I don't usually worry about it. After all, I'm going to wash my hands. I know that the faucet and the doorknob are supposed to be more germy than the toilet seat (because the seat is cleaned more) but I really don't worry about it -- because, byt that logic, everything you touch is germy. Elevator buttons, escalator railings, subway poles, steering wheels, pens, trays at McDonalds, god knows what else. Fact is, I don't get sick too often, so I don't think what I touch is going to hurt me.

However, if the doorknob or the the faucet is wet, that disgusts me. I hold a paper twoel. I guess moisture makes you think it could be organic...

I use paper towels.
First post rules!

I use my foot to flush when I can. After I wash my hands I use the paper towel I dried with to turn off the faucet. If there are no paper towels I don't wash up, just use my hand sanitizer.(always handy to carry some in your bag). As for the doors, I just open them, sometimes with my sleve but mostly I don't worry about it.

wow. how about stop being such a germophobe? am i the only one who's never even heard of anyone getting sick or dying from bathroom germs?

if simply washing your hands with a nice antibacterial soap after doing your business isn't enough to make you feel safe, might i suggest investing in some therapy? it worked wonders for What About Bob.

Exit really isn't a problem. I agree, just use a paper towel. Entry can be a little more tricky. I do not want to grab Mr. Thick Dick after I have touched a filthy entry door. I usually use my elbow if the door opens inward. If not, I may wash my hands before and after.

After spending a few weeks doing misc ride alongs with my local sheriffs department. I came across the conclusion that paper towls are the way to go. Ill turn on the water with my hands, wash then use my elbow to get some papertowls(or pull) use a clean towel to turn the faucet off, and same towle to open the door. Use my foot to hold the door as I toss the towel. If there is no bin within range. Closet corner(yeah Im that jerk).
I also always carry a couple of napkins in my pocket just in case its one of those air dry only. I have seen to many men 'rinse' and touch everything.

The Rest Areas in South Carolina (some of them, not all) are the best - no door, (just that maze thing) automatic flush (no handle), automatic water (well I guess you have to touch the soap dispenser, but you wash your hands after anyway) and auto-dryer.

Too bad more restrooms aren't designed that way.

I noticed people saying they use the paper towel they dried their hands with to turn off faucets. It's a good start, but if they are wet, you're wasting your time. Bacteria loves moisture. Let the water run a little longer, shut it off with a dry paper towel, and hope you don't have a lever on the paper towel dispenser.

Unfortunately for "wonderpance", he/she has never experienced or had to live with someone who experienced a phobia. They are so intense that no amount of personal strength can fully conquer them, though some can be suppressed at least enough for you to appear 'normal' in public. Actually ending a phobia can take counselling and possibly hypnosis to get to the reason behind the phobia.

I agree. Elbow open the door, or pull it open and wash your paws. Do your business, and flush with foot or elbow. Wash again, using paper towels on the handles if necessary. If there is only an air dryer and it has a button, elbow or shoulder it, or if it's wet and you think you can (and the place is empty) just give it a little kick. Paper towels get a pull-door open, then stop it with your foot and pitch it into the trash, or find a trash can outside the bathroom.

I'm not a germophobe, but I use a towel to open the bathroom door on the way out because too many people "handle the meat" and work the TP and then either rinse or just walk out. You don't need a phobia to find that sort of action disgusting.
~ Jake

It's not phobia, it's simply good hygiene and civic responsibility.

Follow these steps upon exiting the stall or stepping away from the urinal:

1. Get a length of paper towel
2. Hold paper towel under arm
3. Turn on water
4. Soap hands and wash vigorously for at least 30 seconds. Scratch soapy palms with all digits to get under nails.
5. Rinse thoroughly.
6. Dry with previously acquired paper towel.
7. Use paper towel to turn off water.
8. Use paper towel to grasp door handle on exiting.
9. Discard paper towel.

Extreme? Think about the food preparer of your next meal out taking a crap just before he/she arrives to serve you. Would the 5 second rinse be good enough before touching the food that you are about to put in your mouth?

Bon appetite.

