5 Tips for Toddler and Plumbing Safety

Blog Layout

5 Tips for Toddler and Plumbing Safety

April 24, 2018

A toddler's desire to explore can cause problems in bathrooms. Use these tips to safeguard your toddler and your home's plumbing system.

Playful Baby in a Toilet — Meridian, MS — Roto-Rooter Plumbers

Being the parent of a toddler doesn't come with a detailed manual. Fortunately, there are detailed tips for safeguarding your toddler and the plumbing system when it comes to bathroom time. Toddlers are eager to discover how things work, and sometimes this might mean toys and massive amounts of toilet paper flushed down the toilet leading to an inevitable clog.

If your child's recent discovery of the bathroom has them in awe, learn how you can promote safety.

1. Discuss Toilet Rules

Toddlers learn based on the information they receive. A child that doesn't know the dangers of flushing toys down the toilet can't be expected not to engage in this type of dangerous behavior. Parents need to sit down and have a toilet rule discussion with their toddler.

Talk about what items should never be placed in the toilet and tell your child what could potentially happen when they don't abide by these rules. If your child can easily follow rules in other areas of the house, toilet rules should be easy.

2. Install Drain Covers

Poor toilet habits aren't the only pathway to a clog. Putting the wrong items in the sink and allowing them to go down the drain is just as troublesome. If your child forces toys, cotton balls, large wads of paper, and food down the drain, these items will settle inside the pipe and create an obstruction.

Avoid a clog by installing drain covers in the bathtub and sink to prevent large items from flowing down the drain.

3. Install Lid Locks

Toilet lid locks are an excellent investment for parents of a toddler. Locking systems work by keeping the lid of the toilet in a closed position with a child-proof lock that must be disengaged to open the lid. When the lid lock is engaged after every use, they make the toilet bowl inaccessible to your child, which can go a long way in preventing a clog caused by flushing problem items.

If you don't want to bother with disengaging the lock, install a child lock on the bathroom door. A door lock is more effective as it can help protect the child from other dangers in the bathroom, such as turning on the water in the tub when an adult isn't around.

4. Detach the Toilet Chain

If the child has mastered the process of disengaging the child locks, you can take a more aggressive action to protect the toilet in the form of detaching the chain. The toilet chain is an important component of the overall flushing process. When the chain is detached, the toilet won't flush.

If your child has a bathroom in their bedroom, disconnect the chain at night to prevent the child from playing with the toilet when the rest of the family is asleep.

5. Repair Leaks

A plumbing leak in the bathroom is especially dangerous for children. Water leaks often lead to the development of mold. A small patch of mold in the corner that an adult might not see may catch the eyes of a toddler and cause them to explore.

Even if the child doesn't directly encounter the mold, the spores in the air are dangerous. All leaks need to be repaired promptly, including those outside the bathroom.

The above tips are all effective at protecting your toddler and your plumbing system, but things happen. If a toilet is clogged, a pipe is leaking, or there is some other mishap, don't fall victim to a costly DIY experiment that only makes matters worse. Call on a professional. At Roto-Rooter Plumbers, we're here to service your plumbing needs.

< Older Post Newer Post >