On the other hand, 3-ply is luxurious, but it seems to be blocking Dunedin’s ageing sewerage network.
So, Clark Drainage owner Keegan Clark is urging homeowners to go for the middle-ground and use 2-ply toilet paper.
"Three-ply, just from what I can see on the camera when I do blocked drains, it doesn’t break down. There’s just clumps of it in the drains.
"Usually when you put a camera down a drain and people are using normal 2-ply toilet paper, it’s just like little, itty bitty, tiny bits.
"But the 3-ply, it just seems to be in big chunks.
"It doesn’t quite break down — not like 2-ply or 1-ply."
The rule of thumb was, if you could put your finger through it easily, it would break down easily.
He said if a property had drains in good condition, it would handle 3-ply toilet paper "just fine".
"But in Dunedin, we’ve got a lot of aged pipes with cracks and breaks, and sometimes there’s tree roots in them.
"So all it takes is for one bit of toilet paper to hit one of those problem areas and dry out, and then it just builds up and up.
"It’s giving me a lot of work, so I’m not complaining, but it’s costing people a lot of money to get their drains cleared because of it."
He said it was becoming an increasingly common problem around the city.
Most of the blocked drains he had logged this year were caused by 3-ply.
"As soon as you put the camera in, you can say to the owner, ‘You use 3-ply, don’t you?"’
However, toilet paper was not the only thing blocking drains around the city.
"I’ve come across a few kids’ toys, like a dinky or a truck. I’ve even found a toy cow.
"It’s quite rare, but you definitely find them."
Mr Clark said 4-ply toilet paper was now on the market, which he believed would be even worse for Dunedin’s sewerage system — and possibly your backside.
"I wouldn’t recommend it.
"It would be pretty much like using handy towels, I reckon."
