Ask Southern Water’s experts about ‘The Unflushables’ - items that could cause a sewer flood in your home - £150 voucher to be won NOW CLOSED

[AmeliaMumsnet]

Every year in England and Wales water companies deal with over 300,000 blockages, many of which are caused by common household items being flushed down the toilet. That’s why Southern Water, along with the Consumer Council for Water, have launched ‘The Unflushables’, a campaign to help people protect themselves from the misery of sewer flooding. Many products that have been labelled as ‘flushable’ can actually contribute to these types of problems, so, to clear up some of the confusion, the team at Southern Water are offering you the opportunity to ask some of your burning, sewer-related questions to their expert, Sharon Holdstock!

Here’s what Southern Water have to say: “‘The Unflushables’ campaign aims to help people know how to properly dispose of fat, oil, grease and unflushable items like wipes, tampons, nappies and condoms. It’s designed to help customers understand the impact a sewage flood in their house can have – and provide some hints and tips to help prevent it.”

Post any questions you might have about ‘The Unflushables’ - how to dispose of them, what can and can’t be flushed, or how to get into good habits to prevent sewer flooding, and we’ll pick 20 for Sharon to answer. Everyone who posts their questions will be entered into a prize draw where one lucky Mumsnetter will win a £150 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Here is some information about Sharon Holdstock:

Sharon is currently Southern Water’s Field Customer Engagement Officer, and has been with the company for five years. She travels to areas that have been affected by flooding caused by blocked drainage systems and advises people on what not to flush, giving talks and presentations around the community. She is passionate about this project, and about the importance of getting the message out to as many people as possible to help them protect their homes and the environment.

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw,

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

When we moved into our new house we got told that the precious owners had blocked the toilet by flushing kitchen roll down it- I'd never really thought about it (& certainly never done it) but am guessing it is a no no?

• previous (not so precious!!)

My question is - Do you state this information on letters to the customer, e.g. marked as important information on the back of the water bill, or at least include a link to a central website which spells out what "the unflushables" are?
And if so, do all water companies do this? (sounds like they should).

Despite not flushing wipes or sanitary products down the loo our drain still blocks and we end up having to call the water company out.

Are there any types of loo roll to be avoided?

What else apart from not using loo roll which isn't an option ! Can we do to minimise this?

It is a horrible upsetting inconvenience to go through every months - not helped by the fact that our drain is "communal".

My question is about the so called flushable toilet wipes that are on the market now-mainly from a very well known brand. Are they really and truly flushable?!? as they claim to be. They look, feel and have the thickness of normal wetwipes which I would never dream of putting down the loo!!

I'm also interested to hear about so-called flushable moist toilet paper/toddler toilet wipes. I can't see how it is flushable if baby wipes aren't. Are there any flushable alternatives?

Are there any flushable tampons or other sanitary products?

Plenty of good questions and no answer from southern water?!

Our street plumbing is from the early 1930s so it gets unblocked for free, but having discussed with neighbours about why it's blocking, it seems that people forget 'healthy' oil like olive oil is fat just the same as meat dripping and also flushable wipes should have a warning. When i was young it was common practice to rip sanitary towels in 2 and flush. I think there needs to be a national campaign to update the nation on good flushing habits!

MN are going to wait until the thread has enough posts, pick a representative twenty questions and then come back with the answers from Southern. It's a Q&A not a webchat.

There's so much duplication that I'm not sure they've even got 20 questions yet.

I have a waste disposal unit which I love - is it bad for the environment? Everything is super ground up but I guess the high amount of organic matter isn't great. Or is it ok? I'm careful not to put surplus fat in the drains.

I have another question... Is it OK to flush clumps of hair? I tend to clear the plug hole, then dump it in the toilet. But sometimes I wonder if it could contribute to blockages.

some of the quilted toilet roll we use seems a bit difficult to flush sometimes. Maybe we should use a different one do you think?

I think the difference between flushable and biodegrdable should be made cleaer and that all households should have a list of what not to flush.

My question- is sewer water really recycled into drinking water or is that a (horrible) myth?

I would like to know how to get rid of cooking fat - the food waste service run by our council says explicitly NOT to put fats or oils into the food bags / bin. Where should it go?

rupert23 I mentioned upthread that a plumber once told me to always use recycled loo roll as the paper fibres were shorter and it broke apart more easily in water, and thus was less likely to block the pipes.

I've always wondered whether it's ok to flush down dental floss, as it's so small but worry that it might wind around something and cause problems?

Completely agree with those saying that you need to make it illegal to market wipes as flushable. Also disposable nappy liners!

I've always wondered whether it's ok to flush down dental floss, as it's so small but worry that it might wind around something and cause problems

I'm curious why you wouldn't just put it in the bathroom bin.🤔

I'm also curious as to everyone's cooking oil consumption. I fry things but only ever in a little oil. I just wipe up the residue with a paper towel and throw it in the bin. Is everyone else still deep frying food. 🤔🤔🤔

What about bleach when you've got a septic tank? Is it unflushable?

We don't pour cooking fat down the sink (we pour into old jars, then throw in bin) but our kitchen drain did get blocked recently. After a very smelly and nasty unblocking incident, I could tell that the blockage was washing-powder-related (our w/m empties into same drain). We only use half-measures in the w/m but I don't know what to do to prevent the blockage. I use a particular non-bio powder which works for the eczema-affected people in our household and can't really change it in case of allergic reactions. I mostly wash on 30c but do the odd 60c wash too. Any advice on how to avoid another blockage please?

as the so called flushable wipes obviously aren't flushable, and as dry toilet paper often doesn't suffice I sometimes put a small amount of oil on ordinary toilet paper- please tell me this genius idea is OK??

Can you really flush those "flushable" wet toilet wipes down the loo? My sister reckons you can but I thought they still might block the sewage pipes!

I think its quite shocking how many things are marketed as disposable/flushable when they should go in the bin. Can anything be done to make manufacturers be more responsible?

More of an observation than a question really.

We are quite an eco-conscious household. Overnight we defo don't flush the loo for wees BUT I've noticed that if we are using good quality, thick loo paper, we are in danger of having a loo blockage when the first person comes to flush first thing in the morning. So it's back to 'basics' in this house.