5 Ways to Unclog a Toilet

Tried and True: Use a Plunger

It's not very high-tech, but a plunger remains your best first option when faced with a clogged toilet. The key here is to use the right kind of plunger for the job. You'll want to use a toilet plunger versus a sink plunger. These plungers have a bell shape with a cylindrical sleeve coming out of the bottom. This sleeve fits into the drain hole of the toilet bowl while the surrounding rubber cup forms a tight seal. (Sink plungers lack this sleeve and won't be as effective.)

To get the job done, make sure there is at least enough water in the bowl to cover the drain hole, then angle the plunger so that the sleeve extends into the hole. Using short, sharp, strong strokes, move the plunger up and down several times. Remove it from the bowl and flush. Repeat if necessary.

Snake It!

Sometimes plunging is simply not effective when trying to unclog the toilet, so you may want to have a go with a snake. This device is a long semi-rigid coil of wire that has a corkscrew-style tip on the end. There’s a range of toilet snakes to choose from, but your best bet is one called a closet or toilet auger, which is a bit more heavy-duty and designed specifically for getting around the twists and turns in a toilet bowl.

To use it, insert the tip of the auger into the drain hole and crank the handle in a clockwise direction. Eventually, you should feel the tip of the auger stop working its way down the toilet, which means you have found the clog. At this point, push the auger forward and back a few times until you feel the clog break up. Then, rewind the auger and flush the toilet.

Get the Hang of It

If you don't have a snake or auger on hand, you can get much the same result by unwinding a simple wire hanger. You can leave the curved part of the hanger intact to act as a hook, but you may want to cover it with a bit of electrical tape or duct tape to protect your toilet's porcelain surface. Feed the unwound hanger hook end first down the drain and when you hit the clog, work it back and forth to clear. Use rubber gloves to keep your hands clean.

Brush Bonus: In a pinch, you can try using your toilet bowl brush to work the clog free. The brush will have a harder time handling the curves of the bowl and won't extend as far as a snake or hanger, but if the clog is relatively close to the opening of the drain hole at the bowl, it might just do the trick. You'll definitely want to wear long rubber gloves for this procedure as you'll need to reach pretty far down for the best chance of success.

Soap Up

If mechanical methods of removing your clog fail (or if you don't have the tools you need to execute them), you might want to try chemical methods. The easiest way to try this out is to squirt about 1/4 cup of liquid dish detergent into the bowl. Let it sit for about 15 minutes so that it has a chance to travel through the water and into the drain, where it will hopefully surround the clog and lubricate it. Follow this up with a pot of very hot water that's just below the boiling point, and the clog should rinse free.

Make A Clog-Clearing Recipe

Your kitchen can be the source of more clog-busting help in the form of the tried-and-true duo of vinegar and baking soda. Because this creates a fizzy reaction, you may want to remove some water if your toilet bowl is filled to the rim, or at least put some old towels around the base to catch any spillover. Then put one cup of baking soda and one cup of vinegar in the bowl and let it go to work for about a half hour. Follow up with piping-hot water, and hopefully, the clog will have dissolved enough for you to get back to flushing success.

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How to Fix a Blocked Toilet

It's rare that anybody makes it through life without encountering a blocked toilet at one time or another. Whether it's our own unfortunate doing, the aftermath of a party, a reminder of an inconsiderate guest or the result of a child deciding to use the toilet to store their toys, eventually a toilet will fail to empty when it's flushed. A blocked toilet is a major inconvenience, especially if it's the only toilet on your property, and needs rectifying before it becomes an unhygienic embarrassment. Fortunately, if you've been wondering how to fix a blocked toilet, it's a straightforward process that should only require a couple of tools and a few minutes of your time.

Don't Flush

The first and most important thing to remember when you're trying to unblock a toilet is to not flush it. It can be tempting to flush again in the hope that the added water pressure might dislodge the blockage, however you're more likely to end up flooding your bathroom, especially if the blockage is completely watertight. In these cases, there's only one way for water to escape the toilet pan and it isn't where you want it to go. Hopefully, any water from your initial flush will eventually drain past the blockage and you can begin trying to clear it.

Shut Off Water Supply

You might not need to shut off the water supply to the toilet but it's a worthwhile precaution, especially if water is running into an already full toilet pan. There should be a stop valve on the pipe that supplies water to your toilet, typically to the left as you face it. Older pipes might require a flathead screwdriver to shut, while many modern pipes have a built-in handle to make your task easier. In either case, you'll need to twist the valve 90 degrees in order to shut off the toilet's water supply, letting you complete the rest of your task with confidence.

Prepare the Area

While your bathroom floor is likely waterproof, whether it's tiled or covered in another watertight material, you probably don't want to spend any time cleaning up the contents of your toilet. With this in mind, it's worth taking a few minutes to prepare the area around your toilet to prevent a more extensive clean-up. This can be as simple as placing some old newspapers or unwanted towels around the base of your toilet to catch and absorb any water that might escape, especially if you have a total blockage and a pan full of water.

