MNHQ here: what do you think about manufacturers marketing wipes as 'flushable'?

[RowanMumsnet]

Hello

We've been contacted by a major utilities company asking Mumsnet to throw its weight behind a campaign it's running on the marketing of 'flushable' wet wipes and 'moist' toilet tissue.

The organisation that's contacted us says that 80% of all sewer blockages are the result of sewer misuse, and that 70% of these blockages are the result of wet wipes. They want manufacturers to stop being able to label wipes as being 'flushable'.

They are going to write to the Advertising Standards Authority complaining that consumers are being misled by the packaging and claims on many of these products. They say consumers are encouraged to believe that these products break down harmlessly when flushed - whereas in truth, they don't break down after flushing and can end up causing blocks, leaks and flooding.

We know from previous conversations about tampons and sanpro that MNers tend to be stalwart defenders of the public sewage system, so we said we'd ask you whether this was a campaign you'd like us to swing behind.

As ever, it would be great to hear what you think.

Thanks
MNHQ

Nicecleanbum

You need to get bum showers installed pronto.

Nicecleanbum

You need to get bum showers installed pronto.

Nicecleanbum

You need to get bum showers installed pronto.

Argh sorry! Not THAT urgent

The peerless Kitty Flanagan has something to say about this:

Yes, you are going to have a bin next to your toilet for wipes. You can cope. Much of the world does.

Toilet paper is generally enough, but if it isn't, use a bin.

Just as a wee point of clarification: not all the water companies in the UK have been privatised. Not the ones in Scotland.

In Glasgow they are putting in a major upgrade to the sewer infrastructure (scarily large pipes) - but that doesn't help/change the size of domestic infrastructure. We still need to take individual responsibility for what we put (or rather don't put) down the loo (and kitchen sink).

MarriedinMaui

They had those Bum Guns in the middle east where I worked, I tried it once and got wet boxers, and then your bums wet, so you go to dry it and gets bits of toilet paper stuck, its too much first world problemy.

So just stuck with paper lol.

I never flush wipes and haven't RTFT but someone up thread said people shouldn't use waste disposals for their leftover food. Is that right? I use mine all the time. What are the reasons I shouldn't have one? Genuine question.

Fish, thanks for the link. That is the perfect solution to avoid using wipes, especially when out. I couldn't wait for your report (although I will be interested in it) and have also ordered some gel.

The system isn't designed to have all those solids.

Waste disposal is ok for bits that get stuck in the washing up water, but not for scraping plates into.

Bum showers
The main problem with these is that they are difficult to install in a way that makes them compliant with UK water regulations. (The danger is that non-compliant installs may lead to contamination of the mains water supply. )

Ouch.

Agree with Candycoco, yes some countries need to have shitty bins in the toilet, some countries also wee in a hole in the ground, we shouldn't have a need for bins of poo in our toilets!

And I can absolutely guarantee you - if you think your bum is clean after wiping with paper, get a wipe afterwards and see what happens - sorry to be blunt but you will be amazed and a little bit repulsed

I'd happily support this campaign.
But this thread is bringing back memories of me having to beg my Mum to put a bin in the bathroom and having to explain to her that flushing sanitary pads was wrong. She thought it was ok - "Just break them into three bits and flush!"
Eugh.
It's funny though, she was scathing about a neighbour who was apparently flushing nappies when we had a couple of drain blockages.

Also if you're the kind of person who will insist on tipping fat down the sink then Lakeland sell a sink fat trap thing so it can be easily binned. I scrape mine into a small bag or a container of some sort that is going to be binned anyway and chuck it. I've seen pictures of fatbergs and no way am I going to contribute to that!

Nicecleanbum why is a small bin with liner and lid emptied regularly offensive and yet a backed up toilet where your turds and other people's overflowing onto your bathroom floor is ok? And why is it ok to see your poo flowing down your neighbour's drive but not a tiny bit on a wipe in a closed bin? Because that is what will happen if you persist in flushing your bum wipes.

You are literally making your shit someone else's problem and that's really selfish and actually disgusting. You're too delicate to see your own shit but you're happy to have it displayed on someone else's property? Or your own floor?

You have some issues my friend. And you know you're posting crap or you'd do it under your usual name you dirty article.

I think they should also get the supermarkets to use their influence and ask manufacturers to alter their packaging.

A quick search on MN toilet cleaning practices throws up plenty of recommendations for flushable toilet wipes like Parozone and Dettol. Haven't got Dettol wipes to hand, but Parazone are definitely marketed as flushable on the front of the packet.

If you ever used one of those disposable toilet brushes you'll see they do break down like loo paper. If you've ever put one of those wipes in the loo you'll see they do not.

< wishes there was a 'like' button for Movinonup's post >

Yes cleaning wipes are also a culprit, and they're frequently blithely recommended here. You can get biodegradable ones, by ecover and others, but you should still probably limit them to one per flush.
I used to get the flykady emails (along with countless others), and her famous daily 'swish and swipe' bathroom cleaning routine recommends using -and flushing - kitchen roll.

Flylady not flykady.

So people would like to specifically widen a campaign to just make it about 'wipes' - of any description or purpose?

I bought the Tesco 'flushable' toilet wipes when I was potty training my son. Cost us £200 to have our drains sorted after the raw sewage eventually backed up into our patio. And we only used one or two at a time as indicated on the packet. Never again.

a good idea
it's not unreasonable to think that 'flushable'='will not cause problems when flushed'

100% behind this. As a civil engineer I know our sewage systems were just not designed to cope with all these solids and textiles and they cause pollution, flooding risk, maintenance costs and breakdowns. We should not be too clueless or squeamish to face the issue of managing our dirt and waste. The rest of the world manages very pragmatically.

There should be a very strict guideline on what can be approved and labelled as flushable. Like we had some kind of paper nappy liners, they looked like they would break down to me but it is not a hard thing to test.

I'm always seeing these MN threads about loo hygiene/sanpro/nappies/dog poo/bins and staggered at how precious adult women can be about dealing with it. Stuff doesn't go away if you flush it down the loo. In fact it doesn't go away if you put it in the dustbin either but that's a whole other mountain, as it were. We seem to be stuck in some kind of competitive spotlessness "Oooh ewww imagine having a stinky Tampax in a BIN in your HOUSE Ewww somebody might FIND IT how embarrassing".

Please please get a grip sisters. I think women make the majority of decisions about what gets bought/used/flushed/binned so we should take ownership of the issue.

So people would like to specifically widen a campaign to just make it about 'wipes' - of any description or purpose?

I think it would be simpler and clearer to narrow that campaign down to what you can flush, so urine, faeces, and 2-ply toilet paper.

Otherwise it might get embroiled in the relative flushability of different items, and it being ok if you flush one at a time etc...