PS to wonderpance :

Sorry to belabor point but google "hand washing" and "deaths per year" re "never even heard of anyone getting sick or dying from bathroom germs? "

Here is a typical hit:

In the food-service industry, studies indicate that inadequate hand-washing and cross-contamination is responsible for as much as 40% of food-borne illnesses, including Salmonella, Hepatitis A, Shigellosis, Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Listeria, Giardia, e. Coli, and many as yet unidentified but dangerous viral infections. It is estimated that there are over 80 million cases of food poisoning in the United States each year and 325,000 hospitalizations resulting in greatly increased health care costs, loss of job productivity, and as many as 9,000 deaths per year.

I like to open the doors with my hand near the top of the door. Flush the potty with a wad of TP. Crank out some paper towel prior to hand washing and touching the surfaces, while holding a wad of papertowel.

Ive been having problems with festering bateria underneath the wristwatch, and it can stink with bacteria and viruses under the watchband, so it maybe wise to never wear a watch again, but I still wearing the stupid thing.

Ive had problems in the past with overwiping and broken skin around my exit hole, and with splashing of potty water, may have contributed to my Cronic Fatigue ive had since 1983, but also had an operation at that time, that didn't want to heal.

There been times, when it seems like theres poop stink in my hands, which happens if the wad of TP isn't big enough, and it gets on my hands, also there are times when it takes 5 minutes to wash the stink out of the pores of the skin.

First wash your hands really good in the bathroom, then wipe using those anti-bacterial wet wipes real good, then put on the food preparer gloves.

Not good when they have to handle the food and the money and the register, which I think is causing contamination.

The preceding instructions are helpful but rather lengthy.

Most public bathroom doors open outward ... you pull to enter.

Therefore, simply open the door, enter, finish your business, and wash your hands thoroughly.

If they facility offers paper towels, use them to dry your hands and also to open the door when leaving. Discard the paper towels in a trash receptical outside the bathroom somewhere.

If the facility does not offer paper towels, exit the bathroom like doctors exit the scrub area with your hands held upward and using your elbows to push the door outward.

Gaseous G, you make an excellent point! i agree completely that people working in the food service industry need to wash their hands thoroughly before preparing food. i also think that everyone should wash their hands after using the toilet. washing your hands in general is a good way to avoid spreading illness, and it's just good hygiene.

i just think that trying to make sure that your skin never touches any surface in the bathroom whatsoever is a bit extreme. germs are everywhere. and bathrooms, particularly public restrooms that get cleaned every day, aren't even the germiest places. don't believe me? just ask jeeves! i just read a report that said bathrooms actually come in third after playgrounds and buses for having the most germs. http://www.newsnet5.com/health/337411/detail.html

so, you're worried about that guy who just took a shit and touched his wang and left the bathroom without washing his hands? fine, don't touch anything in the bathroom. but you better carry that paper towel with you wherever you go, cuz you don't know what else that guy has touched after leaving the bathroom. it's not like the germs disappear from his hands after that door closes behind him, you know. if you're not going to touch anything in the bathroom in fear of germs, you better not touch anything else either. cuz, like i said, they're everywhere!

Entry- If the door opens inward, Push it with my foot, if it opens outwards, wash hands after touching door handle.
Doing the Deed - Find cleanest stall, wipe down the seat with t.p., cover seat with T.P. so that its clean and comfortable to sit on whilest you poop. After the deed is done you must get another piece of t.p. to wipe the t.p. off of the seat into the toilet.
Exit- wash hands by touching everything with a papertowel, including the door when you leave. Drop the papertowel on the floor or in the trashcan if its available.
Go home and finish the poop in a more relaxed, secure environment...

I was once on a city bus that suddenly, and unexpectedly became a restroom.

No one had any paper towels.

do your thing and lick it clean

i agree with wonderpance, i've never even thought of not touching the faucet. All I do is use my foot to open the door (if possible), and cover the seat with toilet paper.

Carry a travel sized bottle of hand sanitizer in your pocket. Then you don't have to worry about touching anything.

Drag the trashcan out in the middle of the floor. Crap in the trashcan. Threaten to do something very vile if someone doesn't open the door for you so that you don't have to touch anything on the way out.

Remember Howard in "The Aviator"? He waited til someone came in so he would not have to touch the door upon leaving. I have a father like this--he does not frequent this site (it would make him vomit) but if he did you would have 150% satisfaction because he is (drum roll) THE KING OF SANITATION METHODS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

seirously... i reg. open the door wen i enter public restrooms without a problem. wen/ever im done with my "buizness" then i use my foot to flush. and wen im ready to go i just take sum paper towels and use it to open doors. i've been doin if 4 a-while and it realy helps!

realy wen i take a shit i put sum TP on the seat. helps ya realy if ur not the type of person who squats and do it.

hey ask jeeves whats up i think ive talked with you but just email me back kay.

