Q-Tips are used for everything from applying makeup to arts-and-crafts; but mostly they’re used for cleaning ear-holes (despite claims from the Q-Tip brand that you most definitely shouldn’t use them for this purpose!). This means that they are mostly used, and disposed of, in the bathroom. And the most convenient place to dispose of them? That’s right; the toilet. But…can you flush Q-Tips?
Can You Flush Q-Tips?
Honestly, this one seems rather obvious. Flushing a 3 inch stick with cotton on the ends down a 3 inch pipe is probably the quickest way to seeing your toilet back up. Unless the forces of gravity, laminar flow, and momentum all line up perfectly, that q-tip is going to get stuck crosswise in the pipe and collect anything else that comes along. Yuk.
The garbage is definitely the best place to dispose of used Q-Tips. If the cotton swab has a cardboard ‘stick’ then it may be possible to compost it but check with your local composting facility to see if this is allowed.
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