Baby wipes are the best option to wipe up your baby’s dirty face, body & bottom too. This handy tool has saved many parents time and effort. But trouble arises when we have to dissolve it after the usage. I know when mine were little crap machines that the wipes added up!
Often we throw the wipe in the toilet unknowingly and then the problem begins. Most local cities and states advise against this, but there is little they can do to enforce it. In my town, they run informational ads to alert people of the risks and consequences.
So, to answer your question, how to dissolve baby wipes in septic tank?
Some of the producers of these wipes claim that we can easily flush those. Yes, they’ll flush, but should we do it? The straight answer is no. There are some articles on wipes that can never be ‘flushable,’ especially in a septic system.
Let’s know a few things more!
Table of Contents
How to dissolve baby wipes in septic tank?
In most houses, a septic tank is used to settle & anaerobic processes to lessen solids & organics. It’s a chamber which is located underground & made of clay, concrete & plastic mostly. Through these septic tanks, domestic sewage flows regularly. But it can be clogged with massive wastage, clothes, etc. Baby wipes are one of the particular which can block the toilet & damage the septic tank system.
Baby wipes are designed to be used for a long time. That’s why it’s not easier to break down in the water. All the ingredients of baby water make the wipes more durable, which means they can keep your baby clean for a more extended period.
The other chemicals also keep the baby wipes stronger. Preservatives help these wipes to preserve the quality of them. But it makes them inappropriate for flushing. Flushing wipes can cause plumbing problems in your home’s septic tank system.
It can easily block sewer pipes of your whole building or community. Sewer blockage can affect a considerable scale too. So without any chemical substances, dissolving the baby wipe in your septic tank is not possible.
Will you be able to flush baby wipes in a septic tank?
The simple answer to this issue is no. If you have a septic tank system in your house, then you should never flush baby wipes in it. Some of the wipes are marketed, especially for bathroom use, and it says that it can be flushed, yet it can create significant problems in septic tanks.
If you have an older septic system made of clay, iron, or concrete, then the difficulty will be substantial. Besides, we must know that most of the wipes are made of non woven fabric. This type of fabric creates clogging problems in toilets and usually, dissolving chemicals are also unsuccessful.
Mostly uncloggers make the coating into individual pieces or make them thin to create an easy way to release the problem. But as the wipes are non-flushable because of the material & size, so the chemical doesn’t loosen up & break down in the toilet.
Chemicals that will dissolve baby wipes:
Baby wipes are generally made of non woven fabric; they are made from synthetic polymers that are chemically bonded into a durable cloth. It can be used for a long time & can’t be broken down easily inside the septic tank.
Basically, there are no chemicals that will dissolve baby wipes. If anyone accidentally flushed baby wipes, then they could use a method. This system includes half a cup of dish soap into the toilet.
After that, you can pour boiling water into a saucepan & let this sit for ten minutes. Then start to dislodge the clog using a plunger. Besides this, there are some cleaners that have sulfuric acid in them that can be used to dissolve baby wipes. Sulfuric acid should be handled with high care.
One must wear protective gloves & eyewear during the use. The area should be entirely ventilated as it reacts dangerously. So, will bleach dissolve baby wipes? Although people can recommend using bleach to unclog the toilets, it is not sufficient for baby wipes.
A significant part to be noted is that you should never use sulfuric acid based cleaners with cleaners that contain bleach because they react together and create a deadly gas. Besides these, usually baking soda mixed with white vinegar can be used in a clogged toilet. It creates a chemical process that helps to dissolve.
Will one baby wipes clog the toilet?
Baby wipes are non-flushable, so flushing these can be worse if you have a septic tank. It includes some chemicals which could not be dissolved in water. Previously people did a test on these & tried to dissolve wipes in septic tanks.
But it never works on toilet blocked with baby wipes, whether it’s recommended as ‘flushable.’ There’s a chance of one baby wipes clogging the toilet, although there is some probability of not blocking too.
But if anyone by any chance flush a baby wipe & doesn’t face any problem at that moment, then it’s good luck! If he/she can’t take it out, they should not repeat that ever. As we know already, baby wipes can not be dissolved in water.
If anyone flushes it accidentally, then the chemicals offset the bacterial balance in the septic tank. Moreover, the wipes can clog the tank & it can be back in your home. In addition to ‘fatbergs’ caused by flushing baby wipes because it collects grease & grime with it. It also causes failures to the aeration system of your toilet.
How to unclog a toilet with baby wipes?
Previously we discussed ‘fatbergs,’ which is created by flushing baby wipes. It majorly clogs the toilet & makes your way challenging to unblock it.
There are some possible ways to unclog your toilet. If it blocks your bathroom at once, then the blockage is nearby & you can use some tricks to unblock it. Some options can be used to free & those are;
- If the baby wipes floats & you can grab it, wear a hand glove & pick it up. Do not flush it again, forcefully inside the pipes.
- Sometimes you can take out your toilet plunger, and then the clogging can be loosened in. It will help the wipes to go through.
- Many of you have some useful tools like an augur. In this situation, you can read out the user manual & take out the wipes with its help. It’s a convenient tool to unclog your toilet.
- A quick home remedy can be helpful too. Use a straightened metallic hanger to unblock the toilet. It may not work immediately, but if you carefully try to reach the wipes & take out with this hanger’s help, it will be successful.
- The best & safe way to unblock your toilet is to call out the professionals. Plumbers can help you out quickly in this matter.
It’s important to remember that baby wipes are not flushable. If anyone faces this issue, then you can use the previous options to unblock your toilet. But we should be more careful & put the wipes in the garbage.
In most of our houses, baby wipes are used to clean up the babies for a more extended period. The longer it keeps the baby clean, the longer it will take to flush in the toilet. As we all already know, baby wipes are non ‘flushable,’ yet some companies claim it’s not. But we have to be careful & keep the baby wipes safely from the babies.
Wrapping up
Flushing baby wipes can make your toilet clog & gradually block the septic tank system. The community or building members who share the septic tank system with you will be hampered because of this clogging. So we have to be very careful about this situation.
There are many cases where babies accidentally flush the wipes in the toilet. It clogs the toilet; therefore, it damages the septic tank. We have shared a few tricks on how to dissolve baby wipes in septic tank, although there are not a lot of possibilities to dissolve that. So new parents, keep out the wipes from the babies’ reach & keep the sewage path fine always. Our recommendation is to NOT flush the wipes and to dispose of in the garbage.
Sharon Dunn