There's no point in being so fussy about public toilets, a recent study has shown that supermarket trolleys/carts are more germ-laden than any crapper door... think of the babies who sit in there and drool all over the handle. Yum

Obviously, in addition to washing my hands before touching food and after using the loo (and after shaking hands with most politicians), I also, especially during "cold" season, have developed the habit of hand-washing whenever I come home or back to the office after being out in public. Frankly, you're a lot less likely to pick up a cold from germs in public places than you are some kind of fecal contamination. Your good old stomach acids do a great job of killing a lot of food-borne germs, but you can give yourself a cold simply by touching your eyes if your fingers have those kinds of germs on them.

As I say all the time on this site, though: If you're that paranoid about germs in public places, use the bathroom before you leave home!

For all you germ freaks, there is a new product I read about in a local business journal. It's a hands free door opening systems for restrooms. No more looking for a paper towel to open the door. They call it Clean Door Systems. Doesn't look like it's intended for home use though. www.cleandoor.com

There is a sweet alternative at www.cleandoor.com I checked it out and it is a hands free system for opening a restroom door! F'n Awesome!

Ok, first is to enter.. try not to touch anything, but it's not that bad, cause ur going to wash your hands after. Always kick the door open if u can, if not, open the door near the bottom of the handle.. most people reach for the top. If you really dont wanna touch it, use a sleeve. Anyways, once ur in, try not to use a urinal.. most people dont notice, but ur pants touch them.. cool, I got someone else's piss on me.. no thanks.. I use a stall, and use my foot, to open and close the door from the bottom edge. I might turn the lock with my hand, so Chris Wojtowicz doesn't sneak up behind me. If you really gotta shit.. you're fuck't. I never shit in public.. but if ur gunna blow up.. I suggest putting way too much toilet paper over the seat.. best way? sideways.. some will go in the water preventing splash.put as many pieces as it takes to cover the seat.. 5 rows on each side maybe? I don't shit in public.. and then.. still try to crouch over that bitch.. I wouldnt touch it.. I'd spray n pray baby.. back to pissing.. go for anything but the handle.. since you might want to be polite enough to kick it on the way out.. if its too high, fuck it. Now once u get good at being clean.. u crusty bastards who need to read this. You will walk in a bathroom, and automatically notice what is on the wall. Paper towel, or air dryers. I will most of the time notice this before I get in the stall, so as I leave, I'll take some toilet paper with me if air dryers.. I always turn on the water with paper towel or toilet paper. Think of how many people NEEDED to wash their hands.. even for other reasons than going to the bathroom.. and 50% of the hands that touched that knob were unwashed! ewwwww NEVER TOUCH THAT SHIT! and to the guy who touches the door on the way out.. ur discusting.. take the toilet paper, or paper towel.. I like to throw it behind the door, cause im an asshole, but u can choose to carry it with you and throw it out somewhere else. if ur really fuck't open the door with ur sleeve, or be tricky, and hook the handle with ur foot... I have.. haha or if its a busy place.. wait for other crusty people to open the door for you. Works great at malls or movie theatres. Now when u go touch ur girls titties in the movies.. you wont feel bad or grossed out when ur lickin em later! and ur hands smell nice! peace

entering I wash my hands b4 i enter the loo, dry my hands with some papertowel and use that to lock the door, then after...use yur pinky finger to flush the toilet and as you should always do after..Wash yur hands man!! Iv seen so many people not wash their hands..shame!shame on u!! when opening the door always use your pinky finger..I tell you folks..you very rarely use it for anything else so let this be its main priority!!!

When you crap, use your hands instead of the toilet paper. DO NOT WASH your hands before leaving. Your not going to catch something from someone else that way! And are you really going to catch something from yourself?

Ya know, with everyone else jumping hurdles and bending over backwards to avoid touching the handles, I should be ok to touch them since nobody else is!

I never worry about contamination. The only time I am more carefull is when the stomach flu is going around, then I simply keep a bottle of Purel handy.
_______
It's not nice to fool mother nature.

Hello Everyone,
I invented a product just in the nick of time that allows everyone to open the restroom door handle with their foot. The product is called "clean escape". I no longer worry about craptonite when leaving the restroom.