Unlike the village hut with a latrine in the courtyard, the modern house has a warm bathroom inside the room, providing people with convenience and comfort. During operation, all sanitary devices periodically fail, and the worst nightmare of the owners is clogging the toilet. It is important to prevent the formation of traffic jams in the sewer, so you need to know if the toilet is clogged up, what to do at home.
Clogged toilet what to do at home. Main signs and causes
What are the first signs of this unpleasant phenomenon and is it possible to clean the toilet yourself without resorting to plumbing?
The occurrence of at least one of the following symptoms indicates that a blockage has occurred in the toilet drain pipe or in the sewer:
- appearance of persistent unpleasant odor;
- water goes down the drain very slowly or not at all;
- the appearance in the toilet feces from the sewer pipe.
What are the causes of clogging of the toilet and what to do if water does not go into the drain hole? Clogging the toilet can be a serious problem, so it is important to establish the sources of this phenomenon.
Plumbing specialists name the following factors leading to this clogging:
- improper installation of the drain pipe;
- violations in the operation of the toilet.
If the sewer pipe was laid in violation of technological standards, for example, with insufficient slope, then during the discharge there is a gradual accumulation of sediments in the pipe. Over time, this can lead to a blockage. In addition to the natural products of human life, water contains minerals, which are also deposited inside the pipe.
Another cause of obstruction in the sewage system is the lack of adequate ventilation.
Important! In order for the sewage system to work properly, air must necessarily flow into the riser pipe, otherwise the rate of discharge of fluid will decrease, which can also lead to the occurrence of a plug.
But the most common cause of clogging a toilet bowl is the improper use of it by a person. Without thinking about the consequences, households are poured into the toilet a variety of poorly soluble substances. The reason for the blockage is food waste with large parts, cat litter, large pieces of paper and the like that are thrown into the drain pipe. Sometimes the hostess accidentally together with dirty water can pour a floor cloth into the toilet.
About prevention to prevent clogging of the toilet bowl will be discussed below, and now we will consider the issue of self-removal of traffic jams in the drain pipe.
Before proceeding to cleaning the toilet, it is necessary to establish what caused the clogging, where it occurred and what its degree was. The choice of method and means of troubleshooting will depend on this.
Clogging can occur both in the sewer riser and locally in the toilet pipe. To determine the place of clogging, you need to check how the water in the bathroom or sink goes down the drain.
If a low rate of water discharge is noticed everywhere, then the problem is concentrated in the riser and it is most likely that it will not succeed in cleaning the sewage system.
In that case, if the water in both plumbing points leaves as usual, then the sewer riser is in order and the toilet is clogged. What to do at home in this case, and whether it is possible to deal with this problem yourself?
There are several methods for cleaning the toilet sewer:
- chemical – using special chemicals;
- folk – with the help of home remedies;
- mechanical – with the help of plumbing tools.
When clogging the toilet, what to do first? First you need to determine the degree of blockage. If the water goes to the sewer system, albeit slowly, then the level of clogging with garbage can be designated as small.
If you suspect that hard, sparingly soluble objects have fallen into the drain pipe, for example, there has been a clogging of the toilet bowl with paper or a floor cloth, you should try to remove it from there directly by hand. This procedure may be the fastest and most effective. First of all, you need to protect yourself, wearing rubber gloves on your hands and, possibly, close your nose with a gauze bandage. Then run the hand into the drain hole and find the cause of the blockage. A rag and large garbage are easily pulled out of the pipe by hand.
If the blockage is not connected with a stopper made of solid objects, then you can clean the toilet drain pipe with special chemicals.
The most common means of cleaning the toilet are “Mole”, “Tiret”, “Flup” and other known chemicals for cleaning sewer pipes. It is necessary to use these drugs in strict accordance with the instructions.
Important! While cleaning the toilet bowl, do not use several different household chemicals at the same time, they can react and only worsen the situation.
After the elimination of the blockage by a chemical method, it is necessary to thoroughly flush the toilet drain pipe with several liters of water.
For those who prefer to use aggressive chemistry in their homes as rarely as possible, there is an alternative method for removing blockages. If the toilet is clogged, how to clean at home, without resorting to popular chemicals? The simplest folk remedy for cleaning sewer pipes is baking soda. Half a pack of ordinary kitchen soda should be dissolved in the water of the toilet bowl, mix well and wait a little. With a small blockage, this active alkali will dissolve the deposits inside the drain pipe and clean the toilet.
If the clogging of the toilet with chemical or folk remedies fails, you can use one of the options for mechanical cleaning.
Very often, the owners throw into the toilet various small particles, such as cat litter, which also leads to clogging of the toilet. If there is a clogging of the toilet bowl with cat litter that has formed a cork, then you can punch through this congestion. This plumbing tool must be put on the drain hole and vigorously “bleed” by pressing the handle. The diameter of the plunger must be greater than the diameter of the drain hole, so that its rubber part completely covers the toilet drain. The created pressure drop in the pipe will either push the garbage out or drain it down the drain.
Helpful advice! For greater efficiency of cleaning with a plunger, it is advisable to close the drain holes in all plumbing points, including the upper drain hole in the bathroom.
A more complicated clogging in the sewer pipe of a toilet bowl can be cleaned with the help of an improvised tool called plumber “doll”. A small bag filled with sand and tightly tied with a rope. Then the bag, together with the sink, is sharply lowered into the hole in the toilet bowl, with a weight knocking out the stopper and cleaning the pipe. This method is especially effective when littering the toilet with toilet paper. After punching, the “doll” is pulled out of the drain hole, and the toilet is well washed.
Serious clogging of the toilet can be eliminated with a plumbing cable. This tool serves to mechanically eliminate the blockage and is a thick and long metal wire with a handle on the end. Lowering the end of the cable into the sewer of the toilet and, slowly turning the handle, push it further into the pipe. Gradually the cable will reach the cork and push it through. This procedure must be repeated several times to achieve the maximum effect.
Important! All methods, including mechanical, at the end suggest a thorough flushing of the toilet bowl and drain pipe with plenty of water with the addition of soda or special detergents.
In order for the toilet to function properly, you must follow certain rules for the operation of this plumbing point and periodically carry out preventive procedures.
Most often, the causes of clogging of the toilet are all kinds of products of human activity.
Important! Large and solid food waste, insoluble fillers, toilet paper, spoiled fruit, vegetables and other foreign objects should not be thrown into the toilet!
Before pouring fermented pickled tomatoes or sour soup into the toilet, you need to drain the liquid into a separate dish, and throw the solid parts into the trash. After that, the liquid can be poured into the toilet. In order to avoid clogging of the sewage system, used cat litter should be collected in a separate bag and taken to the garbage (or disposed of in another way, for example, by fertilizing the soil).
Helpful advice! About once every three months, the toilet must be treated with special means against the occurrence of salt deposits.
These drugs are available for sale in specialized departments of supermarkets. According to the instructions, the cleaner is poured into the drain pipe and left overnight. In the morning the toilet is flushed with plenty of water.
One of the mandatory preventive procedures is hygiene of the toilet. For cleaning a toilet bowl various liquid and powdery means, with addition of disinfectants, and the special brush are used. You can also clean the surface of the toilet bowl with ordinary soda and vinegar. With proper operation, this comfort zone will regularly serve for many years.
