Revealed: The most common and bizarre objects to be found down the toilet
November 5th 2010 If you were to dwell on the contents of a blocked loo, a live gerbil is probably not the first thing that would come to mind. But that is just what one engineer found when he was called out to unblock a toilet.
Engineers at one of the UK's largest independent drainage specialists, Lanes for Drains, have been keeping a record of the weird and wonderful items retrieved from loos.
Aside from the odd gerbil, and a whole host of everyday items including children's toys, jewellery, coins, cutlery, watches, toothbrushes, there have been other, more dramatic discoveries, as marketing manager, Michelle Ringland, explains: "A team cleaning out a drain recently came across a hand gun. That was quite an event because there was always a chance that it had been used in a crime and disposed of into the drain. Naturally that was handed straight to the Police.
"On a sadder note, a crew from the North East depot were cleaning out a couple of storm water tanks and found the carcasses of two deer which had obviously fallen in accidentally.
"Thankfully that sort of thing is rare, but it does show that there is never a
dull moment for a Lanes engineer."
Lanes record of finds in the past five years
Toilets
Clip-on toilet fresheners 148
Toothbrushes 120
Coins 99
Balls 22
Hairbrushes 18
Pet toys 17
Children's toys 13
Watches 10
Necklaces 2
Gerbil 1
Sinks
Coins 89
Engagement rings 28
Watches 19
Tea spoons 17
Forks 16
Knives 15
Pens 12
Hairpins 12
Tablets 9
Necklaces 3
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