Wet wipes: Households stung with $16,000 plumbing bills, water authorities warn

IF YOU think flushing those wet wipes down the toilet is OK, you better think again. Households are being stung with plumbing bills as high as $16,000.

WARNING signs not to flush wet wipes down toilets are being posted in some churches and apartment blocks in a bid to stop huge “fatbergs” clogging sewage systems.

Households ditching baby, makeup, cleaning and other wipes in the loo are being stung with plumbing bills as high as $16,000, water authorities warn.

In addition, the nation’s water utilities are battling a $15 million annual clean up bill.

Removing wet wipes from a pumping station.

Removal of wet wipes from a treatment plant.

The caution comes as the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission investigates whether marketing some wipes as “flushable” is misleading.

Consumer group Choice has taken aim at Kleenex’s reformulated CleanRipple Flushable Wipes for its latest campaign.

It said its tests found the product failed to fully disintegrate after an hour in an agitator. In comparison, toilet paper dissolved in a few minutes.

“Although the new ones break down faster and are an improvement, we argue they are not entirely safe to flush and we still believe they pose a blockage threat,” Mr Godfrey said.

Kleenex owner Kimberly-Clark said Choice’s claims were disappointing as both its new paper-based and previous generation flushable wipes met widely accepted industry guidelines.

Wet wipe fatbergs. Source: Yarra Valley Water

Wet wipe fatbergs. Source: Yarra Valley Water

Its website states Kleenex flushable wipes are “only suitable for use in properly maintained sewerage systems and commercial septic systems” and to “flush a maximum of two wipes at a time”.

The Water Services Association of Australia is developing a standard for safe “flushable” wipes. Until its completion no “flushable” wipe products could be endorsed, it said.

Sydney Water’s Peter Hadfield said some churches and high-rise apartment complexes had resorted to posting signs urging people to not flush wet wipes down toilets.

“The problem of ‘flushable wipes’ is a global problem. Wet wipes whether branded flushable or not do not break down effectively,” Mr Hadfield said.

He commended Kimberly-Clark’s commitment to label some products with a distinctive “do not flush” logo, and urged other manufacturers to follow suit.

South East Water’s Matt Mollett said wet wipes were responsible for about 70 per cent of blockages in pump stations shifting waste from homes.

Yarra Valley Water managing director Pat McCafferty said blockage problems were not solely limited to wet wipes. Other non-degradable items including feminine hygiene products and disposable nappies caused issues.

[e-mail]

@KarenCollierHS