A lot of people make the mistake of treating their bathroom toilet as a garbage can. They toss an item into the water and with a simple flick of the handle, flush it away to never deal with it again. What they may not realize is that they could be contaminating the sewage system or setting themselves up for a massive plumbing bill with every flush. Here are some examples of everyday things that you shouldn’t be putting down your toilet drain.
Dental Floss:
Strings of dental floss should never be flushed because they often snag on the insides of pipes and creates a serious blockage — when more dental floss comes down, it tangles together into a mass that keeps growing over time. The string isn’t biodegradable, and chemical drain cleaners are not designed to destroy it.
If you feel like you have a clogged toilet drain because of a build-up of dental floss, you should call a plumber. For a quick and expert job, you should get in touch with the Sewer Squad Plumbing Co to come over to your house to inspect your toilet drain and clear the obstruction in a flash — this company has stellar customer service, prioritizing the comfort of their clients above all else. They lay down drop sheets before they work and keep the area clean, so you don’t have to scrub down the bathroom after they leave.
Sanitary Products:
Menstrual products like tampons, pads and liners are made with cotton, which expands when it comes into contact with a liquid. When you throw any of these products down the toilet, they tend to swell and snag onto pipes. Then they collect more items on the way down, creating clogs in the same vein as dental floss. Sanitary products should be placed in the garbage, although there are plastic-free kinds that are compostable.
Medications:
When medications pass their expiry date, people often flush them down the toilet or pour them down the sink drain. Unfortunately, this is not the best way to dispose of medication because it can negatively impact wildlife after it goes into the sewage system and the treated water is released back into the environment. There have been studies that link prescriptions like hormonal birth control and antidepressants to changes in aquatic life, influencing their biology and behaviour.
The contamination from prescription medications is small, but many experts in the field recommend that people keep their pills out of their drains. The ideal way to safely dispose of prescription drugs is to contact your nearest pharmacy or police force to see if they have a take-back program where they collect and destroy them properly.
Toilets are designed to process water, human waste and toilet paper. Anything that does not qualify as one of those categories should be put in the trash can, the compost bin or some other form of disposal. Following this simple rule will help the plumbing, whether it’s the toilet in your bathroom or the water treatment system in your area.
