What's the weirdest thing you've ever found in a porta potty during service?

Question

Ten years on the vacuum truck, and I've pulled some strange things out of holding tanks. Last week, a full set of car keys, still on the ring. Before that, a hard hat with a name tag, perfectly clean. The weirdest had to be a brand new pair of work boots, laces tied together, sitting at the bottom of a standard unit on a muddy construction site. That unit was serviced weekly, truck access was fine, but someone decided it was a good place to stash boots. Makes you wonder what goes through people's heads. What's the strangest item you've fished out during a service visit? Any stories from a deluxe unit or a restroom trailer that top a pair of boots?

Sam O. · Answer

The weirdest thing I've found was a full, sealed bottle of champagne in a standard unit on New Year's Eve. It was sitting right on top of the waste, completely dry and unopened. I serviced that unit weekly for a construction crew of about 30 workers under OSHA 1926.51, which requires one toilet for 20 or fewer workers, so they were well within compliance. The unit was placed on level ground with good truck access, but someone clearly decided a porta potty was the best hiding spot for party supplies. I've also fished out a smartphone from a deluxe unit with a flushing toilet and sink, somehow it survived the holding tank and was still working after we dried it off. Restroom trailers usually have less bizarre finds, but I once had to retrieve a wedding ring from the gray water tank of one. People treat these units like lost and found boxes, but with much worse consequences.

What's the weirdest thing you've ever found in a porta potty during service?

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