When it comes to strange and unlikely items that have been unearthed by plumbers, a few of these may well surprise you!
It seems kids have a reputation for shoving things down the u-bend with good reason. Plumbers recover thousands of fluffy friends and other toys from toilets all over the country each year so the next time you see your little one heading to the loo with their favourite teddy, make them leave it at the door!
Despite the warnings we see all the time in public toilets, it seems that we just can’t resist attempting to flush nappies away, which is something that results in serious headaches for plumbers. The same applies to baby wipes that should be binned and not flushed as, unlike toilet paper, they are not biodegradable.
If you’re guilty of surfing the web whilst sitting on the loo or keeping your phone in your back pocket, you’ll understand how easy it can be to drop a mobile phone into the toilet.
For predictably similar reasons wallets and purses also feature heavily on the list of unusual items retrieved by plumbers from blocked u-bends. There is surely no greater pain than being forced to pay a professional to fish out your soggy wallet complete with destroyed cash.
So many people think that the toilet is an easy way to dispose of cigarette butts but what’s they don’t think of is the damage that it’s causing to their plumbing system. Having a filter on your septic tank won’t save you from line plugs and all other kinds of costly damage.
Underwear is another repeat offender when it comes to blocking drains with multiple pairs found annually in u-bends across the country. It is thought that the culprits here are usually small children in schools who panic, stuff and flush when they have an accident. Don’t do it kids!
Plumbers retrieve their fair share of false teeth from loos every year. And whilst we’re not too sure how someone would manage to drop their teeth into a toilet, we’re pretty sure they didn’t want them returned afterwards!
Fish both alive and dead are regularly flushed down toilets with larger ones known to have caused serious blockages. Once again it seems the movies may be to blame for this trend.
And all of the above pales in comparison to the time that one little boy accidentally flushed his puppy down the faucet when giving him a bath. Thankfully he was retrieved unharmed but no doubt was in need of a proper bath following his ordeal!