Having a powerful drainage capacity, the toilet has quickly become our personal trash transporter. We often feel tempted to flush down waste instead of using a trash can. Just close the lid, flush, and it’s gone! If you have the habit of flushing unnecessary things down the toilet, please be aware that your toilet is not a flushable bin. It is meant to flush down ONLY THE WASTE GENERATED BY A HUMAN DIGESTIVE SYSTEM and nothing else.
For years, our blocked drain experts have been clearing the drains and during our time, we’ve seen people flushing down unexpected items including baby diapers, floss, cigarette butts, hair, band aids, and a lot more. These things can get trapped in the drainage system and block your drain system.
Here is a list of the top 5 things that you must not flush down the toilet:
Flushable wipes / disposable wipes /baby wipes
Flushable wipes are NOT flushable. Even if their labels claim that they are safe for sewers and septic systems, we strongly recommend that you do not flush them. They are too thick to be flushed and therefore, they have become one of the biggest reasons for blocked drains in Melbourne in the last few years. Every year the local councils spend thousands of dollars to get these flushable wipes removed from their drainage systems. As responsible citizens, we should dispose of the wet wipes in trash bins instead of choosing the easier method of flushing.
Hair
Human and pet hair and fur are another big reason behind blocked toilets. Like wipes and cotton swabs, they will form giant balls inside the drainage system and will create your drain pipes to be blocked. The best way to dispose of hair is to put them in the trash can. You can even make compost out of it!
Medicines
Since pills are water soluble, flushing pills won’t cause any blockage yet you must not dump them in the toilet. Let us be responsible towards nature and hand over our expired and unwanted medicines to our local pharmacy. They have a safe disposal mechanism. All you need to do is to drop your medicines at their store.
Pet Litter
As mentioned above, toilets are meant to flush only the waste generated by a human digestive system, which means, it’s not OK to flush pet litter. Cat poop is made of clay and sand. If you flush it down the toilet, it will clump and cause blockages. Furthermore, cat litter contains toxins and parasites that cannot be filtered by the sewage system. Dog waste doesn’t clump in the drainage but we suggest that you still don’t flush it down the toilet. The best way to deal with pet poop is to throw it in the trash or compost it.
Think about what you’re flushing down your toilet
Other than these items mentioned, you must not flush diapers, tampons, pads, cotton swabs, band aids, leftover food, dental floss, cigarette butts, facial tissues, coffee grounds, eggshells, flammable or explosive substances, and any form of plastic.
It is easy to toss things in the toilet, flush, and forget but, sooner or later, you will have to pay a heavy price for it. If you are already dealing with a blocked toilet, contact us today to schedule a time for us to inspect your toilet drain pipes.