Our Flushable Wipes are Safe for your Septic Tanks

Cottonelle^® flushable wipes are made with fibers that are 100% plant-sourced and break down like regular toilet paper.*

*begins to break up as fast as Cottonelle Ultra Clean and has same break up after 30 minutes

All breakdown, no buildup

Our flushable wipes are IWSFG 2020 compliant and plumber approved, which means you don’t have to worry about the sewer, septic or clogging.

Flushability FAQs

How can I be sure it is safe to flush Cottonelle® Flushable Wipes?

The flushability of Kimberly-Clark^® products is tested with plumbers and passes widely accepted flushability guidelines. These guideline tests demonstrate that when used as directed, our wipes clear properly maintained toilets, drain lines, sewers and pumps, and are compatible with on-site septic and municipal treatment. Cottonelle^® Flushable Wipes are flushable due to patented technology that allows them to lose strength and break up when moving through the system after flushing.

Will Cottonelle® Flushable Wipes break down in my septic system?

Cottonelle^® Flushable Wipes are designed to safely break down in home septic systems and will not affect the normal bacterial activity in a septic system.

How many wipes should someone flush at a time? Is this on the package?

We recommend flushing 1‒2 wipes per flush. This instruction appears on our packages.

Are baby wipes flushable?

No. Baby wipes include plastic and are designed to deliver durability and value.

Are Cottonelle® Flushable Wipes biodegradable?

The fibers used in Cottonelle® Flushable Wipes are 100% biodegradable and come from responsibly managed forests. There are no plastic fibers in our wipes.
The packaging materials are not biodegradable.

Why does my plumber tell me not to flush wipes?

Many plumbers aren’t aware that there are different types of wipes. Cottonelle® Flushable Wipes are tested with plumbers and meet all flushability guidelines.

Are Cottonelle® Flushable Wipes compostable?

Cottonelle® Flushable Wipes are made of tree pulp which will biodegrade in some composting systems; check with your local municipality to see if a program that accepts used tissue products exists in your area. Cottonelle® Flushable Wipes have not been tested in home composting systems. Our recommendation is to flush our Flushable Wipes, because they are designed to break down in sewer and septic systems.
The Cottonelle® Flushable Wipe packaging materials are not compostable.

Testing for flushability

Our testing method mirrors how wipes would move through drain lines and sewer systems to ensure our wipes break down fully.

Better than baby wipes

Cottonelle® Flushable Wipes	Baby Wipes
100% flushable	100% flushable
Plumber-approved	Plumber-approved
No harsh chemicals, dyes, or plastic fibers	No harsh chemicals, dyes, or plastic fibers
Hypoallergenic	Hypoallergenic