Spring is a time for cleaning up, organizing, and starting anew. Many people use this time of year to make good on those New Year’s resolutions in one last push before the summer weather hits. After a long and cold winter – seeing that sunshine poke through the clouds is a welcomed sight and it’s hard not to open up the house and let it in.

Looking ahead to summer you might have some home improvement projects on your list of things to-do. Maybe installing a fence around the backyard or, replacing the old kitchen sink with something more modern. One thing you don’t want is to have an unexpected project land on your list – especially a plumbing project!

Some people look at the toilet as a magical portal where just about anything can be dumped in and flushed away. However, using your toilet as a trash can will leave you up a creek – without a toilet! Here are the top items that should never be flushed:

1. Baby wipes. While you might not have a baby anymore, you’ve found that these wipes are versatile and useful for many different situations, including quickly wiping down the bathroom counter or mirror. These wipes might seem like they are akin to toilet paper and are safe to flush, but they are much thicker and sturdier and will quickly cause a clog. This goes for disinfecting wipes also.
2. Band-aids. Who wants to see a used band-aid at the bottom of the bathroom garbage can, right? Well, flushing them could cause serious problems with your plumbing system. They are not made out of biodegradable materials and don’t breakdown. After you’ve removed a used band-aid wrap it in a little piece of toilet paper and put it in the trash can.
3. Cat litter. While the litter might advertise that it is flushable – it’s better to just throw it away. In the cat litter are bacteria and parasites and flushing them into the sewer system and eventually into the environment could serious upset the eco-system.
4. Chewing gum. Essentially, chewing gum is a glob of adhesive, and for obvious reasons is not a good thing to flush down the toilet.
5. Dental floss. While it might seem innocent enough, dental floss if basically a strand of non-biodegradable hair and will wrap around clogs and cause serious blockages in your plumbing.

The toilet might seem like a “catch all” hatch where you can throw away anything. However, it is actually connected to a sophisticated drain system that can easily become clogged. Make sure you and your family are not treating your toilet – or your plumbing – like a trash can.