Wear Rubber Gloves

Ideally, you won't need to submerge your hands in anything too unpleasant but it's worth protecting them in any case. Any pair of long rubber gloves will do the job; just be sure that there aren't any holes, given the nasty germs you could be dealing with. If you take gloves from your kitchen, you'll want to keep them separate and use them exclusively for toilet cleaning, to avoid spreading germs.

Attempt Removal

Before heading to your nearest DIY shop, check whether or not you can see the blockage and, if so, attempt to dislodge or remove it. A toilet brush might be able to break up the blockage well enough that it can pass through the plumbing system. If you're reading this article, however, you've likely already used your brush to little effect. A stick can offer a stiffer solution but make sure you use something that won't damage the finish of your toilet, an old wooden broom handle is ideal, and be prepared to dispose of this item when you're done. If the forceful approach doesn't work, you'll need to use plumbing tools instead.

Plunger

One of the best ways to dislodge a toilet blockage is to use a plunger. For this task, you'll want to use a toilet plunger, as opposed to a traditional semicircular sink plunger (the familiar Dalek arm); toilet plungers feature an extension collar, a long piece that can be pushed further into the siphon to create much greater suction. Press your plunger on the siphon and begin gently plunging; don't use too much force initially as the vacuum effect might spray filthy water over the surrounding area (including you). Ideally, your plunger should be entirely underwater, as this will help create a seal around its edge and the water itself will create more pressure when pushed towards the blockage.

Plumbing Snake

If your trusty plunger fails to shift the blockage, the best alternative is to use a plumbing snake, also known as a drain snake or plumbing auger. This long tool features a coiled end that is designed to grab or pierce anything it encounters in your pipes and can be found at most DIY stores, as well as some larger supermarkets. A snake can help in situations where a blockage is further into your pipes, especially an incomplete blockage which might not be moved by plunging. Your first goal is to push the auger down the toilet and around the S-bend; hopefully, you won't have to push it too far before encountering the blockage. Try to push the end through the blockage to break it apart. If this doesn't work, pull it back and the coiled end might snag the blockage, bringing it back into the toilet pan where you can remove it.

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WHAT TO DO WHEN YOUR TOILET WON’T UNCLOG

We rarely think about toilets until something goes wrong. When our toilet malfunctions or clogs, it can be more than a minor inconvenience, especially if we don’t have a plunger. Keep in mind that a severely blocked toilet could interrupt your household completely.

Although clearing the blockage is frequently as simple as plunging the drain, you might need to run an auger through your plumbing.

Moreover, some clogs might be far down the pipe or extremely hard to remove that you’ll require services from Air America. Fortunately, these tips will help you unclog your toilet.

Plunger

While this tool might appear basic, it remains the best way of unclogging a toilet. We recommend all households to have this tool and preferably one with a flange because they work best to unblock toilets.

When using this tool, you need to place the plunger in the toilet bowl and push it down gently. The first push is simply to eliminate the air. Take care not to push forcefully, otherwise; you might splash dirty water on yourself.

Once you have a good seal, pump the plunger down and up forcefully while sustaining the seal. Finally, pull the tool up sharply while breaking the air seal. You’ll notice the water rushing down the drain. If this hasn’t fixed the blockage, repeat the steps until the clog loosens.

Vinegar and Baking Soda

When your toilet won’t flush and you don’t have a plunger, you can turn to non-toxic household cleaning aids: vinegar and baking soda. You probably know that vinegar and baking soda are great at cleaning numerous surfaces, function as great deodorizers, and are helpful in keeping our drains running smoothly.

However, these household cleaners also work when you need to fix a blocked toilet if you don’t have a plunger. We recommend you add a cup of baking soda to your blocked toilet and wait for some minutes. Next, pour two cups of vinegar slowly into the toilet.

Vinegar and baking soda will typically react to form bubbles, so ensure you pour carefully and slowly to prevent the toilet water from overflowing or splashing. Allow the baking soda and vinegar mixture to work for a couple of minutes.

You’ll need to flush your toilet to establish whether the clog has cleared. You might need to repeat the process until the clog clears. The clog will clear when your toilet makes a fast suction sound and drains naturally thereafter.

Hot Water and Dish Soap

Heat up a gallon of hot water on the stove and pour some dish soap into your toilet while the water is heating up. When the water is extremely hot, but not boiling, pour into the toilet carefully. Wait for 10-15 minutes while the dish soap and hot water soften the clog.

Once you do so, the toilet will unclog and flush freely. Alternatively, you could use hot water and shampoo from the sink if you wish to clear your toilet without leaving your bathroom.

Household Bleach

Similar to soap, household bleach helps break down the waste. The procedure resembles the one that involves dish soap. Simply replace the solid or liquid dishwashing soap with 2-3 cups of bleach. After one or two minutes, pour one cup of powdered soap. Wait 10-15 minutes and flush your toilet. You’ll discover this approach is more efficient for a very clogged toilet.

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