You know the story all too well. You flush the toilet, and instead of the comforting audible whoosh of the water rushing down the toilet’s cavern, taking everything with it in one fell swoop, there’s just a faint gurgle. Not only is the water not going down, it’s actually on the rise.
A frightening, disturbing vision of a revolting waterfall running over the toilet lip, down the sides, and all over the entire bathroom floor enters your mind. No, this cannot happen. Embarrassing, yes. Even worse, you have to figure out how to fix it.
You hesitantly grab the plunger and begin the painstaking, horrifying task of suctioning out whatever is lodged in the unseen black hole beneath the surface.
If you’re going to attempt plunging yourself, use our handy guide to step you through:
- To minimize water damage, as well as to keep your bathroom clean, wipe any excess water from the floor.
- Wearing durable rubber gloves, scoop out as much water as you can from the basin using a small bucket or cup.
- Place the plunger over the drain hole in the basin at the bottom of the toilet bowl. Push down on the plunger and pull up with a gentle force, repeating this several times. You should see the clog start to break up.
- Now try flushing the toilet. With any luck the water will get sucked down as it’s supposed to – problem solved.
If you don’t have a plunger or want to try a different method, you can do it naturally with baking soda and vinegar. Innocent enough on their own, when you combine these two common household products they erupt into a bubbling mini volcano. The fizzing action can actually unclog a toilet. Sprinkle a cup of baking soda into the toilet, followed by a cup of vinegar. Wait a couple of minutes, and follow up with a cup of hot water (boiling is even better). After the fizzing begins wait a couple of minutes and pour in some warm water.
One last resort would be trying a toilet snake. Most of us don’t have a toilet snake lying around the house, but in case you do, and you feel confident using one, give it a try. Feeding this long flexible cable into the toilet drain that has an auger-type head might dislodge the clog.
When all of these attempts prove to useless, it’s time to call the expert plumbers at Outstanding Plumbing. Although it’s rare, there are cases when a clogged toilet is caused by a problem further down the drain system. We can get to pipes and places you can’t because we have the skill, experience, and proper tools. We will non-invasively determine where the clog is and eliminate it fast and cost-effectively.
If you’re not experiencing a clog, but have other issues such as running or leaking toilets, broken tanks and bowls, and toilets that just don’t flush properly, our professionals can help with that as well.