why aren't public toilet seats complete ovals?

Question

lol i always wondered...at home its a complete oval but in public..its not. what the hell?

Answer 1

I'm assuming you are a female? Many men don't put up the seat. (you shouldn't be too angry at men who don't put the seat down, at least they put it up to begin with!) The missing section is to prevent urine from being splashed on it.

Answer 2

Most are complete ovals.

The conventional answers are that

it stops guys dribbling if they don't lift the seat (absolute nonsense -- they're as likely to hit some other part of the seat)

and

it's supposed to stop women (whose anatomy is amazingly variable -- some of them fire straight forward and if they forget to hunch over enough can hit the seat with their stream) making a mess of the seat.

In my view (as a tourist facility operator) neither of these views holds (if you'll pardon the expression) water. One possiible reason is that it makes the seat lighter and less liable to damage itself and/or the porcelain bowl if it falls.

For the sake of the record all our toilet seats have always been complete ovals.

Answer 3

The company saves money by not including that amount of plastic.

Also, people think that the less seat there is, the less place for germs to grow. (Although toilet seats aren't really that germy.)

The complete oval shape of your home toilet seat makes it stronger so it doesn't crack.

Answer 4

Simple they cut out the dribble and drip zone.

Answer 5

what do you mean are they a full circle or you mean its an open circle... BTW the should be all OVALS /... i am with you.

Answer 6

Because of splishy-splashy.

Answer 7

so you do not pinch your penis while takin a dump when drunk.

Answer 8

....the world may never know....