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PHOTOGRAPH of perscription drug being poured into a toiletPrintable Septic & Toilet Don't Flush List

Keep these things out of building toilets & drains

This article provides a printer-friendly list of things that should not be flushed down toilets nor down other drains.

Keep these materials and substances out of your sewer lines, toilets, other fixture drains in order to avoid costly clogged sewer piping or to avoid damaging the septic tank or absorption fields.

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SAVE THE SEPTIC SYSTEM
- DO NOT FLUSH - THESE ITEMS DOWN THE TOILET -
See TOILETS, DON'T FLUSH LIST for details

To print directly from a downloadable PDF format see  SAVE THE SEPTIC SYSTEM [PDF]

WHEN?
Cat Litter, Kitty Litter Never
Chemicals - Ammonia, Bleach, Detergents (excess), Drain Cleaners (excess), Epsom Salts  Never
Cigarettes, cigarette butts, cigarette filters Better Not
Clothes dryer sheets Never
Coffee grounds Never
Cooking Oil Better Not
Cotton Swabs, Dental Floss Better Not
Diapers, baby-wipes Never
Disposable wipes, wet wipes, baby wipes ( it appears that only a very small percent of these products break down as needed to avoid damage) Never
Dirt Never
Drugs, Antibiotics, Prescription Medicines Never
Fats, Oil, Grease Better Not
Food Scraps, Ground Food Better Not
Hair Better Not
Latex: condoms, gloves, similar products Better Not
Laundry Detergent - excessive Better Not
Liquor, Whiskey Better Not
Motor oil Never
Panty Liners Never
Paper Towels Never
Pesticides Never
Photo Chemicals Better Not
Plastic bags Never
Sanitary napkins Never
Swimming pool chemicals Never
Tampons Better Not
Toilet seat covers Never
Trash, Toys & Scrap Never
Washing Machine Lint Better Not
Water in large quantities  Never

...

Continue reading  at TOILETS, DON'T FLUSH LIST - home or select a topic from the closely-related articles below, or see the complete ARTICLE INDEX.

Or see NO FLUSH SUMMARY LIST FAQs - questions & answers about this no-flush list, posted originally at this page.

Or see these

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Suggested citation for this web page

* NO FLUSH SUMMARY LIST at InspectApedia.com - online encyclopedia of building & environmental inspection, testing, diagnosis, repair, & problem prevention advice.


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INDEX to RELATED ARTICLES: ARTICLE INDEX to SEPTIC SYSTEMS

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Comments

John · Nov 26, 2023

We want to butcher our own deer. We have a septic drain in our shop for RV dumping. Can we let blood drain into the septic system from a deer hanging over the drain? The deer carcass and any other solids from the deer would be properly disposed.

We are due to have our septic tank pumped soon anyway, and would wait to schedule pumping until we butcher our deer.

Thanks for your advice.
John.

InspectApedia Publisher (mod) · Nov 26, 2023

@John,

Thank you that's a really interesting question. I'll do some research but I don't think we're going to find an answer from a septic authority. In my opinion what you propose is completely harmless as long as the volume is not significant with respect to the total wastewater load on the septic system. Dear blood is basically biological material that should be broken down in the septic tank. However if your butchering multiple deer it's possible that you could be overloading the septic system. So give me a clue about how much butchering is going on.

John · Nov 27, 2023

@InspectApedia Publisher,
Thanks for your quick response.
We don't expect to harvest more than one adult deer annually. Maybe 120 to 175 pounds.

InspectApedia Publisher (mod) · Nov 27, 2023

@John,

A 175 pound deer may have 5-7 quarts of blood - similar to 175 pound human (5-6 quarts). I don't think we'll find any scholarly research on this question but in my OPINON that's a trivial amount of organic matter to put into a septic system and in fact less work for the system to break down than the more solid fecal waste that goes into a septic tank.

Bottom line: blood from butchering one buck and draining its blood into a septic tank that is otherwise in good working condition isn't a concern.

I'm assuming that the septic tank and drainfield are in good working order. If they're not, the wastewater provided by human use is already going to be the problem for such a septic system.

As a point of contrast, the discharge slaughterhouse blood is a concern for septic systems and possibly municipal sewage treatment systems, as might be the discharge of of medical wastes, including blood or other bodily fluids, into a septic system could raise concerns for the release of both pathogens and also medications into the nearby groundwater.

