Thanksgiving Party Host? Protect Your Plumbing Today

(KPEL News) - Thanksgiving is the holiday where we stuff our faces and spend time with our families. It's a time to give thanks and get ready to spend money on Black Friday. But, did you know there is also something called "Brown Friday"?

If you have company spending Thanksgiving break with you, you are probably doing a ton of laundry, taking showers, and having people use your bathrooms. Let's just put it this way: all of that adds up.

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What is ‘Brown Friday’ and Why It Matters

"Brown Friday" is a real term plumbers use to refer to the day after Thanksgiving, which is typically the busiest day of the year for them. Most people hosting the Thanksgiving Day meal are going to get a major workout for their plumbing systems!

Thanksgiving Day is a wonderful time with family and friends, but let's face it, we all eat way more on this holiday than we typically do any other day of the year, except maybe Christmas Day.

Thanksgiving Hosting = Plumbing Stress

Eating on Thanksgiving Day is almost a sport in South Louisiana, and we are all really good at playing the game. All of us are going to be indulging more than we usually do, so that means we are going to be using the facilities. Plus, everything people put down the toilet can affect it, too.

Why Flushable Wipes Aren’t Safe for Your Toilet

As you heard in the report above, no matter what the packaging says, plumbers do not recommend flushing "flushable wipes". In this short by Consumer Reports, you'll see why.

Now, if you decide you can't live without flushable wipes, there are some recommendations plumbers will make. Check this out from Plumber Roger Wakefield, as it's pretty enlightening. Be sure to notice how big the pipe attached to the toilet he is using in his video is. If you have an older home, consider that the pipes used decades ago were likely much smaller, so you might not want to put wipes down the toilet.

Thanksgiving is also a time when we gather together to celebrate and be grateful. When we are prepping all the food and doing cleanup afterward, you might put things down the drain that you wouldn't normally.

You have a garbage disposal, so you can dump all the extra food down it, right? Well, it's not a good idea. There are a whole host of things that you should put down the garbage disposal. Grease is an obvious one. You shouldn't put grease down any drain.

WBIR reports that it's best only to put liquid down your garbage disposal.

Another report from WAFF drives home the point that you really have to be careful about what is going in and down your drains at Thanksgiving.

It makes sense that on the day after Thanksgiving, we would have plumbing issues. Most of us eat plenty of delicious food on Thanksgiving Day. How much do we eat, well according to ABC News, the average person consumes about 3,000 just at the meal itself. When you add in all the appetizers before the meal, it can swell to 4,500 calories.

So, let's review a few things.

What Not to Put in Your Garbage Disposal

Starchy foods expand and clog the device

Grease, Oil, and Fatty foods will clog up the plumbing

Drain Cleaner and Bleach will destroy the disposal

Fibrous Food

Shells and Nuts can dull the blades of the disposal

Now that you know what not to put in the garbage disposal, let's talk about toilets. Let's review some things you should make sure your guests don't put down your toilet.

Baby Wipes/Flushable Wipes

You may need to use these for sanitary reasons while in the bathroom, especially after overeating, but they should never be flushed, according to Mr. Rooter. Straight up, they say don't do it.

Medications

Experts used to tell us to flush old or unused medications, but now they advise everyone not to do it.

Paper Towels

They are called paper towels, but they can't be flushed because they are "heartier" than toilet paper, and that goes for napkins, too!

Cigarette Butts

You may sneak a smoke in the bathroom during the Thanksgiving celebration at your MawMaw's house. Hey, you do you, but don't put the cigarette butt down the toilet. According to We Are Woosh, they can severely harm freshwater and marine life.

How Much Does Hosting Really Cost Your Pipes?

Those are just a few things you should never flush down the toilet. It's not a bad idea to have an emergency plumbing fund because, according to Angie's List, calling a plumber on "Brown Friday" can cost anywhere from $100 to $500.

It's also not a bad idea to think about your manners after using a bathroom at someone's house:

Make sure you leave the toilet the way you found it!

Make sure you wash your hands after you use the facilities!

Try to use the bathroom fan if they have one!

If you clog the toilet, look for a plunger and try to fix it yourself!

Consider waiting until you get home (if you can) to handle number 2 business!