Most people tend to get extremely territorial about their bathroom space. A clean, germ-free space is a dream especially if you have to use a common bathroom like the one in your office or at a restaurant and sometimes even in joint families. Whatever be your situation, here are 11 essential rules of bathroom etiquette that everyone must follow.
1. Wash your hands: Wash your hands every single time you visit the loo. You obviously don’t have a microscopic vision to know what germs are resting on your hands. There is no acceptable excuse for skipping this process especially if you are using a public toilet.
2. No talking between stalls: Bathrooms are no place for talking so make sure you don’t shout out your concerns from across the stalls. This is not a pleasant sound for others.
3. Keep your phones away: Definitely not the best place to have a conversation on your cell phone. Imagine if you are on the other end it would be so weird to hear strange sounds in the background.
4. Check the toilet paper: Every time you rush into a stall, make sure there’s enough toilet paper. Toilet paper is also necessary to clean off the seat once you’ve finished as a courtesy to the next person. If you’ve used the last roll of tissues, make it a point to replace it or bring it to the notice of the service staff.
5. No nasty jokes: Laughing or even acknowledging strange sounds that other people may make by mistake is rude. So maintain a no-jokes policy.
6. No deliberate sounds: Some people think that bathrooms offer the perfect space and time to relax. They may use it to hum, sing or grunt while their doing their business. This is a total turn off for others around.
7. Don’t bring food in: Bringing food into the restroom is just disgusting and should not be done at all.
8. Leave it clean: Never leave a toilet dirty or a wet floor. If you’ve had leaks then make sure you wipe the seat as a courtesy to the next person. Do not forget to flush.
9. Do not leave the seat up: Never leave the toilet seat up. You could have accidents where things could fall right into the toilet bowl and that won’t be pleasant. So make sure you put down the seat once you are done.
10. No sanitary products: Disposing sanitary products inappropriately can create a hassle for people who have to deal with it. Flushing those down the drain can cause pipe blockages. Make sure you dispose used sanitary products in the right bin. Ideally, you should wrap it in a paper napkin and then throw it in the dustbin.
11. Wait patiently: If there is no earth-shattering rush, wait patiently, in the queue, for your turn. This is especially applies while using public restrooms at restaurants and movie theatres. And when it’s your turn, don’t keep others waiting for too long outside.
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