Man's Invention Upgrades Familiar Toilet Item: 'I Just Thought I Could Make It Better'

It is known that good design ultimately solves problems and makes life more efficient. There's a certain level of satisfaction when it comes to incorporating good design into your home — like figuring out a unique look for your bathroom that pleases the eye without sacrificing function, or installing upgrades that save you from household chores that aren't worth your time. Take changing the toilet paper roll, for example — a task that seems basic but can easily become inconvenient. If you think about it, most wall-mounted toilet roll holders demand two hands to replace a singular roll, and the unlucky ordeal of wrestling with the spring-loaded rod or putting it back together when it falls from its rightful place. All this trouble boggled the mind of designer Zach Mohr, founder of Figura Studio based in Kansas and led him to ponder one important question: What if the standard toilet roll holder was simpler and easier to use?

Mohr then designed the Roto Toilet Paper Holder, a spring-loaded toilet roll holder that lets you unload and reload toilet paper rolls without the hassle of using two hands or fighting with the detachable rod. The mechanism is simple — Roto has dual rotating spring rods are attached to the device itself. That way, it leaves the center open, allowing you to insert a new roll by simply pushing it up from the bottom. The empty roll is easily discarded, and your fresh roll of TP is snug in its arms.

The wall-mounted toilet paper holders we know and use today traces its origins to an 1890 patent from an inventor named Seth Wheeler, who addressed the simple yet persistent problem of toilet paper unspooling or falling altogether. In his patent, he illustrates the toilet roll fixed in between the arms of a wall-mounted fixture. Wheeler's invention, however mundane, is one that shaped one of the core fixtures of bathroom design for over a century. The Roto Toilet Paper Holder revisits this invention with a fresher take. From one designer to another, the evolution of the toilet paper holder continues to innovate through small yet thoughtful improvements.

If you intend to replace your good old wall-mounted toilet paper holder with Roto, the product installation is pretty straightforward. All you have to do is align and screw Roto's mounting plate into the existing fixtures from your original wall-mounted holder, and then screw the spring-loaded body into the plate. For those with a different toilet paper holder type, don't fret, as the product guide provides clear and illustrated instructions for proper installation.

Beyond its novel and playful mechanism that makes changing toilet rolls fun, the Roto Toilet Paper Holder is certainly accommodating with its design. Being able to replace a roll in one action provides a lot of ease to people with limited dexterity, which is a clear indicator of thoughtful, accessible design.