Water UK – the trade body representing all of the main water and sewerage companies in the UK, recently reported that wipes make up 93% of the materials that cause sewer blockages.
So here at Metro Rod Dorset, we’d like to encourage people to pay attention to what they are putting down their drains.
You may have heard about the giant fatbergs being found in city sewers, one of the worst recently totalling the length of two football pitches and weighing the same as 11 double decker buses! These are being created because people are disposing of fat and grease down their drains, that oil from a Sunday lunch roast is finding its way down sinks and wet wipes are being flushed down toilets.
Here’s the science bit. When the fat and grease cools as it travels down the pipes, it congeals and then combines with the non-biodegradable products such as wipes with an inevitable congealed build up, producing a fatberg.
Martin Anderson, of Metro Rod Dorset, drain and maintenance specialist says, “Our engineers deal with blockages caused in this way on an almost daily basis, and the problem seems to be getting worse. We can expertly deal with this kind of blockage using techniques such as high-pressure jetting to clear any build up, and even drainage repair if necessary, but we’d also like to help educate Dorset and try to lessen the damage caused in this way”.
“This is also costing the UK’s economy a huge amount to deal with, not to mention the inconvenience and potential health risks caused by drain blockages and overflows, so we urge you all to put wipes in to the BIN after use and any fat, oil and grease in to a container before also disposing of it in to the bin”