# Don't flush tampons you moron! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 31, 2010, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180 "2010-08-31T20:52:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/61 "2010-09-01T15:37:20Z")
> [@Sateryn76](#): > > If we all stopped flushing tampons and condoms and kittens, wouldn’t that take away a big chunk of their business? Why do you hate plumbers? 😉 > > As someone said above, as long as I can help it, I try not to change my tampon in a strange place. And, some people may have issues with it, **but in my whole tampon-wearing life, in every house and apartment I’ve lived in, we’ve never had to call a plumber for tampon clogs.** The only plumber we ever had to call was to find out there was an old weeping willow root system that took out the toilet in my childhood house, and the only plunging we’ve had to do was for the kids, when they’ve used too much TP. > > I’m not some delicate flower - I’ve installed toilets myself. But, based on years and years of tampon flushing, I’ve not had a problem. Among my friends and loved ones, I don’t know of any raging plumbing clog problems. > > Maybe you’re used to shitty (ha!) plumbing, but I’ve been lucky enough not to have to deal with it. That makes it very hard to see the value in carrying plastic bags and moist towelettes, in addition to several extra tampons and pads, and going through some complicated process when I can flush them. I am always aware of the possibility of septic homes, and when I don’t feel comfortable enough to ask, I just don’t change anything. Yet you said that office couldn’t handle it and specifically posted a warning not to flush, (therefore DID have a problem with it) which you ignored??? ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/62 "2010-09-01T15:57:28Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > Man, I was all excited when I heard **Guns** had her first pitting. Then I discovered it was the thread whose title I’d been studiously avoiding the past several days. Bloooody taaampoooooons! Blooooooooody taaaaaaaaaaaampoooooooons! OoooOOOOOOOOo **OOOOOO**! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/63 "2010-09-01T15:59:13Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > > [@Bosstone](#): > > > > Man, I was all excited when I heard **Guns** had her first pitting. Then I discovered it was the thread whose title I’d been studiously avoiding the past several days. > > Bloooody taaampoooooons! Blooooooooody taaaaaaaaaaaampoooooooons! OoooOOOOOOOOo **OOOOOO**! 😃 There are some things a guy should know better than to stick his nose into. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/64 "2010-09-01T16:03:17Z")
How can people can claim that because their tampon package says go ahead and flush, it’s fine, and they can ignore everyone else who says it’s not so based on experience? I suppose they also believe that Frosted Flakes are part of a balanced diet and sugar gives you energy and BP is looking out for your best interests. Even if it doesn’t clog the pipes in the home, it will end up clogging the municipal works, which has been confirmed by an engineer. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/65 "2010-09-01T16:06:13Z")
> [@Sateryn76](#): > > What about women who use OB? Nothing there to throw away at all. Great. Now that OB jingle is stuck in my head for the whole day. ---
**Author:** ![Sateryn76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Sateryn76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sateryn76)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/66 "2010-09-01T16:12:43Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > > [@Sateryn76](#): > > > > If we all stopped flushing tampons and condoms and kittens, wouldn’t that take away a big chunk of their business? Why do you hate plumbers? 😉 > > > > As someone said above, as long as I can help it, I try not to change my tampon in a strange place. And, some people may have issues with it, **but in my whole tampon-wearing life, in every house and apartment I’ve lived in, we’ve never had to call a plumber for tampon clogs.** The only plumber we ever had to call was to find out there was an old weeping willow root system that took out the toilet in my childhood house, and the only plunging we’ve had to do was for the kids, when they’ve used too much TP. > > > > I’m not some delicate flower - I’ve installed toilets myself. But, based on years and years of tampon flushing, I’ve not had a problem. Among my friends and loved ones, I don’t know of any raging plumbing clog problems. > > > > Maybe you’re used to shitty (ha!) plumbing, but I’ve been lucky enough not to have to deal with it. That makes it very hard to see the value in carrying plastic bags and moist towelettes, in addition to several extra tampons and pads, and going through some complicated process when I can flush them. I am always aware of the possibility of septic homes, and when I don’t feel comfortable enough to ask, I just don’t change anything. > > Yet you said that office couldn’t handle it and specifically posted a warning not to flush, (therefore DID have a problem with it) which you ignored??? Good point - I forgot about that. Yes, my old office had to call the plumber about a clog, which were in part caused by tampons. In a building with 8 women and only 4 toilets - which is a pretty high ratio. ( I have read that in city public places with 5 or more toilets, it can be safely assumed that the pipe diameter is sufficient to allow tampon flushing.) ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/67 "2010-09-01T16:22:06Z")
> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > One of the advantages of Tampax over Playtex was that the Playtex applicator wasn’t flushable. Yeah, just yesterday, I was buying some tampons for the future and noticed that the box I picked up said in a big fancy looking thing on the front, “NOW WITH FLUSHABLE APPLICATOR!” Of course, when I looked closer, I saw it was just a stupid cardboard applicator (Dear sirs: I do not need _anything_ going all limp and useless in my vagina. Thanks.). So, I got the plastic ones (which I do not flush, btw). ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/68 "2010-09-01T16:23:24Z")
I’m reading this thread while eating Stouffers Lasagna. (I knew I should have been a surgeon) ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/69 "2010-09-01T16:29:28Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > How can people can claim that because their tampon package says go ahead and flush, it’s fine, and they can ignore everyone else who says it’s not so based on experience? Why is their experience of it not working more valid than my experience of it working? They haven’t flushed tampons in \*my \*home or in \*my \*office skyscraper or apartment building or in \*my \*neighborhood. Here’s [another anecdote for you](http://ask.metafilter.com/86818/To-flush-or-not-to-flush): > [@](#): > > The bins in washrooms are for plastic applicators, used pads, and the god knows how many pieces of plastic wrapping that period products come housed in. Flushing pads is like flushing a diaper, but flushing tampons is fine if not on a septic system. Municipal water systems are designed to sift through all the shit that comes down the pipes - including all kinds of stuff that people flush that isn’t waste - condoms, toilet paper, tissues, paper towels, baby wipes, and all kinds of other crazy stuff. I have done tours of water treatment centers and while the workers there noted all the debris that came with the wastewater, I’ve been told on more than one occasion that flushing tampons is fine. It’s the rest of it - the applicators, the plastic wrappers, or even pads, which cause problems. > > While reducing on an individual basis is admirable, tampons are not the worst thing getting introduced into the water system. People will blame tampons on problems that have more to do with outdated, poor plumbing and pipes than anything else. I think it’s far more sensible to upgrade old plumbing in public buildings than to rely on what is frankly a not terribly hygenic solution - having women discard blood waste (what would in any other context require a red biohazard waste container for proper disposal) into an open, unclean, and usually overflowing container full of other people’s blood waste products. ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/70 "2010-09-01T16:36:27Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > Tampax \*applicators \*are flushable? :dubious: Now \*those \*I’ll pitch–even the cardboard ones. 'Cause to me, there’s a huge difference between “blob of cotton” and “solid tube.” [Yup](http://www.tampax.com/en-US/products/tampaxflushablecardboard.aspx). ---
**Author:** ![DianaG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@DianaG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DianaG)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/71 "2010-09-01T16:42:07Z")
Honestly, I’d think that the cardboard would break up faster than the cotton. ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/72 "2010-09-01T16:44:27Z")
> [@DianaG](#): > > Honestly, I’d think that the cardboard would break up faster than the cotton. Especially considering it starts to break down the minute you insert it into your vagina to do its job. What? Me? Angry at bad experiences with cardboard applicators? NEVER! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![DianaG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@DianaG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DianaG)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/73 "2010-09-01T16:47:17Z")
Heh. I’ve never used a cardboard applicator. Fuck the environment, this is my vagina we’re talkin’ about here. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/74 "2010-09-01T16:47:49Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > > [@Broomstick](#): > > > > So, what you’re saying is that to protect your delicate sensibilities, or avoid getting blood on your hands, or whatever the issue is, you refuse to dispose of your tampons in a manner that won’t involve some other human being having to unclog the plumbing. You’d force another human being to deal with raw sewage and your bloody tampon stuck down a pipe rather than wrap it up and ask where the garbage can is? > > Yes. And I make no excuses for not being totally 100% comfortable with period blood. It is the way of things. > > It’s simple. Put a garbage bin in the bathroom, if you are worried. Oh, rest assured - my home bathroom has, as I have a mentioned, a lined trash can with a self-closing lid. Should you ever be in my home feel free to make use of it. Just don’t flush anything other than bodily waste down my toilet. ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/75 "2010-09-01T16:51:29Z")
