The City of Naperville is warning of a common household item that is causing big problems. The city regularly encounters pipes clogged with flushable and non-flushable wipes.
That’s why officials are urging residents to look at the label on packages of wipes to determine if it can or cannot be flushed, and even if it says it is safe for the plumbing – proceed with caution.
“These are designed to dissolve in the collection system, but it takes some time for them to break down,” said Director of Water and Waste Water Utility with the City of Naperville, Jim Holzapfel. “In the mean time they might collect in your sewer lines, in the public system sewer lines and they can cause backups, blockages. So it’s best that these wipes be used and disposed of in the garbage can.”
Once flushed, the wipes can bond together and form clogs so powerful they break steel equipment, costing the city an estimated $5,000 a month, or around $60,000 dollars a year to replace these parts.
Experts recommend only flushing toilet paper when possible and disposing of all other wipes in the garbage.
Naperville News 17’s Evan Summers reports.
*Photos courtesy of the City of Naperville.