We have all been there. You are working hard on your studies when disaster strikes; You have to use the bathroom. However, our school is very large and has a great number of bathrooms to choose from. Normally, someone’s first instinct is to go to the bathroom closest to them, but I demand quality from my bathrooms.

As tragic as it may be, not all bathrooms are created equal. There are many factors that go into making a good bathroom. They are:

Cleanliness- It is a bathroom, so it cannot be expected that it will be spotless. However, it is one of the worst feelings in the world to walk into a bathroom and be greeted with a disgusting mess of unspeakable elements.

Smell- This is closely tied into cleanliness. Once again, no one is expecting it to smell like roses and daisies, but there is definitely something you do not want to smell when you walk in.

Space- Another bad feeling is walking into a bathroom and having to wait in a line. You walked in there to do business, not stand around. The more options you have, the better.

Location- This may seem a bit nit-picky, but if it is a true emergency, the last thing you want to do is walk across the school to reach a bathroom.

Sinks- Some of the sinks do not work which is not great when you are trying to wash your hands after using the bathroom.

Dryers- Some of the dryers also do not work, which is terrible for when you have wet hands and you need them dried.

Today, we will be exploring eight different bathrooms across our school. Each of the bathrooms will be ranked from worst to best on a one to ten based  on the four factors listed above.

8. 3rd Floor on Old Side of Building

Cleanliness- 0/10

Some background information is necessary here. This bathroom is not actually open right now. It has been closed for a couple of weeks now, but before it was closed, it was disgusting. It was a perfect storm of clogged toilets and urinals. Whoever used this bathroom clearly had terrible aim, as the room was flooded with urine.

Smell- 4/10

As I said before, the bathroom has been closed for several weeks. Over this time, it has no doubt been the subject of thorough and rigorous cleaning. There is a smell which I figure is bleach that they covered the bathroom in. I did not particularly enjoy that.

Location- 7/10

For everything bad I have said about this spot, it is in a convenient location. It is close to all of the classrooms which is useful for an emergency.

Space- 3/10

There are only two stalls and two urinals, which means lines can form quickly, especially if one is out of order. Given the history of this bathroom, that happens pretty often.

Sinks- 4/4

Dryers- 2/2

The sinks on this side of the school are “old-fashioned” in that you have to turn a knob to use it. This is actually a good thing as it is much more reliable. The dryers are not as strong as the ones in the new bathrooms, but they are much more reliable.

Rating- 4.3/10

I would say I do not recommend using this bathroom, but it is already unable to be used. After exploring this room, I learned a valuable lesson: some doors are blocked for a reason.

7. 2nd Floor on Old Side of Building

Cleanliness- 5/10

When I walked into the stall, one had just been used and had a nice gift for me. This is more of a user error, but you still hate to see it. The rest of the bathroom was fine.

Smell- 4/10

This bathroom had the usual bathroom smell, which is not a good thing. The gift in the stall probably contributed to it.

Location- 8/10

This bathroom is close to a lot of classes on the 2nd floor which is a nice touch.

Space- 3/10

Bathrooms on the old side of the school all have the same problem. They were built with only two stalls and two urinals. This was fine in an earlier time, but when there are hundreds of guys and only four options, there is going to be a problem.

Sinks- 4/4

Dryers- 2/2

Sometimes, old-fashioned is better, as these appliances never go out of order.

Rating- 5.7/10

A common theme with the last two bathrooms is the dirtiness. Both of them had a musty smell and were pretty dirty. If they were cleaner, then they would both be ranked higher.

Tie-6. 1st Floor next to Gym

Cleanliness- 7/10

There was some toilet paper here and there, but overall this is a pretty clean bathroom.

Smell- 9/10

I did not smell anything when I was in there. This is actually a very good thing, as the normal smells associated with a bathroom are rather unpleasant.

Location- 3/10

This is the biggest problem with this bathroom. Already, there are not that many classes on the 1st floor relative to the other floors. However, this bathroom is far away from nearly every other classroom on the first floor. Even if you are on the first floor, chances are you have to walk across the entire school to get here.

