From: Dana
I am having a really hard time figuring out how to calculate the best buy on toilet paper. Do you have any suggestions about the best way to figure this out (e.g. per sheet, square feet)? I have worn myself out trying to decide the best way to figure this out. Any suggestions?
Frankly I gave up on figuring it out! We now buy Ultra Charmin Mega Rolls and just try to buy it when it’s on sale. Why? Well, I hate the cheap stuff. You have to use twice as much so your hands don’t get wet (sorry for the vivid details 
.
We teach the kids to use less. This is the best way to save money on toilet paper. With my 6 year old, we said, “You need 4 squares to wipe,” so now he counts and knows not to yank off a huge amount. This is one area I try to “just let it go”. Life is too short to be yelling at hubby to use less if I think he is using more TP than he needs to.
-Tawra
Dana,
When you calculate, I would just consider number of sheets per roll. Square feet is too confusing and doesn’t really matter. Some stores, like Wal-Mart now have tags that break it down to show you the actual comparison so it’s easier to calculate.
-Mike
I have always used expensive toilet paper. I have calculated the cost over the years ( 200 sheets of 2 ply = 400 sheets compared to 300 sheets of 1 ply= 300 sheets. If they are both the same price, then the first is the best deal) and it pays to buy the expensive brand.
Here are some reasons to use more expensive toilet paper:
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Most people use twice as much of the cheap toilet paper so they won’t get their hands dirty.
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Using too much cheap toilet paper can clog some toilets. My uncle the plumber said that a good portion of his calls were to unplug toilets clogged with toilet paper, especially in homes with teenage boys and husbands. If you have this problem, I recommend asking your husband to be more careful, especially if you are the one having to clean up the mess. Sometimes the problem isn’t that you have a bad toilet but the wrong toilet paper and a wadding husband, so cheap toilet paper can get to be very expensive. (Mike: Heyyy… I sense an awful lot of “dumping” on husbands here!) (Jill the mother in law – if the shoe fits???:)
The Best Solution
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Teach all members of the family to fold their toilet paper instead of wadding it. This may seem like an embarrassing thing to do but if you are serious about saving money and TP, you will do it.
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If, when you pull the paper, it comes flying off the roll, fix the toilet paper holder. Adjust it so it won’t spin quite so fast.
Most families who “wad” use 50% to 75% more toilet paper than those who fold. Once again, using just the right amount will save money.
Boy, when we say we cover how to save money in all areas of your life on our web site we aren’t kidding, are we? : ) : )
-Jill
For more easy and practical ways to save money and get out of debt, check out Dig out Of Debt and learn more about how to keep more of your money.
Photo By: Sharon Mollerus
You could change to “Wee Wipes” These are cloth wipes used by the females in the family. You will use heaps less toilet paper and save haps of trees.
Barb.
Jill and Tawra, This is darn good advice. I agree 100% with the folding. I have problems with my DH. AND also with my sons when they were living with us. One day I “got tired of it” and started using my own “personal” roll. My DH used the roll on the spindle. He went through 2 rolls to my 1. Now anatomically speaking, wouldn’t you think it would have been the other way around. Even after I told him of my “test” he wouldn’t change. It is irritating, but not worth fighting with him over it.
The savings on my part vs the waste on DH part goes into my charity fund. Actually I find it funny to think that part of the free mammograms for disadvantaged women that I fund come from toilet paper savings. LOL
Fondly, Peg
I did this very same test with my husband when he was not even home every day. Same result. Who taught them these things? I was taught four squares per wipe. Okay six if you need it.
All these little things add up!
Even though I always advice not wasting things I don’t want anyone to become guilty for using toilet paper as we do with so many things so here are a couple of facts.
For every tree used for toilet paper 5 others are planted and the last I knew we now have over 200% more trees now then at the turn of last century.
God gave us some wonder full resources to use and I think He wants us to use them on the other hand He doesn’t want us to be wasteful.
Just thought I would throw that extra little bit in that I forgot to add. : ) : )
Jill
After trying most brands I have been using the same one for many years now. It is SCOTT Brand, 1000 sheets (Not the soft etc.., regular tp) per roll. Last WAY longer than the others!! I wait till they go on sale check your Sunday paper circulars like Kmart, Target etc.. They usually are on sale for like 2 for $11.00 for the 12 pack. And I almost always have a coupon for an additional $1.00 off.
