Drain Cleaner Los Angeles: What Not To Flush Down The Toilet - American Drain Company

DRAIN CLEANERS IN LOS ANGELES AND WHAT NOT TO FLUSH

March 12, 2019

There are just some things you know for sure can’t be flushed down the toilet. You only have to think about the great Lego flushing incident back in 2006 when your son was six years old and curious about where things went when flushed down the toilet. The family talks about it today and laughs, but you still remember the horror of seeing dozens of Lego pieces floating in the clogged toilet and the bill you had to pay to resolve the issue.

Well, your son is much older and wiser now, but you still won’t let him play with that Lego set.

Sure, there is a list of things you should never flush down the toilet and it’s a long one. And while it is quite obvious that you shouldn’t flush Legos or any other plastic toys, some items that should never be flushed down the toilet aren’t as obvious. American Drain Company, your drain cleaners in Los Angeles, offers this handy list of items that you shouldn’t be flushing down your toilet.

FISH

It might seem quite natural to dispose of a dead goldfish by simply flushing it down the toilet. But this is actually not a very good idea. You see, fish take a while to break down in water, so Goldie the goldfish could get caught up in the pipes and cause a clog. We suggest a formal funeral and burial in the backyard next time.

GREASE

We hope you know that grease should never be poured down the sink drain as it can cause a number of problems. And don’t think you can get rid of that collection of bacon grease by flushing it down the toilet either. Cooking grease congeals when it cools down, which means it will stick to the sides of your pipes and grab hold of whatever happens to be trying to pass it.

GUM

As you are already aware, chewing gum doesn’t really break down all that well in water. In addition, it’s sticky and will adhere to your pipes should it be flushed down the toilet. Avoid a clogged toilet by throwing your gum away in a wastebasket.

HAIR

In a nutshell, hair forms a net when it is flushed down the toilet and it will basically get caught on anything and everything. In addition, hair floats and will never dissolve in water, no matter how long it sits there. You are just asking for trouble by flushing hair down the toilet.

CAT LITTER

There are some brands of cat litter that claim to be flushable, but truth be told, most toilets don’t have the volume of water it takes to move such a heavy substance through the pipes. Dumping cat litter into your toilet will only lead to problems.

TISSUE PAPER AND PAPER TOWELS

Many people think that tissue paper and paper towels aren’t all that different from toilet paper. They are very similar, except that toilet paper is designed to break down in water and other paper products are not. For this reason, flushing tissue paper down the toilet can cause problems.

DENTAL FLOSS

Like hair, dental floss floats and turns into a net when it is flushed. It can even wrap around parts of your plumbing and cause further damage.

CONDOMS

Condoms are not designed to break down in water, so when you flush them, they are likely to cause problems should they clog up the toilet.

BABY WIPES

Most baby wipes claim that they are flushable. But even flushable wipes take a long time to break down in water and could cause a problem before they disintegrate. To avoid having to call a plumber, you should not flush baby wipes.

COTTON

You should not be flushing anything with cotton down the toilet. This means you should be throwing our cotton balls and Q-Tips instead. All cotton does when you flush it is clump together and cause problems in your pipes.

PADS AND DIAPERS

Pads and diapers are made to absorb and trap water, not to break down in water. This means that flushing them is a definite no-no.

If you have made the mistake of flushing something that you should not have, or if your kid did, call American Drain Company and we can resolve the issue.