between British and American toilets. I like the orange chair by the way.

[@Alkatraz415]

The size of the pipe (3 or 4 inch) which is downstream of the toilet doesn't cause the toilet to back up. If the main sewer line (the 3 or 4 inch pipe) backs up, that would have more to do with the size of the pipe. The design of the toilet or mechanical issues with the toilet is what causes one toilet to clog more often than another toilet.

[@duane_313]

Dear british folks, if you come to America asking "Where's your toliet?" 9/10 you're gonna get strange looks and them saying "uh....in the bathroom🤨"

[@elgatofelix8917]

Depends on what part of America

[@johnp139]

I think that almost everyone will understand that.

[@manchestertart5614]

Where's your toilet?, that would be a rude way of asking.. More likely to say, Please, may I use your bathroom? It's phrased as a question though a refusal would be unwelcome if the need was desperate.

[@duane_313]

@@manchestertart5614 it sounds very crude and random. lol

[@arrgghh1555]

Maybe it's because I'm not British, but 10/10 times I asked "where is the toilet?" while in the US I was shown where the toilet was.

[@yadayada752]

While in Durham or maybe it was near Bamburgh, I chanced upon the winning public loo! It had received some award & had lovely plastic flowers along the sinks. And did you know that there is a "British Toilet Association."

[@Sarah-nd2gy]

My Mum, sister and I visited public toilets in New York where the water level was so high that the cheeks of our bottom touched the water when we sat down (and no, none of us were big girls - well at the time anyway). It was very disconcerting. Also you are closer to the water so if splash back does occur, you are more likely to get splashed

[@jakeaurod]

A hoopy frood always has his towel with him.

[@jpbaley2016]

The only difference I noted in the different countries I traveled to was when I was in Thailand, with Eastern style toilets. Good thing I was younger and still able to assume the squat position. The squat toilets didn’t have any water in them. You had to scoop it out of the cistern located next to the toilet. I guess I just never really gazed into a toilet bowl to notice water levels. Once I do the quick check to ensure whoever used the john before me flushed, then I just go.

[@eaglescout1984]

You may have to pay to use a public toilet in Britain, but at least they are an option. In the US, you don't usually see public toilets on the street (unless you're at the beach), so if you have to go you either need to find a park or other municipal facility, or sneak into a 7-Eleven or McDonalds.

[@haroldwilkes6608]

They're all over Southern California...they're called sidewalks.

[@cindyknudson2715]

Sneak? into a McDonald's or 7-eleven? They are open to the public.

[@papajeff5486]

New York City smells like piss, like everyone just pulls it out and pisses on any wall he pleases. I was walking down some street toward Time Square, picked up a brotwurst on a brötchen and all I could smell was piss on the sidewalk. Not going back to where people just piss anywhere in town. Texas

[@bigdog8008]

One thing I noticed a lot less of with my last trip to EU -- "Toilet Dragons". Some places had ladies sitting by the door taking money before you can go in - 'pay to go'. Last one I saw was in a multi-level McDonalds in France.

[@Hero1117a]

Luv the exit music

[@westonhuffman7908]

Well, I just love it whenever there are any bathrooms that I can plunge.

[@davidburroughs2244]

Well, good thing this episode is in the tank.

[@milowadlin]

That was very brave of you!

[@michaelhoward487]

I now feel flush with newly acquired knowledge of the comparative systems.

[@walterulasinksi7031]

One of the biggest differences is that in the US, the main waste pipes are buried within the walls and being so, they wind up. Being in a warmer condition as opposed to British houses where you see. These pipes on the outside of the buildings where they must conduct large amounts of. Cold into the loo especially since these are of cast iron. While in older houses in theUS, theses pipes are also cast iron, but. Newer houses are of automotive butyl styrene plastic ( black) and poly vinyl chloride plastic ( white) . The plastic retains heat and that causes the offending gasses in the pills to expand thereby needing a larger trap in the spud brown .therefore more water to fill th3 trap.

[@CarnivoreRonin]

Douglas Adams reference for the win!