Everyone has heard a toilet myth or two in their day. While many of them are indeed ridiculous fictions, you may be surprised to find out that a few myths about toilets actually contain some truth.
Do you know which of these toilet myths are false and which are weird-but-true?
True or False? Rats can swim upstream into your toilet bowl.
True. We hate to break to you, but this is no myth. Rats enter the municipal sewer system, and from there, they sometimes find their way into your sewer line. Curious rats will go even farther and start climbing up into your pipes using their sharp claws and their remarkable ability to swim while holding their breath for up to three minutes. Unfortunately, your toilet bowl is what’s at the end of their journey through your plumbing. (Watch this video to see how a rat can end up in your toilet… if you dare.)
Truth or False? Some ancient cultures had toilet gods.
True. Using the toilet was a risky venture for the longest time throughout human history, and in some areas of the world, it still is. In Japanese mythology, a god called Kawaya no Kami (born from the excrement of the goddess Izanami) was said to protect people while they used the toilet. The goddess Fortuna was painted on the walls of public toilets in ancient Rome in the hopes that the goddess would protect citizens from the dark, dirty, rat-infested conditions of public restrooms, where sometimes fiery gas explosions would occur from toilet seat openings.
Truth or False? It’s okay to flush a goldfish down the toilet.
False. You shouldn’t flush a goldfish down the toilet for a couple of reasons. So many goldfish have been flushed down toilets that they have actually started to cause harm to the ecosystems they enter beyond the sewer system. Goldfish tend to grow much larger once outside of the fishbowl, and they reproduce quickly.
Also, a toilet should really only be used for flushing two things: human bodily waste and toilet paper. These items break down quickly as they move through plumbing and sewer systems, whereas other items do not.
Truth or False? You can contract a disease from a toilet seat.
False. At one time, this was widely believed to be true, when in fact the likelihood of anyone contracting a disease from a toilet seat by chance is next to impossible. This is in large part due to the fact that organisms that cause disease are only able to survive for a brief time on a toilet seat’s surface. However, toilets are a major source of germs and bacteria, so it’s always important to practice good hygiene when using the bathroom to keep from catching a virus or an infection.
Have a toilet issue of “mythic” proportions? It’s nothing we can’t tackle! Contact the expert plumbers at EZ Flow Plumbing.