You already have enough on your plate with school, Zoom classes, and odd activity schedules. The last thing you want to worry about during a meeting is your independent little person trying to "fix" the toilet when it won’t flush, or "cleaning" the bathroom by pushing everything down the drain. You knew it was too quiet for too long.
Teaching kids about plumbing from a "Bob the Builder" angle (rather than a "Curious George" one) can save your bathroom from flooding. Here are the basics worth covering.
UFOs: Unidentifiable Flushed Objects
There are only three things that go down the toilet, and most kids giggle at potty humor anyway — so this one is easy to teach: only (toilet) Paper, Pee, and Poo. "Flushable" wipes are not flushable, no matter what the package says. If you use disposable wipes, keep a closed-lid garbage bin near the toilet to make tossing them easy.
Toys, sunglasses, pens, gum, dental floss, Q-tips, cotton balls, and so many other "small enough to fit" items absolutely do not belong down the toilet.
Kitchen Sink Soup
Getting kids to put dirty dishes in the sink is a small victory. The next step is teaching them what dishes should look like before they get there.
No chicken wing bones. No carrot or celery sticks. No three bites of mac & cheese or half a bowl of cold ramen. No glops, chunks, ranch dressing, or pizza grease.
Teach them to use a napkin, fork, or paper towel to wipe plate residues into the trash bin BEFORE the dishes go in the sink. Rinse with water and let extra water flow to help move tiny particles down the drain. Bonus points if they load the dishwasher and wipe off the counters.
Hot Water Watcher
If you don’t have a thermostatic faucet (one that holds a preset non-scalding temperature), or your main hot water supply isn’t set at a non-scalding 120°F, teach your kids about the danger of hot water. Handwashing matters, but so does not getting burned.
Show them how to turn on the hot water slowly and let it warm gradually. Kids sometimes give action figures or toy cars a "bath" in the sink — make sure they know the safe way to use hot water before they need it.
Don’t Hide a Problem
This might be the most important one. Fear of getting in trouble, embarrassment when the toilet starts overflowing, or the "I can fix it!" attitude can keep a kid from telling you about a real plumbing issue. And it’s never fun to find that your new set of guest towels has been used to soak up an entire bathroom of toilet water.
Like many challenges kids face, plumbing issues are MUCH easier to resolve when they ask for help right away.
Plumbing Lessons Can Stick
Teaching kids basic plumbing rules outside of an emergency gives them the toolkit they need when something does go wrong. And who knows — it might inspire them to become a plumber when they grow up.
Did your little one cause a plumbing mishap? J.D. and our team are happy to help. Call us at 425-374-3909 or request a quote online.