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So you have a toilet repair job . This is the place to get answers to your questions.
Toilet repair. Words that strike fear in the heart of every homeowner. Be afraid, be very afraid. NOT! How many of you have had fix a clogged toilet? Everyone, right? Well it’s actually very simple to fix and all you usually need is a plunger. First assess the situation, then formulate a plan, then fix it. Simple. The actual drain design looks sort of like an upside down letter U. This is where most clogs happen because the water stops and the drain is dry or the contents are too large to pass through the drain pipe.
• Assess the toilet repair situation simply means looking at it from a short distance not too close though to see if it’s because of a natural material ;-) or a foreign object like a Bakugan toy. If it’s natural then it’s really easy. If it’s foreign ask the perpetrator what it is. More later.
• Get your plunger or go to the store and buy one. The red or black style is fine although the black one is designed for toilets.
• Make sure there is enough water in the toilet to plunge it through. If the bowl is almost empty then add enough to fill the bowl halfway.
• Take your plunger and put the rubber end into the bowl covering up the drain hole at the bottom. Try to make a tight seal over the hole with the plunger and make two or three quick, forceful pushes. Pull the plunger away from the hole and see if the water drains out. If it does then flush the toilet and rinse your plunger in the clean water and put away for the next time doody calls.
• If it does not drain repeat steps above and maybe try a few more pushes. Always make sure there is enough water in the bowl as this helps with the suction of the plunger. Keep plunging until the clog is freed as sometimes it just takes some time to break up the obstacle.
• If by chance this does not clear the drain you may have to use a plumbing snake for your toilet repair. More on that later.
If you have a foreign object in your toilet repair situation you may well have to use your hands to get it out, gross I know but at least the water’s clean, I hope. Typically you can just reach down the drain and pull the object out, clean it off and get back to whatever it is you were doing before the call came in.
Sometimes it may be too stuck to get it out so you’ll either have to force it through or use a plumbing snake to break it up and flush it through. Most rental companies rent plumbing snakes by the hour for a small fee. Be careful if you decide to force it through with a plunger because it could get stuck further down in the drain and then you’ll definitely have to get a snake or call a professional which means more money than a plunger or a snake rental.
The tool rental company should show you how to use the snake but here’s a brief description. The snake looks like a fishing rod and reel on steroids with a large dangerous looking hook coming out of the business end, a crank on the other end and a spool to hold the snake itself.
First let out some snake and insert it into the drain hole then turn the crank while feeding more snake into the drain. The turning snake grabs the object and then you can pull it out. It may take several tries but this method is almost always effective. When you’re finished with your toilet repair, clean off the snake and return it for your deposit.
Let's leave the toilet repair page and go back to the home repair page.
Last but very important. Call a meeting of the users and warn them to not put stuff in the toilet or be kind and use a courtesy flush, a “first” flush before any paper is added to the bowl.