Living

This Toilet Paper Holder Is So Good I Just Bought Another

publishedJul 6, 2023
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A good toilet paper holder is hard to find. In the grand scheme of household purchases, a toilet paper holder may seem to the uninitiated like a straightforward decision, where economy reigns and the first option will be Just Fine. But in my experience, finding a durable toilet paper holder that’s pleasant to use is a total crapshoot.

Quick Overview

What’s So Great About the Moen Align Toilet Paper Holder?

A good toilet paper holder is surprisingly hard to find. But theMoen Align checks all the boxes: It’s secured to the wall by two points, holds a full jumbo roll of TP, and comes in various finishes.

So when I finally bought and installed a toilet paper holder that, after a full year of use in my home,proved to be so good that I’ve now bought anotherfor our powder room, it felt like a victory that I really should share. You deserve to know.

Credit: Faith Durand

Why Good Toilet Paper Holders Are Hard to Find

I’ve bought many toilet paper holders over the years, fromaffordable IKEA wall-mount optionstomore trendy versions. A good wall-mounted toilet paper holder has just three jobs:

  1. Stay on the wall.
  2. Dispense toilet paper, rapidly if need be.
  3. Reload easily.

As a parent of two young children, I would also add a child-focused fourth: Make it a little challenging to pull the roll off on a whim.

这些看似简单的要求,但在我的费用rience finding a solid, dependable option has been weirdly elusive. There was the IKEA holder that wobbled and finally fell off the wall all at once. There were the complicated holders that made getting a new roll on like springing a mouse trap. And then there was the very trendy and cute one that wouldn’t hold a full jumbo roll of toilet paper, which made teasing every sheet off a tedious chore.

During a bathroom remodel last year, I went looking for a cute toilet paper holder for my kids’ bathroom. I had a few criteria: It needed to be sturdy and affixed to the wall bytwopoints, not just one, like the cantilevered IKEA holders that let toilet paper spiral down slowly and then finally fell off the wall with a thud. (I had these in three bathrooms and two fell off the wall in the same week; there must have been some timed obsolescence situation there.) I also wanted it to hold afull jumbo roll of toilet paper. Last but not least, it needed to be sleek, modern, and come in abrass or gold finish.

My Favorite Toilet Paper Holder: The Moen Align

I took a chance on a slightly more expensive option: theMoen Align Pivoting Double Post Toilet Paper Holder. (Yes, that’s a mouthful.) At about $40 at regular price (although some finishes are on sale now for almost half off), this felt splurgy for a toilet paper holder, but I was intrigued by the good reviews and the way that a roll of TP is slipped onto the pivoting holder.

There’s no complicated mechanism or spring in the holder. Instead, you just flip one arm up and then put it back in place. It’s really neat and elegant — but also solid. I felt that this mechanism was also subtle enough that my kids wouldn’t be easily grabbing the roll off and tossing it about as they did with the single-post TP holders.

Credit: Faith Durand

Why the Moen Align Toilet Paper Holder Has Been Excellent

Still, my expectations were modest. Weinstalled the paper holder(at the standard height of 26 inches) and voila! A year later, it is solidly in place, with smooth pivoting action and no rolling rolls of TP to be seen. It holds even the most jumbo rolls of toilet paper with plenty of room.

It gets this simple yet important job done. So well, in fact, that when our third IKEA toilet paper holder met its inevitable end in the powder room, my husband begged me just to buy the same one. I bought it in brushed nickel to match that bathroom’s faucet finishes, and it’s equally handsome.

Credit: Faith Durand

I am just waiting now for our trendy TP holder to “fall” down in our primary bathroom, as I thinka third Moen TPholder may be in our future.

Do you have a TP holder you love? One that has lasted the test of time and … all that? I’d love to know!