If you know a plumber personally, we’re sure you’ve asked them at one point: “What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever found in someone’s plumbing?” For the average plumbing technician, you’ll probably hear stories of found toys, socks, jewelry, or similar items.
Pipe, sewer, or drain cleaning tales like this aren’t that uncommon. What is uncommon, however, are some of the stories we’ve listed below. Check out these 5 weirdest things ever found in pipes or the sewer:
A spoon
One user on the social media website Reddit recalled the weirdest thing he found in someone’s pipes: a spoon. Why is this so weird? According to the user, there was no way it could have passed through the p-trap to get where it was without bending… but it did.
Five baby ducks
Earlier this year, off the gold coast of Australia, five fluffy baby ducks were rescued from a drain they fell into. Firefighters had to lower themselves down the drain and into the sewer to fetch them, one by one. Their mother lingered nearby waiting for the firefighters to return her babies. Everyone ended up safe, happy, and reunited at the end of the day.
Gold
Like the NPR article about the situation states, “In Ticino, Switzerland, the streets aren’t paved with gold. But the sewage pipes are packed with it.” Researchers recently evaluated 64 municipal wastewater treatment plants throughout the country. They found some surprising things! The small amounts of gold and silver that people lose to toilets and drains adds up.
Researchers estimated that the worth of what’s located in Switzerland’s pipes adds up to almost three million. The price to retrieve it would be too great, but the knowledge is still interesting. Similar research was done in the United States back in 2015, finding a slightly inflated $13 million worth of precious metals in sewage.
Almost 80 thousand dollars worth of expensive watches
An honest street cleaner in London, England, stumbled across a rare and expensive Rolex watch while working. He pulled it out of the drain, wiped it off, and turned it in to the police before returning to work. The best part? Not long after he found two more Rolexes near the same drain, their worth adding up to almost 80 thousand dollars.
The street cleaner, Arron Large, stated, “A few people have said no they wouldn’t hand it in, but at the end of the day I thought it was the right thing to do.” Props to you, Mr. Large.
A Cow!
Around eight years back, there was a Chinese farmer who couldn’t find his cow.
After searching for four days, she almost gave up before the sound of mooing brought people to a sewer drain. Her cow was found, rescued, and brought back home. No one could figure out how the cow got in the sewer, and it still remains a moo-stery.
If you need help cleaning your drains, emptying your sewer line, or just keeping things clear – call us up. The professionals at Ben Franklin Plumbing have got your back.