Your home’s drainage system is designed to flush away all the waste materials you produce on a daily basis—everything from organic waste to dirty water to pee and fecal matter. But there are a lot of things that should NEVER go down your drains, as they’ll lead to clogs as well as increase the risk of contaminating your local water sources. Here are five items you should avoid putting down your drains:
Grease, oils, and fats – Anything with a high fatty acid content is very likely to cause clogs in your pipes. Other food products tend to stick to fats, greases, and oils, essentially forming giant clumps of fat that will grow and grow until your pipes are blocked. That means no bacon grease, animal fat, chicken skin, cheese, butter, ice cream, peanut butter, cooking oil, or mayonnaise go down the drain (especially in large quantities).
Condoms/latex gloves – It’s very unlikely that you’ll purposely throw latex gloves into the kitchen sink, but be careful not to leave them in the sink where they can get washed down the garbage disposal chute. NEVER throw condoms into the toilet. Latex will not disintegrate in water and will either cause a clog in your drains or wash out to sea.
Cotton balls, toilet paper, paper towels – Paper products go in the trash, not down the drain! Paper and cotton products are biodegradable, but they will increase the risk of clogs due to the fact that they soak up A LOT of water. They can go in the compost heap, but not into the drains. Flushable wipes are just as bad—don’t be fooled by the “flushable” in the title.
Industrial fluids – Car fluids (motor oil, transmission oil, brake fluid, antifreeze, etc.) should never be poured down the drain. Same goes for industrial cleaning products, paint, paint thinner, and strong antibacterial agents. There’s a very real chance these industrial fluids will leak out of the sewage system and contaminate the groundwater.
Produce stickers – Such small pieces of sticky paper, but oh how mighty the damage they can cause! The stickers can get stuck to your drain pipes, leading to a buildup over time of food particles and grease. They can also get caught in the filters and screens of the drainage systems and prevent proper drainage. Throw them in the trash, not down the drain.
Be smart with what you put down the drains, and you’ll decrease the likelihood of damaging your plumbing.