Space- 8/10

There are four stalls and four urinals in this bathroom, so there is almost never a wait in this bathroom

Sinks 3/5

Dryers 2/2

Two of the sinks here do not work, which is unfortunate, but I think that since there is usually not many people in the bathroom, it is not that big of a deal.

Rating- 6.8/10

The location is the worst part of this bathroom, but everything else here is good. If it was possible to move this bathroom to somewhere closer to other classes, I think it would be a very good bathroom.

Tie-6. Pool Bathroom

Cleanliness- 9/10

If you go through the door connecting the school to the pool and walk down the hall, you will come to a very clean and orderly bathroom. It is a welcome departure from the usual nastiness of school bathrooms.

Smell- 9/10

Once again, I smell nothing when I walk in, which is very nice. This makes it much more tolerable to be in here.

Location- 1/10

You cannot go back through the pool door after you finish up, unless if you want to set of a blaring alarm. In order to get back into the school, you need to walk back in through the main entrance. This whole process ends up taking 20 minutes, which is difficult to explain to a teacher.

Space- 7/10

There are two stalls and two urinals in here, but since it is rarely used, this is never a problem.

Sinks- 2/2

Dryers- 2/2

Rating- 6.8/10

The location makes it tough to pull off, but this bathroom has all of the necessary attributes to make it a good bathroom.

4. Football Field

Cleanliness- 10/10

This may be one of the cleanest bathrooms I have ever been in, which is surprising since it is a bathroom at the football field that anyone can just stroll into.

Smell- 10/10

I think there may be an air freshener in here, because it actually smells very nice here.

Location- 0/10

If it ever comes to the point where I need to use the bathroom and the only option I have is this bathroom, it is going to be a very bad day.

Space- 7/10

There are two stalls and two urinals and it is very spacious.

Sinks- 3/3

Dryers- none

There are no hand dryers in here, but there are paper towels, which work just as well.

Rating- 7/10

This would be the best bathroom in the school if it were actually in the school.

3. 1st Floor on the Old Side of Building

Cleanliness- 10/10

Unlike other bathrooms on the old side of the school, this bathroom is spotless.

Smell- 9/10

There is no smell in here, which is nice.

Location- 5/10

It is on the first floor, so it is not near many other classes.

Space- 3/10

Like other bathrooms on this side of the school, it only has two stalls and two urinals which can lead to lines

Sinks- 4/4

Dryers- 2/2

All of the appliances work perfectly.

Rating- 7.1/10

If you are going to use a bathroom on the old side of the school, I would use this one.

2. 2nd Floor at Atrium

Cleanliness- 7/10

This is the biggest bathroom in the school, so I’m sure it is tough to keep clean, but it is actually very tidy.

Smell- 1/10

When I walked near the urinals, I picked up a strong urinal smell. In hindsight, I do not know what I was expecting.

Location- 6/10

The location is a little far from the other classes on the second floor, but it is definitely manageable.

Space- 10/10

Like I said, this is the biggest bathroom in the school. If there is a line, then something was wrong with the lunch food.

Sinks- 17/17

Dryers- 4/4

Amazingly, every single appliance in this bathroom worked.

Rating- 7.4/10

This is a very good bathroom and my go-to for all of my classes on the 2nd floor.

1. 3rd Floor at Atrium

Cleanliness- 10/10

This is a fairly big bathroom, but it is nearly spotless.

Smell- 5/10

Despite its cleanliness, there is a smell in here that is very familiar to me at this point.

Location- 7/10

It is a little ways from the rest of the 3rd floor classes, but it is nothing too unbearable.

Space- 9/10

It is not the biggest in the school, but there is still plenty of room which means no lines.

Sinks- 10/14

Dryers- 4/6

The only problem with this bathroom is the appliances. Some of the sinks and dryers do not work, which is kind of a pain to deal with.

Rating 7.5/10

It was close, but this is definitely the best bathroom in the school. This is a frequent destination for me over the course of the day. Whenever one needs to go, this bathroom is always there as a sanctuary for all who come.