But, the best thing I did is buy flushable wipes for my husband and boys, cheapo generic ones. They use one instead of tons of tp. I always had that clogged toilet from too much tp with my boys now with the wipes NO more clogs
in my survey that i did with my family.. it didnt matter if we used the expensive rolls or the cheap rolls.. we still used the same amt… but i did notice that with the thicker kind, we did tend to use a bit more.. not sure why tho…
… he thinks he has “issues” with that part of his body.. personally i think its all in his head! 
hhehehe 
…
and bc of this, the cheapest i could find was the best deal for us…
my son in law “MUST” have the expensive kind or else well or else he is just tooo funny to post.. hehehehe
my friend on the other had tested her family like i did and well she came up the same results.. so now she buys the expensive kind and just separates the 2 ply.. thus getting 2 for 1 deals!…
i think that is just too much work and well yes it might save some pennies.. so i just buy the cheap brand…
and yes jill i agree wiht you.. you arent kidding when you said you cover all areas to save money… hehehehehehhehee
rose
I will never use Charmin, but I’ve been advised by three different plumbing companies that it is the absolute worst paper you can use for your plumbing system. When the plumber snaking your main line drain tells you that you’re paying for the service because you use Charmin, it’s a real eye-opener!
The way that I calculate what’s a good toilet paper cost is simple. I look at the square footage of paper in the package, not the ply or the other numbers – just the square footage. Then I compare it to the price. I have determined that a penny a square foot is a good deal on bathroom tissue. So, therefore, if it’s got 500 square feet in the package, I’m wanting to pay $5.00 for it. If it’s less than that, it’s definitely a deal and I will probably stock up. This works well for me, and it’s very easy to remember!
We were using Charmin too. Then the plumber told us to use the Costco/Kirkland brand, because it breaks down the best. That makes it better for your plumbing and Septic. So, that’s what we us. It’s soft enough for everyone.
We have solved most of our using to much TP by making the rule of “you clog it, you plunge it!” This was great insentive for the kids to pay attention to how much they were using. My kids range in age from 7-12, and they are all (usually) able to plunge with a little effort–and they clean up any that went over.
shortly after getting married years ago, my husband and I moved into his parents rental house and started on what would turn out to be a horrid remodel experence. within a month of the move and while still under construction our sewer pipes backed up into all the working drains in the house! we had a plumber out and like in the previous post, we told that our problem was due to the use of charmin. my in-laws used it no matter the price because it was their preference but it cost us dearly. I have used angel soft since then. its about the best deal and now they have it in double rolls and that saves me putting a new roll on the tp holder! its also septic tank friendly and can be used while camping with no ill effect.
Dear Jill and Tawra
I enjoyed your comment about the men and teenaged boys using too much toilet paper. However, I think girls can be just as bad…when my teenaged niece lived at home (I live with my sister, her mother) I had to plunge the toilet or clean the toilet paper out of the toilet by hand (using gloves of course!) at least once a week. She would complain that the tiolet would not flush or it kept overflowing!!No amount of talking could pursuade her to use less paper. Thankfully she now lives in her own apartment and I wonder if she still has this problem…Sorry if this is a little gross but thank you for letting me express a problem that I though was particular only to teenaged girls!!!
The math approach doesn’t work too well with TP because of the other variables involved, like thickness, absorbency, softness, etc. We have a septic system so “septic safe” is a must. I have severe allergies and have only been able to use Scott’s 1000 sheet (original) for years, but recently the only store around me that carried it discontinued it! I have found a store brand (I think), HomeLife, available at County Market, that is septic safe, trouble-free for me, and actually lasts a bit longer. At 60% of the cost of Scott’s, too. Whoopee! My best friend’s family is hooked on Charmin and they have the plumber out 3 or 4 times a year!
Scott Tissue is available at Walgreens (individual rolls), and at Sams Club. I buy the cases, at Sams Club.
Charmin is harsh on your septic and pipes and personally, for me, it is too “linty”. Hopefully enough said there. ;0)
Rebecca,
Same here~~much too “linty” for me. Not only for personal reasons but if you use Charmin~~take a look around your TP Holder~~white dust everywhere! I never have liked it or used it but my Mom did until I convinced her~~also it was clogging her toilets also.
I have recently found at Dollar General (Dollar Stores) a 4 pk TP~~their Brand~~might be similar to Scott’s origional~~(not sure) but it is around $3.00 & I have found it to last longer.
