How to Open and Refill a Commercial Toilet Paper, Paper Towel, Soap, or Seat Cover Dispenser

A custodian at a locked stainless cabinet with a case of paper has one question: what opens it. On most commercial dispensers it is the manufacturer's door key, a small flat tumbler lock key that ships with the unit and, per Bobrick, Bradley, and Gamco, is keyed like the rest of that brand's accessories. The rest open with a concealed latch, a hinged filler top and a smaller service key, or a spindle with no cabinet at all. The loading steps below come from the makers' own sheets.

The four ways a commercial dispenser opens

Tumbler lock and key. The stainless cabinets from Bobrick, ASI, Bradley, and Gamco: a door on a piano hinge, held by a tumbler lock. Bobrick's replacement parts page says most Bobrick and Gamco keyed accessories use the universal CAT-74 door key, part number 330-43; Bradley's data sheets call each lock keyed like other Bradley units. No maker describes the key beyond its number: a small flat key marked with the CAT number, and the number is what you order by.

Concealed latch, no key. Bobrick's B-2620 towel cabinet opens with a knob latch and its plastic B-5288 with a concealed locking device; Bradley's Elvari line uses the BradLock magnetic system with no keyhole.

Hinged filler top with a service key. Tank-type soap dispensers fill through a top that opens with a small key, not the door key: Bobrick's 24-17 BobKey, which its parts page says is used to refill its soap and toilet tissue dispensers, or the special service key furnished with ASI's 0345 and 0347. Inside is a locking screw holding the tank to its wall plate; leave it alone unless you are taking the unit down.

Spindle holders. A bracket and a roll, no cabinet. Bobrick's B-264 holds the roll on a self-locking mechanism, and its B-273 spindle has a concealed lock that Bobrick says can only be released with the special key furnished; ASI's 8165 and Gamco's 23 work the same way.

How to open a commercial toilet paper dispenser

Multi-roll cabinets

Per Bradley's loading sheet P20-081 for its 5412 and 5422 dual roll dispensers, three drawings and no text:

1. Unlock the tumbler lock. The cover is hinged at the bottom and swings down.
2. Seat the roll so the sheet comes over the top and down the front, not off the back; the sheet crosses out the reverse.
3. Close the cover and lock it.

How to open a jumbo toilet paper dispenser

Bobrick's B-2890 data sheet: "Door unlocks with key provided and swings down for loading dispenser." It takes a roll up to 10 in. in diameter, and the door slot shows what is left, so look before you unlock.

1. Unlock the door and swing it down.
2. Pull the empty core and set the new roll on the spindle.
3. Close and lock.

Controlled delivery spindles

Bobrick's B-264 data sheet says its brake springs stop the roll spinning freely and that the "toilet tissue roll cannot be removed from holder until empty." Bobrick's steps:

1. Remove the brown core of the depleted roll.
2. Spread the arms apart, releasing the center support.
3. Place the new roll on the center support.
4. Spread the arms and push the roll with the center support back into the dispenser.

How to load a commercial paper towel dispenser

Folded towels

Bobrick's B-262 ($64.17 in our listing) holds 400 C-fold or 525 multifold, and its data sheet says the side slots indicate refill time.

1. Read the side slots and refill only what is low.
2. Unlock and open the door.
3. Set the stack in the tray. ASI says its Traditional, Roval, and Simplicity cabinets take a partial load in place and keep feeding, so do not wait for empty.
4. Close and lock, then pull one towel.

Roll towels

Bradley's roll towel instruction sheet, carried on our Bradley 2483, presets the holder for an 8 in. roll with a 9 in. slot beside it.

1. Place the new roll on the top holder, left to right, so it rolls freely.
2. Put the end of the towel behind the front white plastic roller, pinched against the black rubber roller above the wood roller.
3. Press the handle to check the paper feeds, then close the cover.

How to open a commercial soap dispenser and refill it

Wall tank, through the top with the BobKey

From Bobrick's B-4112 instruction sheet. Bobrick and ASI both ask for 4 in. of clearance above the dispenser so the top can open.

1. Insert the BobKey (24-17) into the slot in the filler top and slide the latch to the left.
2. Lift the filler top and fill. Bobrick's sheet says chloride-free, pH-neutral liquid soap: all-purpose hand soaps, not alcohol-based sanitizers or iodine-based surgical soaps.
3. Close the top, insert the BobKey, and slide the latch to the right to relock.

ASI's 0345 opens the same way with the special service key furnished (its sheet's parts list ties the same L-28 filling key to the related 0342 and 0343 tank models). A spout that stops can be dried soap: Bobrick says to clean it with the end of the BobKey or flush warm soapy water through the vessel and valve, and ASI says to lift the unit off its wall plate and flush it with hot water. Bobrick says not to disassemble the valve; order its replacement kit (4112-79). Sensor units open with a key too but take the maker's refill, and the touchless vs manual guide covers that cost.

Counter-mounted, from above the deck

Bobrick's B-822 sheet:

1. Turn the escutcheon counterclockwise slightly until it stops.
2. Push the long tip of the BobKey straight into the round hole in the escutcheon and, holding it in, turn the escutcheon about 1/8 turn counterclockwise. Do not turn it with the BobKey.
3. Lift out the whole pump assembly and fill with liquid or lotion soap.
4. Replace the pump and turn the escutcheon clockwise until the lock snaps.

ASI's 0332 needs no key: unscrew the escutcheon, lift the pump, pour soap into the tube leaving room for the pump, and relock with the spanner wrench provided.

How to open a toilet seat cover dispenser

Recessed cabinets have a locked door. ASI's 0477 says covers are self-feeding until the supply is depleted and the unit is manually reloaded with a full box through the access door. Bradley's surface-mounted 583 ($129.75) is "bottom hinged for easy filling," holds 500 covers, and is keyed like other Bradley units.

1. Unlock the door and swing it open.
2. Remove the old carton and set a full box in the cabinet.
3. Close, lock, and pull one cover.

Keyless surface units fill from the bottom: Bobrick's B-4221 (250 covers, $123.34) "fills from bottom through concealed opening," and its data sheet wants 5 in. of clearance below it for the box. ASI's 20477-SM loads the same way; Bradley's 5A40 top-loads behind a front tumbler lock.

Lost keys and jammed locks

Bobrick's instruction is to order replacement keys through your aftermarket representative or the distributor you buy soap and towels from; vendor coin boxes take their own key (Bobrick 352-112). You can also put keys on a quote request with your next accessory order.

A lock that will not turn is a call, not a job: the manufacturer's customer service line or a locksmith. Do not pry the door. A valve that will not pump after flushing gets the replacement kit, not a screwdriver.

Quick reference

What to do next

Write the CAT number and the BobKey number into your janitorial checklist so the next hire is not standing at a locked cabinet. Replacements are in toilet tissue dispensers, paper towel dispensers, soap dispensers, and toilet seat cover dispensers; keys, valves, and lock kits go on a quote request.