Know what you can and cannot flush down the toilet

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- The potty, the can or the toilet. Whatever you call it there are rules when it comes to what can and cannot be flushed. Social media has been flooded with photos and video of people buying up toilet paper, leading to other posts, listing what you can use as alternatives. And those alternatives make Santa Barbara’s wastewater system operators nervous.

Wastewater collections superintendent Bradley Rahrer said, “Those will ultimately get into our sewer system and cause a lot more maintenance issues for us, which will increase costs to repairs. And it will also cause problems down here at the wastewater treatment plant.”

To fight back against misinformation about alternatives to toilet paper the City of Santa Barbara is increasing its social media presence on the three P’s that can be flushed.

“If you must use wipes our suggestion is use it and then trash it," said Rahrer. "Don’t put it down the toilet.”

Officials post the three "P"s of what to flush, pee, poop and paper. “So with the toilet paper, as you can see it’s starting to break down, just sitting there in the water," pointed out Rahrer. "And it’s becoming pretty milky. Whereas the disinfectant or flushable wipes you can see it pretty much has the exact same form factor. And this is exactly why we get concerned about it in the sewer because it can bind up on other things like roots or grease downstream.”

Things city officials posted are not to be flushed down the toilet include: wipes, cotton swabs, pads, drugs, band-aids and diapers.

For more information about what can and cannot flush down the toilet visit the city of Santa Barbara's website.