I also agree~~Dh uses twice as much as I do. I used a seperate roll also & proved that.
Love this site blg & also love the comments posted in each posts~~they really add a lot of info.
Hugs & Blessings,
Pam
I have found that squashing the roll a little saves alot more. The roll doesn’t allow you to pull a bunch off at once.
We are Scott users,too. Last the longest, I always come out better, money wise, every time using Scott. Looks a tad more $$ on the shelf, but you won’t have to but it as often.
Fuuny-I was just having this conversation with a clerk in my store about which TP was the best buy. I had picked up a couple of brands that said they had the same amt. of sheets, number of plys, etc. I noticed, though, that one of the packages of HEAVIER than the other. The clerk went to weigh them, because he was curious, too. It was true-the one brand was almost 1/2 lb. heavier, which clearly meant the buyer was getting more TP for the same price. I now pay attention to the total weight, as well as the price.
I’ve been using Huggies baby wipes for myself for a long time,feel cleaner with them. The cheap baby wipes don’t work nearly as well. We have also used Angel Soft bath tissue for years with no problems with the plumbing, the bathroom plumbing, and our own. LOL Bonnie
I like the aldi 1000 sheets per roll tp. cheap works as well as anything else.
its comparable to scott but cheaper
I used to use Aldi brand, then they changed suppliers. Now the paper is loose on the roll and there is not as much. It is no longer a good deal. I am on the hunt for affordable tp that lasts like the former Aldi brand did.
We were using plain old SCOTT but they changed it to a more fluffy brand. We have to be super conservative with tp in our home due to a very poorly built septic system. that plus 4 kids, not fun bathroom time. Anyway, I switched to a brand called Pert. It’s pretty comparable to Scott in sq.ft, and seems to be fine for everyone. We’ll see
I am curious about the cheap paper and how much is actually used. I use less then 1 roll per person a week and that is for a female so I wonder what others are using.
I feel sorry for Charmin. All of you are so down on it. I have used it for years with NO problems what so ever. I dont stay in the bathroom rolling off tissue all day so I dont consider I use that much. Not many people even have septic tanks any more and Charmin seems to go right down the drain with no problems.
Linda I love Charmin and that is the only kind I too have used for years. When Tawra and Mike was first married he insisted that Scott was the only kind to use and Tawra wouldn’t go near it so for a long time they always had to rolls of toilet paper out – one for him and one for her. But now Mike is completely won over and I don’t think he likes Scott at all any more.
I don’t understand either wanting to unroll a ton of paper and then usually the wet goes all the way through no matter how much you use of it compared to using a little of Charmin and it holding up.
A tip I learned a long time ago from somewhere to help keep the toilet paper from spinning off the roll so fast is to lay the toilet paper on it’s side and “flatten” it so that the tube is no longer perfectly round, but is more crimped and won’t turn as easily on the dispenser. Works every time!
We buy our tp at Sam’s Club. It is a box of 40 double rolls, 2 ply and costs $18. We are a family of two adults and one child, and this box lasts us about 6 months! We have been buying this for two years now, and wont buy anything else!
Purchase a portable bidet. Your toilet paper use will plummet.
Some countries don’t bother to use toilet paper but it is a good advice to save money on toilet paper that to waste money for not properly used it.
How do you get dry using a bidet??? Just curious.
Bea I have wondered the same thing myself.
I always used to buy the cheap stuff because it didn’t have perfume in it.
Why do you need to perfume yourself there? And the paper is going down the drain anyway.
I buy Presidents Choice TP because it comes in double rolls has no perfume and the package fits in behind my clothes basket in the bathroom within reach of the hands of the person on the toilet when husband forgets to replace the roll.
One pack of 16 costs about $12. and that is a good price for our area.
Ann Landers once wrote a column about which way the paper should come off the roll. You would not believe how many months that column was repeated. My thought was “Who cares” as long as somebody changes the roll.
It’s funny you should mention that (what direction the TP goes) Grandma. When my husband and I first were married I thought you just put the paper on the roller but that was what we had our first married fight about. My husband said it should roll over the top. I looked at him like he had grown 2 heads and we started in. I finally decided something so trivial was not worth fighting over and gave in. For 40 plus years I have now rolled it over the top. For years we would laugh at how silly that fight was over TP.
