Launch the media gallery 1 playerWhat Not To Flush
June 28, 2023
Protect Your Sewer, Protect Your Environment. Don’t Flush That!
Sewers are designed to take our wastewater and carry it safely to a treatment
plant. But other items often get flushed and can create problems. We all need
to keep things flowing through the sewer. Poop, pee and toilet paper? Okay.
Everything else? Put it in the trash!
Here’s a quick quiz:
-Do you want to keep raw sewage from backing up into your home?
-Would you like to keep sewage from bubbling out of the manhole in the street outside?
--When you flush your toilet, would you rather see the water go down instead of overflowing?
If you answered yes to any of these, then don’t use your toilet as a trash can!
Not convinced? Try this simple test:
Take a square of toilet paper. Put it in a jar of water and swish it gently with a stick. The toilet paper quickly disintegrates, just as it would in a sewer.
Now try the same thing with a baby wipe. It doesn’t break apart and, in fact, the things are pretty near to indestructible in a sewer system!
Try the same thing with a paper towel.
Remember, just because it goes down when you flush, that doesn’t mean it’s not going to cause a problem.
Even things that are labeled “flushable” can cause problems in the sewer system. Flushable toilet brushes and mop heads? Put them in the trash!
Don’t Flush That!:
*Paper towels
*Wipes (even “flushable” ones)
*Cloth or paper rags
*Plastic items
*Condoms
*Feminine hygiene products
*Diapers
*Kitty litter
*Cigarette butts
*Dental floss
*Latex gloves
*Hypodermic needles
*Facial tissues
*Grease
*Gas/oil/solvents
*Anti-freeze
*Paints
*Dirty water from washing cars
*Sewage from septic tanks
*Pesticides/herbicides
*Toys
Why YOU should care.
Sewer blockages can cause all of these:
-Plugged and overflowing toilets
-Poorly draining sinks and showers
-Raw sewage backing up through your drain
-Manholes overflowing onto the ground or into nearby surface waters.
-Health hazards and nuisance odors.
-Increases in the city’s maintenance costs.
-Costly maintenance and repair bills for you!
What to Flush:
The 3 P’s- Poop, Pee and (Toilet) Paper
What NOT to Flush: Pretty much everything else
Questions? Contact Nebraska Rural Water Association . 800-842-8039. Info@nerwa.org; or the Village Public Works Department
YOUR
CHOICES
MAKE
A
DIFFERENCE!
Information from Nebraska Rural Water Association
