The “is there a good recycled toilet paper out there” challenge
August 25, 2009 by Jennifer
So, I haven’t always been perfect about buying fully recycled toilet paper. Mainly because of costs. With kids you go through a lot and recycled is almost always more expensive in my neck of the woods. However traditional, non-recycled toilet paper is terrible for the environmental so it is one of those products you should always buy green.
Secondly, when I do buy recycled toilet paper I don’t have major issues. It’s toilet paper not bedding. I don’t care that it’s not 100% cushy and mattress like.
That said I have a boyfriend who recently compared Marcal recycled toilet paper to a whole bunch of baddies; and I quote…
- “It’s worse than a Brillo pad.
- Poison Ivy leaves would be a step up.
- Maybe we could use it to sand the coffee table.
- It causes actual pain”
Note that I don’t agree. I don’t think Marcal was all that bad. Not as soft as traditional virgin toilet paper, but not sheer torture or even any sort of torture. My extremely picky son has also not complained. In fact, I’d probably buy it again BUT I have a live in boyfriend so nix that.
Also note though that my boyfriend is not the first to complain. I’ve heard plenty of people say they don’t think recycled toilet paper is soft enough; read all sorts of “recycled TP sucks” reviews, and so on. That said, I looked it up to see if there’s some issue that’s stopping recycled toilet paper from being manufactured in a softer way.
Grist, a green site I trust, notes that there are “Barriers to making it as soft as the virgin-tree-on-a-roll brands…The reason for this difference has to do with the fact that the texture of the starting fibers — whether virgin or recycled — influences the feel of the “end” product. Also, the fibers in paper shorten each time they’re recycled, making recycled paper less strong than the virgin variety. To compensate for this, some manufacturers use resins or mechanical means that help the recycled fibers stick together better. But making paper stronger also tends to make it stiffer.”
Other sites I found info on said much the same. So what to do? A challenge? Ok then. Here’s a round up of possible test subject choices:
- Seventh Generation 100% Recycled Bathroom Tissue
- Green Forest 100% Recycled Bath Tissue
- Safeway Bright Green 100% Recycled Bath Tissue
- Trader Joe’s 100% Recycled Toilet Paper
- Whole Foods 365 100% Recycled Toilet Paper
- Earth Friendly Products 100% Recycled Bathroom Tissue
These are the options I thought of. If you have an idea, let me know. I’ll maybe include it in a review and then later we’ll gather all the review subjects together for a round-up. And no I’m not installing a bidet at this time, so as green as it may be, please don’t suggest that. Oh and I don’t care if Walmart has some cream of the crop green toilet paper, I’m also not shopping there. Just an FYI.
Coming up soon some good reasons why you should used recycled toilet paper over virgin paper made toilet paper.
Have you liked any recycled bath tissues? Yes? No? Why or why not?
Well this is the first time I have ever left my opinion on something and I am shocked at myself that it is about TP!! I have used a few of the green toilet tissues out there and have found them not to be at all bad!! I have never been the one to go out and buy that super soft garbage especially when my son could go thru a roll in one sitting!! I like the Marcal probably the best. Next would be the Seventh Generation. You need to purchase your tissue thru Amazon in bulk. That is the only way to go. That is if you have the room for 50 rolls or more!! I guess then the Green Forest would be my third choice. I don’t think for the money you get alot on the roll. I guess I’ll keep trying others until I find the one I like.
I have tried Seventh Generation, Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s. Out of those three, I’d say TJs was the best.
The top two things I look for in a toilet tissue:
1- That it doesn’t leave lint. (who needs lint left behind on their bums?)
2- That the roll doesn’t run out too quickly
My husband started buying Small Steps because he knew I wanted us to be greener and that was his contribution. I have to say, it’s no worse than Scott, which we always used because we have big family and well…you know how that goes.
Maybe you could cover the little ‘bidet’ contraptions that can be added to a toilet? That’s about as green as you can get-cut out toilet paper totally! lol
I love how you go where most people won’t, Jennifer, it so rocks.
I tried the new, improved 7G recently. My husband specifically asked that I not buy it again. I’m trying to remember his exact reasons, something about not being sturdy or bunching up, etc.
It was maybe slightly softer than before. Recycled TP can cause irritation and pain if you don’t wipe gently – particularly for women. I’m not sure what to say other than maybe buy some carbon credits if you can’t take it