flushing a used up bar of soap down the toilet

[CTyankee]

Hubby and I disagree about this. I say that when the bar of soap is thinned out to a certain size you can safely flush it down the toilet. Hubby says no. Neither of us is a plumber.

What is the answer?

[CousinIT]

1. Nothing should go down the toilet except what it's intended for

NO bar soap
NO dish soap
NO paper towels
NO facial tissue
NO disposable wipes (no matter what the labels say)
NO diapers
NO cat or pet litter (no matter what the labels say)
NO newspaper
NOTHING goes in the toilet except what's SUPPOSED to go there (water, poo, pee and toilet tissue). And some bleach or cleaner on a regular basis to clean it.

But that's just me. Plumbers are EXPENSIVE. I like to avoid them if at all possible. But I'm one of those nerdy people who remove the hose and cover my outdoor hose spigots in Winter too, so there's that.

[CTyankee]

2. Thanks. I surely wouldn't flush down everything else on your list but for some reason

I kinda thought the soap would just dissolve and what's the difference if it is still a bar but you wash with it so the soap goes down anyway. So that was my rationale...

[tenaciousdem]

3. Not a good idea

Seriously, poo, pee, and tp are the only things that should be going into your toilet.
Anything else will eventually stack up and then back up.
😁

[CTyankee]

6. OK. I was going to call our plumber friend but I'm afraid he'd get bent...he's retired now but he

always complains about the folks flushing down a disposible diaper.

What about wet wipes?

[sl8]

8. No, not even the "flushable"ones.

Yes, they will flush.
No, they don't break down (not quickly enough, anyway).
Yes, they cause septic/sewer problems.

[CousinIT]

15. I never flush wipes. I don't care what the label says.

Too risky and they're too thick and don't break down. Toilet isn't a trash can.

[cyclonefence]

4. Why

waste water and risk damage to the plumbing when it's so easy to toss it into the trash can?

Or buy (or make) a little mesh bag to hang in the shower and put little slivers of soap in it, thus creating an excellent exfoliator?

[CTyankee]

7. hey great idea! I love it!

[CousinIT]

16. Ohhh! +1 n/t

[lastlib]

25. I always stick my small soap slivers to the next new bar, so they get used up completely....

Haven't had a sliver of soap to discard in a couple decades.

[dchill]

26. +1.

[Aristus]

33. Same here.

n/t

[exboyfil]

5. We have a weird problem at work

Someone keeps flushing paper towels down the toilet. We have had to shut half the bathroom several times because of it. We have signs on every stall in ten different languages telling people to not do this.

[Ferrets are Cool]

14. I'm sure others have ideas, but probably all you can do is install

the metal inserts that hospitals have to keep wipes from getting into the lines. I can't remember what they are called, but they are installed in every hospital toilet.

[FBaggins]

9. There's no need

When a bar of soap is "used up"... it's gone.

[LuckyCharms]

10. Not sure, but never flush a GI Joe doll.

Don't ask me how I know. Bad childhood memory.

[safeinOhio]

11. Had some work done on my septic system.

I asked how often I should have it cleaned out. He said if it's just you, once every 10 years if at all. Then he said I shared with one female, every 5 years and if more than one, every two years or sooner.

[genxlib]

12. We never dispose of soap

Just get the next bar wet and they will weld together with a little pressure.

[NurseJackie]

18. This!

[raccoon]

46. But in my experience they keep separating. NT

[Floyd R. Turbo]

13. When I'm down to a sliver I just press it onto a new bar. No waste. 🧼

[Kaleva]

17. I've removed fish, toys, gravel, tampons, a tape measure and such from toilets.

A small, thin bar of soap ought to be fine but I'd suggest just tossing it in the garbage.

[NurseJackie]

19. Are you hooked up to a municipal sewer system, or do you have a septic tank?

[CTyankee]

20. municipal sewer system

[Brother Buzz]

21. You're flushing money down the drain

My mom taught me at an early age to 'weld' that sliver of soap to the new bar by kneading them together. My mom was thrifty that way.

"Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without."

