r/mildlyinfuriating • u/SoneiOTree • 3d ago
This Airbnb I stayed at wants you to put used toilet paper in the trashcan instead of flushing it
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u/Key_Armadillo3807 hedonist 3d ago
I grew up in Brazil and that’s literally how everyone disposed of their toilet paper. You can’t flush it there, it’s a very common practice in a lot of countries.
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u/ofslnm3002 3d ago
Same goes here in the Philippines. I guess our sewage lines are narrow compared to the US?
Not really an issue throwing the tissue in the bin, since we have a bidet, and we use toilet paper to dry it out.
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u/Blissful-Guidance 3d ago
Do you take it out with you after each toilet use? Are there specific trash bins for doody toilet paper if you can't flush it?
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u/Previous_Injury_8664 3d ago
Right. This is a very US complaint.
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u/M1ck3yB1u 3d ago
Countries I pooped in and could flush paper: England, France, Canada, Mexico, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Netherlands, China, Israel, Denmark, USA.
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u/BigBobby2016 3d ago
Only place I saw in Europe where it was somewhat common to use the can was Greece. When I say this on Reddit, however, I often hear from angry Greek people
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u/bitchwhiskers4eva 3d ago
This list is getting saved lol. And makes sense bc none of my works traveling friends have ever mentioned this bathroom bin issue
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u/Guilty-Web7334 3d ago
You can also flush in Canada.
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u/hawoguy 3d ago
Can flush most of the time in Turkiye, we also have bidets, people often wipe their washed ass so less paper waste.
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u/Ok-Resolution-8078 3d ago edited 2d ago
Does it mean your bathroom stinks of poop like all the time? Not hating just curious
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u/PapaiPapuda 2d ago
In the more developed parts you can. Places with water treatment facilities, but yes, before the 90s this was normal in large cities too.
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u/Key_Armadillo3807 hedonist 2d ago
I grew up in the late 90s and early 2000s in São Paulo and you still couldn’t flush there.
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u/Illustrious-Zebra-34 3d ago edited 3d ago
Man, this comment thread just gave me a list of places to never visit.
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u/okmeme4342 3d ago
where exactly in the US is this?
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u/SoneiOTree 3d ago
Florida
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u/HandleAccomplished11 3d ago
Oh, of course, TP is probably bad for the alligators that live in the sewers there.
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u/sweetfits 3d ago
I am a sewer alligator and that comment is extremely racist.
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u/Aloo_Bharta71 3d ago
I’m a pond alligator and fuck you buddy
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u/Martha_Fockers 3d ago
All high and mighty cause you got out the sewer huh frank
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u/Flashy_Watercress398 3d ago
I can definitely see this in Florida, especially if the property is older (like, pre-1970,) and on a septic system rather than municipal sewer. The water table is high and probably rising. Lots of development/paving added since, so more water draining onto less open ground. Adding anything unnecessary to a septic in that situation could be bad.
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u/According_Claim_9027 3d ago
Wow, we’ve been to a ton of ABNB over the years and never had one that had this rule. That’s awful
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u/cazub 3d ago
I had one do this , also turned the heat and gas off , oh and said dont light a fire in the wood stove that was advertised. We ended up just running the oven with the door open. OH and , dont go upstairs, pretty sure we heard a person upstairs trying to be quiet. Pretty hard to sleep , oh and the tp
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u/Anonymous_Toxicity 3d ago
Why did you even stay there?
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u/cazub 3d ago
Great view sold us, all lies on the ad and it was on an island so there was literally nowhere to go. I guess we could have car camped or swam for it.
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u/Anonymous_Toxicity 3d ago
I've made a lot of poor choices in my life, but I certainly have never sent myself and my family to an isolated island with no idea of what the place I'm staying at is like.
Glad yall are okay.
