I just threw my try out ring into the toilet

[thecat]

I bought a silver trinity to try if I prefer the slightly narrower than classic trinity width. I dried it in tissue paper after washing it and absent mindedly threw the tissue paper into the toilet. I heard a slight thud and realised immediately my ring was still in the tissue paper. Though the toilet has just been scrubbed, I knew I would feel whenever I wear it. So I flushed it away so that I can't change my mind later to fish it out. Now I must buy it again

How do you clean your jewelry to prevent such situations from happening? Or is it impossible for such a situation to happen with the way you handle jewelry? I hope to learn from you ladies what you do so that I can prevent it from happening again. I threw out my hoops similarly a few years back and only realised I most probably threw them into the bin when I couldn't find them a few days later

 

[momhappy]

I don't use tissue at all when cleaning and/or handling my rings. Tissue leaves tiny flecks behind, so I dry with towels.
If that had happened to me, I would have put on a pair of rubber gloves and got the ring out of the toilet. Rings (and hands) can be easily cleaned and/or sanitized and it wouldn't bother me to know that it had once fallen in a toilet. At the very least, I would have pulled it from the toilet to dispose of it properly - it can't be good for the plumbing having that thing rattling around in there...

 

[thecat]

I don't use tissue at all when cleaning and/or handling my rings. Tissue leaves tiny flecks behind, so I dry with towels.
If that had happened to me, I would have put on a pair of rubber gloves and got the ring out of the toilet. Rings (and hands) can be easily cleaned and/or sanitized and it wouldn't bother me to know that it had once fallen in a toilet. At the very least, I would have pulled it from the toilet to dispose of it properly - it can't be good for the plumbing having that thing rattling around in there...

Now that you mentioned it, I have rubber gloves at home. But I had flushed it away Why was I so impulsive?

 

[chrono]

I don't use tissues; I have a special cloth for wiping down my jewellery.

 

[momhappy]

I don't use tissue at all when cleaning and/or handling my rings. Tissue leaves tiny flecks behind, so I dry with towels.
If that had happened to me, I would have put on a pair of rubber gloves and got the ring out of the toilet. Rings (and hands) can be easily cleaned and/or sanitized and it wouldn't bother me to know that it had once fallen in a toilet. At the very least, I would have pulled it from the toilet to dispose of it properly - it can't be good for the plumbing having that thing rattling around in there...

Now that you mentioned it, I have rubber gloves at home. But I had flushed it away Why was I so impulsive?

Don't beat yourself up - sometimes, we just react without thinking it through.

 

[thecat]

I don't use tissues; I have a special cloth for wiping down my jewellery.

How frequently do you wash this special cleaning cloth? I had one too initially but found it a hassle as sometimes it wasn't dry enough when I needed it (I washed it daily), hence I switched to tissue. But I've threw out two pieces of jewelry wrapped in tissue twice that it's time I go back to using the cloth.


Momhappy, I forgot all about the plumbing. I wasn't thinking when I realised my ring was in the toilet. I hope it is tiny enough to go through the system and not clog up the pipes.

 

[chrono]

I wash it once a week. It's just mopping off excess water off so I don't think it gets dirty enough for a daily wash.

 

[chemgirl]

I don't wash mine daily, but when I do wash it I am paranoid and make sure the plug is in the sink and the toilet lid is closed! I throw any tissue in the gabag can. It's easier to hunt through the bin than fish in the toilet.

Even with this level of paranoia, I manage to drop my Trinity ring down a toilet while on vacation the other week. Real Trinity = fishing expedition in the public toilet.

 

[kenny]

How do you clean your jewelry to prevent such situations from happening?

I try to clean my ring in only one place, which is a safe place.
It's over a kitchen counter, not over the sink.
I dry it with a can of compresses air so it would never be in, or get left in, a tissue.
If it slips out of my hand it would only fall a few inches, not a few feet to the floor.

Also to prevent loss from my forgetfulness I try to always store it in the exact same place when it's not worn.

The key is enforcing the discipline of good safe habits.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I have a ring holder on my bathroom sink vanity. When I clean my rings, I do dry them quickly with a tissue, but I replace them immediately on the ring holder if I don't put them on. I never leave them on a tissue or towel. I never take them off in the house and put them anywhere but the ring holder. That is the only way never to lose them!

In your case, I would have gotten them out of the toilet, washed first with dishwashing liquid and hot water, then dipped in alcohol. There would be no reason to discard them as far as I am concerned, but thank goodness these were just silver!

 

[iluvshinythings]

I remember once when I was in my early 20's and a twenty dollar bill fell out of my pocket and into the toilet at a nightclub. $20 was a lot of money (like all of my free money every payday) at the time so I grabbed it, dried it on a paper towel and promptly spent it.

I'm glad things are better now. ha ha

I only clean my jewelry at home. I have a screen that I place over the drain and then I close the drain just to be sure.