Supporting Research:


see inspectapedia.com/septic/Septic-Tanks-UMN.pdf

Excerpt:
Slaughterhouses

Blood has an extremely high soluble BOD, and is therefore very diffi cult to break
down in a septic system. When slaughterhouses have their own onsite system, no
blood should be allowed to enter the septic tank. Th ere may be small amounts of blood
entering with the cleanup water, but the great majority of the blood should be
collected and disposed of separately from the sewage system. Pretreatment is the
preferred design option for handling waste of this strength.

- source: MINNESOTA, UMN, SEPTIC TANKS DEFINITION & DESCRIPTION [PDF] University of Minnesota

copy at inspectapedia.com/septic/Septic-Tanks-UMN.pdf

Abdulla, Fayez, Hani Abu Qdais, and Atallah Rabi. "Site investigation on medical waste management practices in northern Jordan." Waste management 28, no. 2 (2008): 450-458.

Arrubla, Juan P., Janneth A. Cubillos, Carlos A. Ramírez, Jhon A. Arredondo, Carlos A. Arias, and Diego Paredes. "Pharmaceutical and personal care products in domestic wastewater and their removal in anaerobic treatment systems: septic tank-up flow anaerobic filter." Ingeniería e Investigación 36, no. 1 (2016): 70-78.

Godfrey, Emily, William W. Woessner, and Mark J. Benotti. "Pharmaceuticals in on‐site sewage effluent and ground water, western Montana." Groundwater 45, no. 3 (2007): 263-271.

Annette · Sept 26, 2023

What sort of additives can I use safely in my bath that will not harm septic tank ? I do not use Epson Salt anymore. I heard that using Non-fat Powered Milk was a good. Also Herbal Essence Shampoo as a bubble bath - they said it was 99% pure...... ???

InspectApedia DF (mod) · Sept 26, 2023

@Annette,

In my opinion and experience, as long as bathtub use is at normal residential levels (that is, you're not running a commercial enterprise that uses very large volumes of water), you can use any bath product you like: epsom salts, bubble bath, bath oils.

None of these at normal use levels should harm the septic tank nor drainfield because they are so much diluted by the total wastewater volume flowing out of your building.

But **IF** you want to be really meticulous, use castille-soap type soaps and bath products as those contain the lowest level of add-on chemicals.

Vivian · Jan 1, 2023

Will using alcohol-free mouthwash harm a septic system? Thank you.

InspectApedia Publisher (mod) · Jan 1, 2023

@Vivian,

No,no worries Unless you were disposing of hundreds of gallons on an industrial scale.

danjoefriedman (mod) · Dec 28, 2019

Peter that sounds perfectly find to me. The volume of materials is just too small

Watch out, however: no modern plumbing codes are likely to approve a 500 gallon septic tank as it's too small to give adequate settling time- the result is a reduced drainfield life and a need for frequent pumping.

Search InspectApedia.com for SEPTIC TANK PUMPING FREQUENCY
and
for
SEPTIC TANK SIZE

to see details

Peter · Dec 27, 2019

Can 2 cups of vinegar and 1 cup of baking soda be flushed into a 500 gallon septic tank when cleaning a shower drain?

danjoefriedman (mod) · Oct 8, 2019

At the same level at which you rinse small amounts of human food into your kitchen sink and septic when you wash dishes food isn't going to clog a drain nor harm a septic system.

In my OPINION if there is enough un-eaten food left in a dish that you can use a spoon to slovee spoonfuls off then you might be smarter to slovee your dishes into the garbage can instead, thus reducing the risk of a clogged drain.

Tony · Oct 8, 2019

Can I rinse small amounts of processed dog & cat food into my kitchen sink.....and septic?

danjoefriedman (mod) · May 7, 2019

Terri:

Juice from olives, pickles, etc., at normal household usage levels, will not harm a septic tank nor drainfield. The volume is so slight that those often acidic substances are very dilute in the septic tank.

However in my OPINION, **IF** you were pouring large quantities of oils, such as olive oil in which some olives are packed, into a drain or septic system you risk oil clogging of the drain system if the drains are exposed to very low temperatures,

and **IF** you were pouring much larger quantities such as disposing of restaurant waste oils, you could cause a problem for the septic system as well as the drain system - food greases and oils and fats in restaurants and similar commercial facilities must be intercepted and disposed of as food waste or waste oil. (FOG interceptors are used).

Terri · May 7, 2019

Is it ok to pour juice from green olives, pickles down the kitchen sink?

 

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