this post was submitted on 15 Feb 2025
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[–] loaExMachina@sh.itjust.works 8 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Not really, anecdotal evidence would be "I used to flush flushable wipes and my toiled got clogged". Which wouldn't be entirely worthless, but even assuming good faith it could have been a coincidence, so not worth a whole lot either.

Quoting a plumber, who'd be qualified on the subject, is an argument of authority. It's a bit more reliable as long as you recognize the authority of plumbers over all things plumbing. There's also room for error through misquoting, and of course like for all arguments, it could be a plain lie. But

  1. This statement seems simple enough to not be easily misquoted.
  2. The stakes of this conversation are pretty low, so unless we're dealing with a compulsive liar, there's not much point in lying.

I'd give this a solid 76% reliable. If I had some wipes I intended to flush, after reading that I'd probably look for more sources online to confirm before I do.

[–] Tikiporch@lemmy.world -4 points 6 days ago (2 children)

It's anecdotal because some rando on the internet is saying it. They didn't quote a plumber, they said some plumbers they talked to said a thing. That's worthless.

[–] Buddahriffic@lemmy.world 2 points 5 days ago

Kinda funny how you're only applying that logic to that one specific comment.

[–] nthavoc 1 points 6 days ago

I may not have an academic paper available or spoke to lead expert Dr. Plumber McPlumbface to get a quote, but I do know that every time someone in my house flushed wet wipes over time, my pipes backed up not once, not twice, but three times. The plumber told us "These things keep us in business." When wet wipes were no longer flushed down the toilet, the pipes have not backed up since. I guess it is safe to assume 1. An expert, who fixes things that may make you question life in general, told me that wet wipes are the problem. 2. I stopped doing the thing the expert told me to do and the problem has stopped. 3. I am now corroborating with a random person on the internet in the hopes that common knowledge is formed or some asshole posts a scientific research article. Welcome to conversations of discovery! I don't even know why I posted here. It just stuck out.