I try not to ever remove my rings unless I am in front of my jewelry box at home. If I'm out somewhere and absolutely must remove my ring, I put it in my mouth until I put it back on my finger. (might not be sanitary or safe for my teeth, but it's what I do) That way I can't walk off and lose it. If something terrible were to happen and I swallowed it, I'd still have my ring. And then I'd bleach, bleach, bleach and wear it again..... (I'm also a freak and keep nitrile gloves around so I don't have to touch anything gross)

I dry jewelry with a cloth I found out about here on PS. It's called sparklesparkle and I bought it on amazon. I highly recommend.

 

[madelise]

I've reached into dirty toilets plenty of times. Pee, poo, you name it. I'm always dropping unflushable things in there. Usually, it's a damned hair tie or Bobby pin.

Sigh. Good thing there's soap.

 

[arkieb1]

I would have gotten something to hook it out so I didn't have to put my hand in there and then soaked it in alcohol and then steam cleaned it which would have killed anything on it. I have a kitty that likes jumping into the toilet before you can put the lid down and I wash and shampoo him after he dives in there....

 

[stracci2000]

I've reached into dirty toilets plenty of times. Pee, poo, you name it. I'm always dropping unflushable things in there. Usually, it's a damned hair tie or Bobby pin.

Sigh. Good thing there's soap.

I agree with Madelise. After changing diapers, cleaning barf or poop from both kids and cats, these things no longer bother me.
I woulda just snagged it out with an old wire coat hanger, or something similar.

 

[thecat]

Even with this level of paranoia, I manage to drop my Trinity ring down a toilet while on vacation the other week. Real Trinity = fishing expedition in the public toilet.

I just read your thread. You're a brave woman for doing that And your beauty must be grateful that you didn't leave it behind in a public toilet.

In your case, I would have gotten them out of the toilet, washed first with dishwashing liquid and hot water, then dipped in alcohol. There would be no reason to discard them as far as I am concerned, but thank goodness these were just silver!

You can be sure the matter would have been dealt with differently had it been a treasured piece though I don't even want to think about it

I've reached into dirty toilets plenty of times. Pee, poo, you name it. I'm always dropping unflushable things in there. Usually, it's a damned hair tie or Bobby pin.

Sigh. Good thing there's soap.

I threw a cleaning cloth into the toilet the other day instead of throwing it into the laundry basket. Unflushable = I had to pick it up and throw it away. The only positive was that the cloth was still floating on surface so I just grabbed the dry part and threw it away.

 

[thecat]

I wash it once a week. It's just mopping off excess water off so I don't think it gets dirty enough for a daily wash.

I was worried that the cloth would be oily due to my previous handling so I washed it daily. But a bit oily is way better than throwing out jewelry. This will be one of my adopted practice henceforth. Thanks for sharing, Chrono.

I try to clean my ring in only one place, which is a safe place.
It's over a kitchen counter, not over the sink.
I dry it with a can of compresses air so it would never be in, or get left in, a tissue.
If it slips out of my hand it would only fall a few inches, not a few feet to the floor.

Also to prevent loss from my forgetfulness I try to always store it in the exact same place when it's not worn.

The key is enforcing the discipline of good safe habits.

Thanks for sharing, Kenny. I will adopt a few of these practices too.

I dry jewelry with a cloth I found out about here on PS. It's called sparklesparkle and I bought it on amazon. I highly recommend.

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll look into it.

 

[thecat]

I would have gotten something to hook it out so I didn't have to put my hand in there and then soaked it in alcohol and then steam cleaned it which would have killed anything on it. I have a kitty that likes jumping into the toilet before you can put the lid down and I wash and shampoo him after he dives in there....

I agree with Madelise. After changing diapers, cleaning barf or poop from both kids and cats, these things no longer bother me.
I woulda just snagged it out with an old wire coat hanger, or something similar.

If only someone else had started this thread and I read these responses, I might have done it differently. The good thing to come out of this thread is safety practices and modus operandi in case of such situations. I hope it helps other readers who might face such a situation in future.

 

[ForteKitty]

We keep our toilet lids down when it's not in use because the cats like to play with the water. That would prevent a lot of stuff falling in by accident.

 

[madelise]

I've reached into dirty toilets plenty of times. Pee, poo, you name it. I'm always dropping unflushable things in there. Usually, it's a damned hair tie or Bobby pin.

Sigh. Good thing there's soap.

I agree with Madelise. After changing diapers, cleaning barf or poop from both kids and cats, these things no longer bother me.
I woulda just snagged it out with an old wire coat hanger, or something similar.

Yup. I work with special needs kids. My hands are DISGUSTING. I can't just stop life to wash my hands every time a kid wipes their snot on me, or I'd never get work done. My dog barfs and diarrheas. I myself have vomited all over myself. Meh. Im not gonna be so squeamish as to toss a ring, ever. Nothing steam cleaning and some scrubbing won't take care of. Lol. I don't even think to use tools--- I'm usually in a rush and don't think, like OP. Hand it is!

 

[KaeKae]

Haha.
I'm a preschool teacher, turned Mom and now a special ed aide. Pulling a ring out of the toilet, then cleaning it and my hand (if I didn't have something else to use) would be no big deal.
And, yet, there is a part of me that understands the ick. It's just a part of me from 25+ years ago!