I like it rolling over the top, but when you have toddlers that like to see things spin, it’s time to have it roll the other way. It’s harder for them to spin it into a pile on the floor when it rolls down the back.
Archie Bunker had that same argument with Michael on “All In The Family.” I love old show re-runs and Archie cracks me up. Archie said over the top and Michael accidently did bottom of the roll. They fought over that kind of silliness all the time which was funny.
To answer Linda, I think she would be very surprised how many people still have septic tanks. Next time she is in the country look at all the houses and figure where their sewer systems are. I use Scott because it has always been best when I lived in a 100 yr old house in town on sewer but old pipes and now on syptic system. I never did care for the fEEl of Charmin and could picture it clogging pipes. Sort of like pituring bat running around my blood vessels when I eat bacon. That is why I eat bacon out, no fat, no calories, right??? Take care.
Bat + fat Even when I reread what I write, I still mess up. Take care.
OK must need a nap, bat = fat not + fat
take care.
i understand that for a bathroom to ‘look pretty’ and organized, the TP is on a holder; however, at my house, it sits nicely on a shelf beside. This way, you wrap it around your hand, and count, fell its thickness, and not ‘wad’ it. Works for me – hubby still wads!
Scotts is king. Soft enough and reasonablely priced even when not on sale. It (for me) is the best buy!
Not that it matters but I have found it handier to have the TP coming over the top of the roll. Guess I began doing that when Aurora came out. It was a “lined” paper, white lining, colors on top. So if you wanted the color to show best, you had it over the top. I also use Charmin, find I can use much less to get the job done, and I fold, not wad. One learns thru experience! I’ve always found Scott to be harsh on my skin. I used to use Angel Soft until one day, I realized it was not as wide on the roll. I measured it against Charmin or Northern, and it was ¼ inch smaller, so bye bye, Angel Soft. Price was less, but so was the paper.
That brings up another pet peeve. Smaller bags of sugar, containers of coffee, bacon, whatever…for the same price as it used to be for the larger size. Even canned goods are now 14 oz. rather than 16 oz. Just sayin’. Thanks for a great newsletter and much useful information. Love it!
Blessings!
In a house with five girls plus family and friends, we go through alot of TP. I have found that pressing the roll so that it doesn’t unroll so quickly has been one of the best ways to manage the usage amount. AND really stressing that you don’t need as much as you think you need; say 6-8 sheets vs 15-20. I even experimented with my girls in taking more than was necessary in a totally different situation where it “cost” them going without or having to spend more than they had bargained for. Another great teaching tool is to give them a fair amount of $ for a specific task (meal, craft, etc) then having them make the purchase. If they have left over money they get to keep it, but if they run out then any extra comes out of their money…this works really well showing them just how it adds up or how to limit quantities with many things.
Jill, you always have such practical advice, even about toilet paper!
Scott is the best tissue for my septic tank and it last a lot longer than other brands. I buy when it goes on sale at Food Lion or Walmart.
All this talk about clogging the septic….We only flush the paper that really needs to be flushed….If the paper was only used to dry off “peepee” as the kids say, then it goes in the sealed trash container with the baby wipes that cannot be flushed. That gets tossed daily.
We started that when we were staying in a travel trailer and REALLY did not want to deal with a clogged waste hose.
We felt a little strange, until we started attending a little country church on an old septic system that also posts the sweetest embroidered hangings begging the congregation to please place ALL paper products in the wastebaskets to protect the septic against costly repairs.
Around here it is pretty common for public restrooms to have a great deal of paper in the wastebasket too. I guess a lot of us septic using country folk or people coming in from countries without good municipal septic systems are used to tossing the paper in the basket. However, IMHO, if the paper is anything more than just dampened, it needs to be flushed for health reasons!
Oh, and with a Bidet – which are wonderful – you can provide each family member with their own color of small towels to pat dry, and the responsibility to change towels appropriately. Guests may use the fancy TP.
Tossing the toilet paper in the trash is how it is done where we went in Mexico. In Japan, I have seen that they have a wash-and-dry toilet, so you don’t need the towels. Sometimes, I think that would be nice.
Love Charmin mega-rolls! You don’t have to change them so often and they are thick enough when the roll is new to prevent “over-indulging”. We have a septic system and they work fine. I HATE cheap toilet paper.
Here’s what my mom did with three girls in the house to manage toilet paper use (besides counting squares)–she had us use cut-up sheets of newspaper to wrap up our used sanitary supplies and throw them in the trash. No flushing sanitary supplies when you have a septic tank unless you want to have the plumber visit.