[CTyankee]

22. Others on this thread have suggested same. I must admit I never thought of it and it's kinda

stupid not to use it (since I paid for it).

[Lindsay]

27. I think we

may be related.

I grew up with that one, too.

[jpak]

23. If you were **real** Yankee, you would save those slivers and mash them together

to make a new bar of soap.

:

[CTyankee]

24. I'm sorry not to be a real Yankee (I just live in CT).

I'm 3rd generation Texan. Born and raised in Dallas.

Your suggestion (and others before you on this thread) suggested the same idea. I don't know why I didn't think of that. It makes so much sense!

[2naSalit]

28. Don't do it!

I'm guessing you don't have septic. Never flush soaps and such into a sewer system or septic system, especially solid soaps.

[Freddie]

29. Use body wash

Costs more but no soap scum in the shower or
dropping the slippery soap. Use liquid hand wash at the sink.

[femmedem]

30. Soap is better for the environment, though.

https://grist.org/living/whats-the-greener-choice-bar-soap-or-body-wash/

[hunter]

31. Our water is so hard ordinary bar soap is unpleasant.

It doesn't seem to rinse away.

That's why we use body wash.

I know people use water softeners but I hate dumping all that salt into the sewer.

[Freddie]

41. We have hard water too

I feel cleaner with body wash plus it’s cleaner for the shower. We have to use distilled water in the coffee maker or it will clog up and ruin the coffee.

[CTyankee]

36. I love body wash but hubby likes the soap (he would never use body wash).

I like the cocoanut scented body wash. I have same scent lotion for after the bath. Feels terrific!

[Fla Dem]

32. I put it on a new bar of soap, that way, no waste.

Last edited Wed Dec 4, 2019, 10:01 PM - Edit history (1)

Once it’s thin enough, just press it on a new bar and smooth out the edges so it forms a bond.

On Edit: I see many others have also suggested marrying the old thin bar with a new bar. Thought I was the only skin flint that did that. But seriously, why would you throw away soap that is still usable?

[csziggy]

34. When my bars of soap get small, they go next to the sink

For me to wash my hands with. When the next bar gets small, I "weld" it to the sliver of the previous bar. Sometimes the sliver gets away from me and goes down the drain. I figure if it is small enough to get down the pipe, it was sufficiently used.

[panader0]

35. I have a septic tank and pay attention to it's "health".

I use Rid-X every coupla months. Believe me, you do NOT want to have
your septic tank worked on. I had to have mine cleaned once, and even though I
live in the boonies, I'm sure my neighbors knew. At least though, the tank is accessible. The
leach fields are not and digging them up is quite expensive. I use as little toilet
paper as I can. All the kids are long gone now, so that's four less poopers to
clog things up.

[CTyankee]

37. we have city sewer system, thank god.

[panader0]

39. I remember some years ago there was a jar of some kind

that you could put your slivers in and they would become soft enough to
pump out.

[MicaelS]

38. Do not do this.

Google "fatberg".

[zanana1]

40. That could be a sudsy catastrophe. nt

[CTyankee]

42. Yes, and I am humbled by responses to my query and will reform my ways...

hallelujah, I have seen the light...

[Tipperary]

44. Why would you not just toss it in the trash?

Genuinely curious. That being said, I also meld old slivers onto a new bar. Mom taught me that as a child.

[CTyankee]

45. That's what I did but what you do is far preferable and I'll try it!

[LeftInTX]

43. The bar will take awhile to disolve. It could get stuck in one of the traps.

Then you would have a solid in the trap. The solid can then trap toilet paper and poop, leading to a clog.

[KY_EnviroGuy]

47. Probably not a good idea.

Bar soap isn't much different from all the other detergents we send down the drain but being a solid, the pieces may settle in the bottom of your large low-velocity sewer line and encourage buildups. Some soaps and all vegetable oils tend to build up in plumbing and attract paper fibers. Both will turn into waxy buildups if they sit in pipes for extended periods.

Better to just throw scrap bar soap in the garbage if you can't use it for a utility sink, lubricating drawer slides, etc.