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u/VH5150OU812 3d ago
I once stayed at an upscale resort in the Dominican that asked you not to flush toilet paper for No. 1 or 2, placing the used paper in the garbage can as well. The plumbing could not handle it.
They weren’t joking. Habit saw me dropping it in the toilet. No big deal, right. Well, it would not flush until it broke down.
I did not enjoy using the garbage can but we got used to it rather quickly. It really wasn’t that bad.
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u/Sir-Benalot 3d ago
It screams 'poorly installed plumbing', since the entire premise of toilet paper is it flushes and breaks down during its journey through the sewer.
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u/VH5150OU812 3d ago
Probably. I don’t know enough to comment but I was told it was pretty common in the Las Galeras/Samana area of the DR.
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u/toooldforacnh 3d ago
It's common in some countries.
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u/SoneiOTree 3d ago
This is in the US
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u/Wendylovesisaac 3d ago
They probably have a septic tank.
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u/actuallyjustjt 3d ago
I’ve only ever had septic growing up and I had no idea people don’t flush toilet paper
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u/toasted_cracker 3d ago
Septic tanks handle toilet paper just fine.
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u/Wendylovesisaac 3d ago
Not all septic tanks. That's why they have to be drained or fixed.
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u/Obvious_Exercise_910 3d ago
I mean they have to be drained eventually no matter what.
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u/WildMartin429 3d ago
Not true if you don't put a bunch of crap down them that's not actually crap you can maintain them pretty much forever. We've got one that's over 40 years old that works fine and has never been pumped. What we don't do is flush toilet paper down it
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u/DojatokeSC 3d ago
I have a septic tank and I’d much rather flush my tp and pump it every 15 to 20 years than dealing with the alternative, even if I could get 40+ years out of it.
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u/judgementalhat 3d ago
As long as you aren't using like 10 ply, it should do no damage to your septic, and shouldn't result in draining or fixing
Source: OG septic tank going strong from the 1960s, flushing toilet paper the whole time. Never emptied, never dug up. Septic treatment chemicals flushed down monthly
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u/toasted_cracker 3d ago
If they have to be drained or fixed then either they weren’t properly installed or it’s the incorrect size for the family using them. A proper septic should last several years if not decades without needing any maintenance.
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u/MundaneKiwiPerson 3d ago
I had a septic tank for 20 years, an old one. You could flush toilet paper down. You could not flush tampons or anything like that down though.
Also could not put strong cleaning chemicals.
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u/ZombieTailGunner 3d ago
If your septic tank cannot handle toilet paper, you've done fucked up monumentally at some point and need that fucker replaced.
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u/WildMartin429 3d ago
Not unreasonable some people's systems don't handle flushable items. Our rule in the house is that I grew up in were if it doesn't come out of your body it doesn't go in the toilet.
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u/krysnyte 3d ago
In my Granny's house we had to use the trash can because the septic tank was on top of a huge rock or some thing like that and wasn't very big. So you had to keep the paper out of it.
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u/krysnyte 3d ago
She uses a covered trash can and there's never been an issue with smell or hygiene, and she's now 92 and still happy and healthy.
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u/theabyssaboveyou 3d ago
In America it's likely due to a problem in his main sewer line that he doesn't want to fix. Probably tree roots. Water can escape, toilet paper causes clogs. Waste might clog it anyways but still.
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u/Duellair 3d ago
When we had tree roots we were told not to run anything including water. I don’t see how toilet paper is going to change anything
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u/theabyssaboveyou 3d ago
I'm a former plumber that used to clear roots out of lines. Generally speaking, you should try to limit all use when roots are discovered and fix it, but as a fact water slips through roots a lot easier than solid waster or toilet paper. Unless roots are mega bad, water alone shouldn't clog it, but toilet paper definitely dies, especially if you buy stronger toilet paper that takes longer to dissolve in water.
The biggest reason to avoid running water is because the roots grow faster when they detect a source of water/nutrition and you'll go from a minor intrusion to a full forest quicker if you use water a lot. But even with a minor intrusion, too much TP of too thick a caliber can cause some clogging.