Hi
I know this would sound outrageous but for the past month I have been using family wipes.
This doesn’t sound outrageous at all Ravsisha. Many people are starting to change over and using some type of wipe so you are “normal”.
I always wondered what pioneers did for toilet paper, like Laura Ingalls from Little House on the Prairie. Did they use leaves when traveling across country in a covered wagon? And what did women do for feminine products centuries ago. Weird thoughts.
Not weird at all Bea I have thought the same thing. Depending on where they lived and period of time many used leaves, corn husks, newspaper, catalogs and even things like straw or grass. They really did keep a Sears catalog in the out house. In some cultures they washed with water and some uses sanded. Now that would be interesting.
As for feminine products they used rags and some poorer women used nothing. I know that is hard for us to even imagine. In some places women weren’t allowed to leave the house or even their room during their period. I think it was in the late 1800′s some nurses came up with the idea to use some of the wool bandages at the hospital and that was the beginning of the first pads being manufactured to sell.
Well, I know that ladies used rags and afterwards, put them into a bucket (of water) with a lid. This kept them wet and for the most part prevented the rags from staining, On wash day, the whole pail full got scrubbed on a washboard and hung out to dry. Thank God, we have the products that we do, these days! Ultra Super absorbent Ultra super thin Maxi Pads and super absorbent tampons! We call the 1800′s and early 1900′s “the good ole days”, but for ladies, it really and truly wasn’t. Girls, these are good days to be a woman!
Reference –
http://feministsforchoice.com/the-evolution-of-menstrual-products.htm
http://www.lunette.com/index.php?id=40
http://encyclopedia.toiletpaperworld.com/toilet-paper-history/complete-historical-timeline
I love my Family Cloth and MeLuna Cup.
I, too, use the Costco or Kirkland Brand. It lasts longer than any other brand Ive tried, even the very expensive brands. Nothing out-last it. Also, because it breaks down so well, and quickly, we use it in the RV and it saves us even more, as we dont have to use the regular “RV” toilet paper!!!
I read an article in Shop Smart – June issue, which did a cost comparison and the Kirkland brand came out the cheapest and a best buy in terms of quality/cost. I have always used Scott, but am give it a try when my mega-package is empty.
My aunt told me a while ago that if you squeeze the toilet paper you see how much you really get. Some brands you can squeeze down to 1/4 of an inch and other brands you get an entire inch and it’s not the megarolls. Quilted Northern is the only one I can squeeze an inch at my local store.
To figure out which brand/type would be cheapest for our household, I did a little math calculation, a couple of years ago. I picked out a couple of ones, that I sensed were the best buys for us. I opened one package, noted how long it lasted, then divided the price paid by the days this package lasted. This gave me a price per day. I did this with a couple of different brands and types, and came up with the one brand that seems to be the best buy — cheapest per day for our household.
It was interesting to find out that some of the bargain brands are not at all a bargain.
I LOVE Northern and would not usually use anything else but I tried the Target brand and it is JUST LIKE Northern…LOVE it!!!
I buy POM from Sam’s club. 40 indiv wrapped rolls for about $18. Lasts my family quite a while… probably 5 months. I’m overdue for a Sam’s club trip though. I had to buy Angel Soft to hold us over until I go later this month.
I hate Charmin. When I visited my parents, I had to change Charmin TP rolls everyday. I use 1000 sheets (Scott or store brand like Ralph’s or Kroger) and change it once every week at my place. I love 1000 sheets!
Alternative: Family Cloth! You can make your own from old shirts and soft rags, it’s reuseable, and save even more by hanging it on the line instead of throwing it in the dryer. For those of you who have cloth diapered, this is no different. I have very sensitive skin and Family Cloth keeps the rashes away; and the wallet a little fatter
My reply to how do you get dry after using a bidet – the same way you get dry after a bath or shower!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A roll of paper towells works too especially for guests but not very frugal.
I have seen many patterns on the web for home made sanitary pads on other frugal sites. Thank goodness I no longer need them. Don’t know if it’s possible to make tampons though.
I too prefer to use original Scott tissue but hated the rolls they produced with out the cardboard center
Like another commenter said, You clog it, you plunge it.
In our home we always used the single ply to prevent clogging because the house was 150 years old (our house was the first house to get indoor plumbing in our town).