> [@DianaG](#): > > Heh. I’ve never used a cardboard applicator. Fuck the environment, this is my vagina we’re talkin’ about here. 😃 My college used to have free tampons stocked in every bathroom on campus- which was great, especially for a poor college student who didn’t want to squander money on tampons each month. That said, they of course stocked the el cheapo cardboard tampons, which I would always forget. Then I’d have no choice and be filled with rage at the free product that was so kindly given to me. America: fuck yeah. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/76 "2010-09-01T16:52:17Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > Translation: I wear ugly grandma pants, and so should you, you filthy harlot. Actually, given my profession, it’s more like ugly grand_pa_ pants (I’ve yet to see Carhart in the women’s department), but when I’m not being a butch contractor I do sometimes wear skirts or dresses which, believe it or not, don’t show cameltoe or menstrual products through the fabric. ---
**Author:** ![torie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@torie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/torie)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/77 "2010-09-01T16:56:08Z")
I use pads most of the time (because I’m uh…small, and tampons large enough to handle my flow are uncomfortable.) and I’ve never had “fat crotch”. I use a super thin overnight brand and I just put one on, put on my jeans, and inspected myself from all angles in the mirror. I couldn’t see it. And I tried. Seriously, modern pads are so thin and unobtrusive that I forget I’m wearing them most of the time? Where on earth are you guys buying pads? ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/78 "2010-09-01T16:57:23Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > > [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > > > Translation: I wear ugly grandma pants, and so should you, you filthy harlot. > > Actually, given my profession, it’s more like ugly grand_pa_ pants (I’ve yet to see Carhart in the women’s department), but when I’m not being a butch contractor I do sometimes wear skirts or dresses which, believe it or not, don’t show cameltoe or menstrual products through the fabric. Well, of course a skirt doesn’t show camel toe. Are you actually suggesting some do? Shit, I do wear tight mini skirts on occasion and you can’t see much of my vulva at all, since the fabric doesn’t bunch of there on a skirt like it does on pants. 😕 > [@torie](#): > > Seriously, modern pads are so thin and unobtrusive that I forget I’m wearing them most of the time? Where on earth are you guys buying pads? I don’t buy pads period (see what I did there? ;)). But I think “fat crotch” comes from women who are wearing those big giant super mega pads for protection. Or maybe I’m wrong. It’s just something I’ve noticed from time to time. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/79 "2010-09-01T16:58:31Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > Flushing is the most clean, hygenic, and efficient option. Uh, right - until a clog happens. There are a lot of words I’d used to describe a clogged or overflowing toilet. “Clean”, “hygienic”, and “efficient” are not among them. And a plumber charging hundreds of dollars to fix it isn’t trivial. Neither is the repair bill for any “collateral” damage caused by flooding from overflows, which can run into the _thousands_ of dollars. And of course, delicate YOU will not be the one doing all the fixing, right? Because if you can’t handle dealing with your own used tampon I sure as hell can’t see you plunging a toilet, cleaning up raw sewage, snaking a piper, or replacing a pipe. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180/80 "2010-09-01T17:01:10Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > > [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > > > One of the advantages of Tampax over Playtex was that the Playtex applicator wasn’t flushable. > > Tampax \*applicators \*are flushable? :dubious: Now \*those \*I’ll pitch–even the cardboard ones. 'Cause to me, there’s a huge difference between “blob of cotton” and “solid tube.” Yes, Tampax cardboard applicators claim to be flushable. The instructions even say so. Put them in a bowl of water and they unwrap and dissolve over time, you can watch it happen. Yeah, - difference between the “blob of cotton” and the “solid tube” is that the solid tube is the one that actually dissolves and the wad of cotton _doesn’t_. I’m sorry if that seizes up any gears, but reality is a strange place at times. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-flush-tampons-you-moron/552180.md?page=5)