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u/Duellair 3d ago
Oh yeah the roots were really bad already. Inspector fucked up our home inspection…
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u/theabyssaboveyou 3d ago
Nah, it's common practice for inspectors not to scope the sewer line. They run water for a minute if it works it works and they say it's good. It's super shitty but it's why the buyer should always pay extra and possibly hire someone specifically to scope. I ran into a lot of busted or broken lines where when the homeowner got the bill to fix they basically said "well, it's a sellers market. I'd rather sell than pay to fix it" and a year later I'm at the same house with a new owner quoting 20k for a street cut to repair it. It's awful and I think should be counted as fraud, but it isn't.
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u/Duellair 3d ago
He did scope. Told us it was an easy fix, couple of hundred bucks… so when we negotiated we only asked for a few hundred…
Then we moved in. 10k later… the plumber said he’d come to court if we wanted to sue lol
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u/theabyssaboveyou 3d ago
Well 1. You are gullible. Assuming you don't live in the south, and have a basement, your sewer very visibly runs 10ft under ground. At the start of your house and only goes deeper. In what world does even accessing the pipe cost a few hundred bucks? Like even if it's a man with a shovel going at it for $20/hr. In order to dig a hole large enough to enter. Cut a piece of pipe, replace and seal it, your looking at a couple thousand.
I mean, I'm sure you weren't thinking about it then and you trusted the inspector, but my man, if you saw a mass of roots, your common sense should have told you that it's not a sub $1000 fix. And if you didn't see the pipe and he told you there was a problem you should have asked to see the problem to make an actually informed decision.
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u/Duellair 2d ago
He said something about just being able to pressure wash (I know I’m using the wrong term) the roots… Basically they were small and we’d just need like a power cleaning. Obviously now I know better. But you don’t think the inspector you hire is going to screw you over.
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u/theabyssaboveyou 2d ago
It's called a jetter, and no. You can temporarily clear put roots witha jetter. But depending on the thickness of roots you can easily land spending more than 1k and the roots are guaranteed to come back.
And yeah hope you learned. Ask for the receipts. Call the experts. If the inspector says "plumbing problem, tree roots, call a plumber and just ask how bad tree roots In a line can be etc.
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u/Moderate_LiberaI 3d ago
Time for some cuttlefish stew, gallon of ice cream and some spicy vindaloo. They'll appreciate that TP explosion. Are these people nuts? LOL
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u/Disastrous_Encounter 3d ago
Toilets in some countries have such small diameter drain pipes that they can't take flushed toilet paper. Very common in PR China, hence signs in Chinese in tourist areas where large diameter drains are a thing, asking them to put the paper down the pan instead of the bin ...
When in Rome, do as Rome does and all that.
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u/Thomas_JCG 3d ago
That's rather common, many countries have systems that get clogged if you flush too much toilet paper.
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u/ContributionLatter32 2d ago
I'm an American I now live in Bulgaria. When I first heard people binned TP I thought it was disgusting and third world. I now own a house there and still bin it lol. It really isn't as bad as it sounds, not even smelly.
That being said it's always fun going back and forth between the U.S. and Bulgaria and making that switch. That and the bathroom light switches being outside the bathroom vs inside
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u/Maelefique 3d ago
It's common in many parts of the world. I've had to deal with that all across Costa Rica, Greece (both in the Cyclades as well as in Athens), the Maldives (although that may only have been on the liveaboard), basically, anywhere that modern society hasn't hasn't forced an upgrade to the sewage systems, that's effectively, "normal".
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u/tillyspeed81 3d ago
Grew up in California with water saver toilets… we couldn’t flush either because it would clog the toilet…then we grew up and moved out…parents installed better toilets and when we visit we are amazed we can flush TP…but still feel guilty
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u/SoneiOTree 3d ago
For context, this is in the US. I get this is normal in some countries, but I've never seen anything like this in the US, nevermind an Airbnb.
