Flushable wipes are marketed as an alternative to toilet paper. That may sound like a great idea, but Consumer Reports found a big problem.
Flushable wipes make lots of promises. Charmin’s Freshmates say they’re “septic safe,” Conttonelle’s fresh wipes claim to “break up like toilet paper," and Scott’s flushable wipes tout “safe for sewers and septic.”
To see how these claims hold up, Consumers Reports put these three wipes, along with plain old toilet paper, through a disintegration test. It simulates what may happen when flushing.
Consumer Reports top-rated toilet paper was also part of the test. It breaks down easily in about eight seconds. But with the flushable wipes, our testers stopped counting after 30 minutes.
Kim Leman/Consumer Reports:
Although they say flushable, our disintegration tests show they don’t break down easily, which could pose problems with your plumbing or septic system.That’s something Donna Gunther knows all too well.
Donna Gunther:
I had a sewage flood, probably about one or two inches. The whole basement was filled with raw sewage. Donna says her plumber told her the wipes were to blame.
Gunther:
It said flushable. It says right on there. I only get the flushable and he said, ‘Well, they are definitely not.’And it turns out flushable wipes cost a lot more than toilet paper.
Kim Kleman:
If they’re a must-have for your family, we recommend bagging them and tossing them out with the trash rather than flushing.Consumer Reports says if you want to use flushable wipes, you may want to consider store-brand baby wipes. They shouldn’t be flushed down the toilet either, but they cost a lot less.
A Charmin spokesperson tells Action News that Charmin Wipes have been tested and are flushable and compatible with functioning household drain lines and sewerage and septic systems. Action News also contacted Scott and Cottonelle, but did not hear back from them.
Spokesperson for Kimberly-Clark Corporation, which owns Scott and Cottonelle, says “The Consumer Report article does not identify which test method was used to rate the various tissue products, and the story also indicates that further tested needs to be undertaken. There are industry-standard flushability test methods, which have been peer reviewed and accepted by both tissue manufacturers and public works authorities. Kimberly-Clark has performed extensive testing of our flushable wipes products using these methods and all our flushable wipes products pass the relevant tests.”
