Is five squares enough? We're not talking meals -- this is about toilet paper. And five squares is what Kimberly-Clark's new JRT Electronic Coreless bath tissue dispenser will dispense when you wave your hand in front of it.

The company is hoping the dispensers -- they cost $30 or $55, depending on the model -- will join automatic-flush toilets, automatic faucets, automatic soap dispensers and automatic paper-towel dispensers as standard equipment in public restrooms.

An infrared sensor under the unit detects when a user waves a hand under it, then activates a motor that dispenses a set amount of tissue -- 20 inches, or five squares (although the owner can increase that to 24 inches, or six squares).

It's supposed to help bars, restaurants, hotels and the like provide as close to a touch-free bathroom experience as possible for patrons, while at the same time, saving those facilities a pile of money by cutting down on the amount of bath tissue their customers use.

Some people who buy the toilet paper like the idea. Others, among those who use it, are a little less sure.

According to a Kimberly-Clark study, bathroom visitors used 20 percent fewer squares "per event" with an electronic dispenser than with a manual one. That's good news for restaurant owners and facilities managers. But the company may have a harder time impressing end users.

"I think people would love it," said Chip Moore, owner of both Brambleton Deli and Annie Moore's Irish Pub in Roanoke. The reason is simple, he said: "In the bathroom, they don't like to touch. It's the same principle that applies to the soap and the towels."

Lucy Thompson, a rising senior at Hollins University, said she can understand that people might not like the idea of touching the toilet paper roll that a stranger just used. "I can see where some people would think about that," she said. "I have some germophobic friends."

But while the sanitary aspect might be appealing, Thompson wasn't so sure about getting only 20 inches and having to wait for the machine to dispense another five squares. (The machines also have an aptly named "emergency feed" feature in case the battery dies.)

"The only thing is, how long is the wait?" she asked. "Considering the circumstances, you might need more toilet paper."

The wait is about two seconds, says Kimberly-Clark.

Aundrea Burton of Roanoke also hesitated before giving the idea of the electronic dispenser a cautious thumbs up. Still, she was iffy about those five squares. "I guess it's enough," she said. "In some cases it might be too much. It depends on what you're going to the bathroom for."

But then she thought about it. "Five sheets of toilet paper. I don't know."

Paul Bowles had the same reaction "Five? That might not be enough -- that's nothing for some people." As events manager for the Salem Civic Center, host to thousands of visitors to its arena -- and stalls -- each month, he would know. Still, the idea appeals to his professional side.

"Our main concern with toilet paper is to be sanitary," he said, and the dispensers would certainly help with that. But he also thinks about the time involved in refilling them. To keep labor costs down, the dispensers in the Civic Center's bathrooms hold five rolls each.

"If it could hold five rolls, that would be something we'd look into," he said. But one roll each? No chance. "If there was a high school basketball game they'd go through that in one evening."

Although Moore's restaurants don't get nearly the crowd that the civic center does, he also said he liked the idea in principle, but was wary of the details -- specifically, that the machine only doles out five squares at a time.

"They'd have to do better than that," he said. "Five sheets ain't much. It would have to reload pretty quickly or you'd be in there all day." It's more important in a bar than a restaurant. "[In] an active bar, the ladies' room is gonna roll through some TP," he explained.

Of course, there's also the money angle. Bowles said the Civic Center went through about 20 cases -- 800 rolls -- during the 11 days of the Salem Fair. Cutting that usage by 20 percent could save hundreds of dollars just in that week and a half.

Even though, as a student, it won't affect Thompson's bottom line, she said she thinks an electronic dispenser is a good idea. "They already have automatic soap and paper towel dispensers," she said, "so why not TP?"