People & Places

How does toilet water get cleaned after it leaves your home?

Toilet water travels to a treatment plant where solids, germs and dirty water are separated and cleaned. After you flush, wastewater flows through sewer pipes to a treatment plant. First, screens catch large objects that should not be there. Then heavier solids sink, lighter scum floats, and the liquid moves on. Helpful microbes, which are tiny living things, eat much of the remaining waste.