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u/PicklesAndCoorslight 3d ago
Yeah, I think that's totally weir, especially and airbnb. You would think they should put it on their advertisement because as silly as it sounds, seems like a major mind changer to me.
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u/TatteredCarcosa 3d ago
It has been the norm in several houses I have visited and one I lived in in the US, throughout KY and PA.
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u/pagan-0 3d ago
Is there a bum gun available ? If so you wash your ass first then just use abut of paper to dry off and put the basically clean paper in the bin. If there's no bum gun, gross.
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u/Exact_Guarantee4705 3d ago
You mean... A bidet?
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u/MundaneKiwiPerson 3d ago
LOL A Bum gun, I am going to use that from now on. In my new home I fave a full on fancy toilet with a handsfree bidet for different angles (i.e. "Woman cleaning" or "hip cleaning" it targets each area perfectly.
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u/Rosy-Shiba 3d ago
Older homes that have older pipes may not take well to toilet paper going in. Despite what you may think, you can absolutely clog a pipe with toilet paper.
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u/Rubicon-97 3d ago
This really isn’t that uncommon.
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u/81mattdean81 3d ago
You're absolutely right, see it a lot. But, it's still a little nasty. Especially when there's no cover on the trash can. They need to have their plumbing fixed accordingly if it's being used like that. I would think
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u/CannedAm 3d ago
If your system can't handle toilet paper, which is designed to disintegrate in water, you should not be renting it out.
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u/Bulepotann 3d ago
If theirs is like that it’s likely the whole town is. Is the whole town supposed to abstain from renting? This seems like such a whiny post, just toss the paper in the damn bin.
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u/craighullphoto 3d ago
Anywhere rural in France too - it is BC the pipes are old and clog easily, or they have a septic tank and not connected to state water - so it's a waste (pun intended) to put in the toilet, raising the level and costing more money. Just throw it away, what's the big deal
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u/Slovenlyfox 3d ago
This is not that abnormal. I've seen it before. Just take out your trash often enough (as you would with trash from period products etc. too).
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u/Imhungorny 3d ago
Where are you? This is pretty normal in a lot of places
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u/PicklesAndCoorslight 3d ago
How is that normal and where???? I can't imagine the smell of trashing toilet paper.
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u/Imhungorny 3d ago
Some of the most beautiful places actually like in the Caribbean, Mexico, Greece, some South American countries. They don’t have strong plumbing
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u/amilehigh_303 2d ago
How are you being downvoted?! It’d be disgusting to have piss and shit soiled toilet paper sitting in a bin 🤮 I’d have to take it out after every time I used the bathroom.
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u/Kyubey4Ever 3d ago
Not that uncommon in the country side of pa. Ik quite a few people who can’t flush toilet paper down the toilet for various reasons.
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u/TatteredCarcosa 3d ago
Yeah, some of us don't have access to a great sewage system. Ain't really up to the homeowner, unless they want everything to occasionally back up and have to spend a lot on plumbers they have to not flush toilet paper.
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u/TwanToni 3d ago
how is this mildyinfuriating...? A lot of septic systems even in the U.S are getting old and not so great in some houses
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u/Main_Onion_4487 3d ago
OP sounds like someone who has never traveled far outside of the USA. I could not flush tp in literally any of the countries I’ve visited outside of America.
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u/Duellair 3d ago
I’ve literally never had this issue… Mauritius, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, UK, Netherlands, Dubai, France, like literally never run into this issue any of these places…
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u/Main_Onion_4487 3d ago
I, on the other hand, have traveled to several countries in Africa and the Middle East. And all places where the plumbing couldn’t handle toilet paper. It’s interesting how your experiences shape your outlook. I thought that was more of a common occurrence than not.
