What not to flush down the toilet
Thou Shalt Not Flush Thy Paper Towels, Ear Buds or Condoms… Public toilets image by Ewais (via Shutterstock).
You may have come across Water UK’s Poo, Pee and Paper campaign in the last two years. If you thought the Poo, Pee and Paper campaign was a call to make the most of your public conveniences, think again. It highlights the three things you should flush down the lavatory. Which, in other words, concerns one’s bodily functions and toilet tissue.
This is a serious matter as, quoting from the website, more than half of sewer blockages are caused by flushing things that shouldn’t be flushed down our toilets. Or our sinks, baths, bidets and showers. Drain and sewer blockages also increase pollution levels. Wet wipes, condoms and chewing gum are pretty bad for blocking drains and sewers. It is this campaign which has inspired our latest post.
The Ten Commandments of What Not To Flush
- Thou Shalt Not Flush Baby Wipes, even the supposedly flushable ones. Baby wipes in general take too long to break down. Try the bin for non-recyclable waste.
- Thou Shalt Not Flush Dental Floss or Toothpicks down the sink or the toilet. Use the bathroom bin and dispose of your used floss and toothpicks into the non-recyclable waste bin. Floss can be tangled in the pipes, leading to blockages.
- Thou Shalt Not Contemplate The Flushing of Cat Litter: for cat litter puts pressure on the water treatment works and should be binned.
- Thou Shalt Not Dispose Of Loose Hairs: for loose hair can clog every orifice in the bathroom and ultimately the sewers. Hair does not dissolve.
- Thou Shalt Not Use The Toilet For Flushing Condoms: the latex material used in the contraceptive can clog your toilet. Bin.
- Thou Shalt Not Use The Toilet, Sink or Bath as an Ashtray: disposing of your dimps that way is a disgusting habit. Use the ashtray then empty your cigarette or cigar butts into the non-recyclable bin.
- Thou Shalt Not Flush Sanitary Towels Down The Lavatory: whatever type of sanitary product you use, have a separate bin, instead of blocking the toilet.
- Thou Shalt Not Flush Chewing Gum: because of chewing gum’s synthetic rubber base, gum does not dissolve in water and has a propensity to stick to other sources of effluent. Once built up, this could be problematic in the sewers leading to, inevitably, blockages further down the line.
- Thou Shalt Not Dispose of Cotton Buds or Cotton Balls Down The Toilet: cotton wool does not dissolve in water and should be disposed of in the bathroom bin.
- Thou Shalt Not Use Paper Towels or Kitchen Roll As A Substitute For Toilet Paper: the thickness and size of the aforementioned paper products is too thick for flushing down the toilet. This is why toilet tissue is at a width equal to the trap and U-bend.
Clean Hire, 01 February 2017.