Toilet Is Clogged: How To Clean It At Home, What To Do To Remove The Clog Yourself

2024 Author: Bailey Albertson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 12:53

How to remove a clogged toilet: how and how to clean a clogged drain at home

The presence of a serviceable sewage system is one of the most important attributes of comfort. But, unfortunately, sometimes this system can fail due to blockages. This situation requires the adoption of immediate decisions aimed at eliminating the problem. In most cases, you can clean a clogged toilet yourself at home, without the involvement of professional plumbers, using simple and proven methods.

Content

• 1 What can clog the sewage system: the main reasons

  1.1 Can the toilet get clogged from toilet paper or a tampon

• 2 How to independently determine the location of the plug

• 3 Folk methods of removing blockage with your own hands

  • 3.1 A quick way to clean the drain with boiling water
  • 3.2 Soda will help eliminate simple blockages in the toilet
  • 3.3 Using baking soda, vinegar and boiling water
  • 3.4 A way to break through a toilet blockage with mustard
• 4 Chemicals for cleaning the plumbing system

• 5 Mechanical methods

  • 5.1 Cleaning with a plunger

    5.1.1 How to unclog a toilet bowl with a plastic bottle - video

  • 5.2 Dummy cleaning

  • 5.3 Rope cleaning

    5.3.1 How to use the cable correctly - video

  • 5.4 Cleaning the toilet bowl with plastic wrap

    • 5.4.1 How to remove a toilet blockage using tape - video
    • 5.4.2 Video: how to clear a blockage in the toilet using a specialized film
• 6 When to contact a professional
• 7 Prevention of blockages

What can clog the sewage system: the main reasons

You can face the problem of clogged sewer pipes at any time, because there are many reasons entailing such inconveniences. In most cases, a blockage can be caused by foreign objects, such as rags, diapers, feminine hygiene pads, and even children's toys, entering the toilet. However, sometimes the root of the problem lies in improper design and installation, as well as more global damage to the sewer system.

Toilet clogs can occur for a variety of reasons.

Such a blockage can be detected immediately after the system is put into operation, or it can make itself felt after some time. Salt buildup on pipe walls can be another common cause.

Over time, they are able to completely block the outflow of water, leading to an accident. It is sometimes very difficult to find the places of these blockages.

If the malfunction is the result of mistakes made in the design of the system, it is unlikely to be eliminated quickly. The reason for such a situation may be sagging pipes, in which zones of stagnation of water appear, their freezing, the use of poor-quality fasteners during installation, the presence of stagnation in the area of turns of pipes and adapters. Failure to comply with the parameters of pendants can also entail disastrous consequences.

Can toilet paper or tampon clog up the toilet

Nothing can be flushed into the sewer system, except for toilet paper, which simply dissolves in water. Everything else clogs the sewer passages.

Do not drain grease from pans into the toilet. They should be cleaned with a paper towel and thrown into the trash. Do not throw the sleeping tea leaves down the toilet, as it is worse than cement for sewer pipes.

It is not advised to throw construction waste into the sewer. This will completely lead to blockages in at least your home. Do not throw away leftover food as it can become stuck and clog pipes over time. And, of course, you cannot flush tights, diapers, feminine hygiene items (pads), contraception, plastic bags and other household items down the toilet.

How to independently determine the location of the traffic jam

To determine the location of the blockage, you should examine the sewer riser located in the kitchen and bathroom. It should be borne in mind that the blockage can be common. And if you live in an apartment building, it may not form at all through your fault. In a private house, when such a blockage occurs, the cause should be looked for on the street, at the place where the pipe exits into the cesspool or at the site where the local sewage system connects to the city.

To determine the location of the blockage, you need to study the sewerage system in your home.

The presence of a general blockage may be indicated by water that cannot be drained from the bathroom. If the water runs well when the kitchen is turned on and the toilet is flushed at the same time, the cause of the problem should be looked for in places of stagnation.

Do-it-yourself folk methods for removing blockage

In the event of an unexpected toilet blockage, many people prefer to act quickly and immediately, trying to fix the problem as soon as possible. In some cases, with a simple blockage caused by a small accumulation of deposits in the walls of the pipes, the following alternative methods, which have been tried out more than once in practice, can help.

A quick way to clean the drain with boiling water

The first method suggests cleaning the blockage using boiling water.

1. Boil a bucket of water.
2. Pour its contents into the toilet at a right angle, while acting as quickly as possible.
3. If the water starts to drain slowly, you should repeat the procedure several more times.

Such simple actions can rid the sewer system of simple blockages.

Boiling water will help remove a simple blockage

Soda will help to eliminate simple blockages in the toilet

The second method is to use baking soda.

1. Pour ½ pack of baking soda down the toilet.
2. After a few minutes, drain the water.

Soda, which is an active alkali, is able to dissolve simple blockages, ensuring the functionality of your plumbing

Soda will help get rid of minor blockages

Using baking soda, vinegar and boiling water

The third method is based on the use of soda, vinegar and boiling water.