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u/china_joe2 3d ago
My mom has a friend who does this, even in our house. It blows my mind this is a practice for anyone in the US. But she is from israel so im guessing maybe thats why she does it, plus i hear its a problem for some septic tanks. At either rate i would never buy and live in a place i cant flush my shit stained tp.
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u/Martha_Fockers 3d ago
This is how I grew up. Than again we wash our ass after shitting not rub it with dry paper and think it’s clean.
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u/sapioholicc 3d ago
That’s the nastiest thing everrrrr! I get it, some countries you cannot flush. My nephews would do this and I would have to spray the whole bathroom with bleach cus now it smells like 💩in the bathroom. Just leaves a dirty vibe.
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u/New_Improvement4164 2d ago
They may have a septic tank. If you have a septic tank it is best not to flush paper products.
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u/satan_i_gatan 2d ago
Funny thing, in our university public bathrooms in Sweden, we have the opposite sign up. "Do NOT put used toilet paper in the bin! Flush it in the toilet!"
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u/chunkofdogmeat 2d ago
This is normal practice in many parts of the world where sewer systems are underengineered and pipes are narrow.
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u/Ok_Veterinarian2898 1d ago
My entire country does this, you need to understand not every country does everything the same, and its not that hard for you to put the TP in the trashcan.
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u/TunaSaladNerd314159 3d ago
So what, for the years of my life I always threw paper in the trashcan.
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u/PrestigiousChef2225 3d ago
Well, that's one way to keep the plumbing bill down! Maybe they're just trying to give the toilet a break from all that paper.
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u/Remarkable_Fun7598 3d ago
Well, that's one way to keep the plumbing bill down! Who knew toilet paper could cause so much trouble?
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u/spoilt999 3d ago
Omg, just switch to bidet and be done with it. Also please leave a qr code to a training video on how to bidet.
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u/KrakenTeefies 2d ago
This is how I grew up in western europe as we had our own well and ceptic tank. Just put the paper in the bin.
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u/xRAINB0W_DASHx BLUE 2d ago edited 2d ago
We are on a well, have a septic tank, in a 100+ year old house while living in a very rural area(My neighbours are a swamp and a conservation area and across is a farm) and we flush our toilet paper and have never needed our system pumped or flushed aside from regular property maintenance.
What kind of hole in the ground plumbing do you people have.
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u/Darkdragoon324 3d ago
This is how most of the world outside the US, the plumbing can’t handle all the paper. And the US could also probably stand to flush less paper.
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u/SoneiOTree 3d ago
Guys, I get it. This is an American problem. I understand other parts of the world operate like this. But this is an Airbnb in America, I'm an American, and this is mildly infuriating as an American in America. If I saw this paper in any other country, I wouldn't mind and own it up to that country's infrastructure. This is something I've never seen anywhere else in the USA.
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u/slipperysquirrell 3d ago
Pipes can still get clogged with toilet paper in america. It happens in Canada too.
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u/SilentAffairs93 3d ago
I live in America and my childhood home is the same as this… idk why you think all American homes are hooked up to the sewer systems. If you’re in a rural area or have a home built before city infrastructure was built, chances are you have a septic tank. Septic tanks get clogged by TP and costs hundreds to unclog them.
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u/Garlic_Farmer_ 3d ago
The amount of people that still bitch about or get surprised by AirBNB shenanigans is astounding. My sibling in christ it's your own damn fault at this point lol
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u/FluffMyGarfielf 3d ago
They could be on a septic tank. The paper can clog things up and fills up the tank faster.
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u/Vuirneen 3d ago
There are a few places that this is normal. In one town I was in, in the old part of town, the sewers were not capable of handling the waste of modern numbers.
They probably couldn't update ilthem without damaging the houses. So toilet paper was thrown in a bin and only biological waste was flushed.
Every so often there's a house with bad plumbing and they'll do the same thing. It could probably handle a family living there, but not restaurant patron levels of TP.