1. Drain the toilet bowl, leaving a small amount at the drain.
2. Pour in ½ pack of baking soda, trying to push it deeper.
3. Pour a glass of vinegar 9% into the drain.
4. After 20 minutes, pour boiling water into the toilet bowl or simply flush the water.

A way to break through a toilet blockage with mustard

Another popular method to deal with such blockages is based on the use of mustard.

1. Heat 10 liters of water.
2. Place 5 teaspoons of mustard in hot water (1 teaspoon of mustard to 2 liters of water).
3. Pour the resulting composition into the toilet.
4. After a few minutes, drain the water.
5. Use the composition several times if necessary.

Chemicals for cleaning the plumbing system

Currently, a wide range of various chemicals designed to combat blockages in sewer systems are presented on store shelves.

Especially popular among such products are:

• Mole;
• Mister Muscle;
• Bagi Pothan;
• granular Flup;
• Tiret gel.

Before using these tools, it is recommended to study the instructions in detail, and also do not forget about your own safety measures. Many of them contain very aggressive substances that, if they come into contact with the skin and mucous membranes, can harm your health. For this reason, when working with them, it is necessary to use rubber gloves and thoroughly ventilate the room. To use their help, you need to take the following steps:

1. Pour the dose of the drug indicated in the instructions for it into the toilet bowl drain.
2. After a certain amount of time, wash off the substance with a powerful jet of water.

With the help of such purchased products, you can deal with blockages formed in the sewer system.

Mechanical methods

When removing a blockage in the sewage system caused by foreign objects entering the toilet bowl, mechanical methods that are distinguished by simplicity provide a good result.

Cleaning with a plunger

You can cope with a slight blockage using a plunger. Moreover, it must have a conical nozzle, the diameter of which is 10 cm.

1. Fill the toilet with water before starting work.
2. Install the plunger into the drain hole and, holding it by the wooden handle, make several clicks on this device.
3. Then, quickly pull the plunger out of the drain hole. Repeat this procedure several times if necessary.

With the help of a plunger, you can effectively deal with toilet blockages

If there is no plunger in the house, you can use an ordinary plastic bottle, from which you should cut off the bottom and act according to the same principle as when working with a regular plunger.

A plastic bottle can remove a toilet blockage

How to remove a blockage in the toilet with a plastic bottle - video

Doll cleaning

To remove the blockage, a homemade "doll" can come in handy, which is a cloth bag filled with sand and equipped with a long rope.

1. Lower the "doll" into the toilet drain, while holding the rope in your hands.
2. Click on the drain and wait for the water stream to carry the "doll" along.
3. Then remove the "doll" from the toilet by pulling on the string.

Due to its weight, the "doll" will be able to break through the blockage formed in the water seal.

Rope cleaning

To cope with a toilet blockage, you can use a specialized cable. This product features a rigid hollow shaft, flexibility and a handle that can rotate. At the end of the axis there is a spiraling process, which is attached to the cable itself with a flexible tube.

1. Lower the end of the cable into the toilet drain hole until it stops.
2. Rotating the handle of the device, slowly push the cable into the water seal.
3. After completing the procedure for breaking through the blockage, flush the system with hot water.

Working with a rope, you can break through the blockage formed in the sewer system

Similar actions can be performed using an ordinary cable purchased at a hardware store. In this case, it is important to choose the correct length and diameter of the cable.

How to use the cable correctly - video

Cleaning the toilet bowl with a film

There is another method that allows you to get rid of the blockage caused by foreign objects falling into the toilet. To use it, you need a wide tape.

1. Dry the circle of the toilet bowl.
2. Begin gluing the strips of tape on the circle, tightly connecting them together, to form a continuous film coating.
3. When the entire toilet is sealed, flush the water.
4. Pressing down firmly on the tape cover a few times will open the blockage.
5. When finished, remove the tape from the toilet seat.

How to remove a toilet blockage using tape - video

A specialized film created specifically for this purpose will also help to remove the blockage.

Video: how to clear a blockage in the toilet using a specialized film

When to contact a professional

If none of the above methods provided the desired result, it is advisable to contact professional companies specializing in solving such problems. Using modern equipment, experienced plumbers will be able to effectively deal with blockages of any complexity in a short period of time.

Turning to professionals will allow you to get rid of complex blockages of the sewer system

Blockage prevention

Various preventive measures will help prevent the occurrence of sewage blockages, which include:

• the use of plumbing is strictly for its intended purpose, excluding the ingress of foreign objects into it;
• cleaning pipes using specialized chemicals;
• weekly you need to carry out preventive cleaning - using a plunger or boiling water.

Using the presented methods, you can independently and quickly cope with simple blockages of the sewer system. However, in difficult situations, turning to professionals still makes sense. By regularly taking care of the functionality of your plumbing, by preventing blockages, you can avoid problems requiring the adoption of the measures described above.