The Sunshine Plumbing guide to blocked toilets, we answer your FAQ’s. Everything you need to know, and more.
If you need help with your blocked toilet, call now on 03 9311 9511.
Who do you call for a blocked toilet?
A plumber! At Sunshine Plumbing, we have extensive experience unblocking toilets. Call now to book 03 9311 9511.
Signs you have a blocked toilet
Some simple signs that indicate your toilet might be blocked:
- Water rising up in your toilet bowl and either not draining away, or draining away very slowly
- Gurgling or “plopping” noises coming from your toilet, shower or basin
- Overflow inside your house from the toilet, shower, floor waste drain or basin
- Overflow of water, toilet paper and sometimes poop from a gully trap or inspection point outside your house
What can I try to unblock my toilet before calling a plumber?
If you are brave you could purchase a plunger and try plunging it……..
What to do when your toilet blocks
Don’t keep using it.
Minimise use of showers, baths and washing machines. These use the same drain as your toilet.
If they are close to or on the same branch as your blocked toilet, doing laundry or having long showers may make the blockage or overflow worse.
Call your plumber and let them know you have an emergency. We cover the Western Suburbs and CBD of Melbourne, so if you’re in our area, call now on 03 9311 9511.
How soon can you come out to unblock our toilet?
Generally the same day, especially if you only have 1 toilet.
If the blockage is confined to 1 toilet and you have other toilets that are working OK, we may book you for the following day when we have other urgent jobs booked.
Can I use another toilet in the house if another one is blocked?
This will depend on whether the first blocked toilet is confined to the toilet bowl only, or the below ground drainage system.
If the blockage is confined to the bowl, it is generally OK to use another toilet.
If the blockage is in the below ground drainage system but on a separate branch, it might be OK to use another toilet.
Either way, keep a close eye on the blocked toilet!
What causes a blocked toilet?
There are a number reasons your toilet may become blocked:
- Foreign objects (sanitary products, wipes, kitty litter, wipes, continence aids) flushed down the toilet (you should only ever flush the 3 P’s – paper, pee and poo); even if a product says it’s flushable it may cause your drain to block (hello $1,600.00 bill for kitty litter blockage)
- Foreign objects accidentally (or sometimes on purpose) going down the toilet – most commonly toilet deodorisers, toys, glasses (hello pubs!), clothing (again, hello pubs)
- Too much toilet paper
- Inadequate flushing (have you ever pushed the button to flush the loo and walked off to notice that it barely flushed? Sometimes you need to hold the button down until the water stops flushing to prevent build up of toilet paper in the bowl)
- Poor fixture design combined with any of the above
- Aging below ground pipes and/or ground movement can cause cracks in drain and tree’s are thirsty! Tree roots look for water and can grow into your drain causing the drain to block
- Cracks in below ground drains can deteriorate over time causing the drain to collapse
- Poor installation
How do plumbers unblock toilets?
If confined to the bowl sometimes we can use a plunger to unblock the toilet.
If a toy or a deodorizer is lodged in the back of the bowl we try to manually remove it, sometimes we need to remove the toilet bowl to do so.
If the blockage is in the below ground we use a drain cleaning/sectional machine (sometimes referred to as a drain snake), good for up to 100mm diameter.
Jetting – where we have been unable to clean the drain using a standard drain cleaning (sometimes due to length, sometimes due to the nature of the blockage).
How do we tell whether the blockage is confined to the bowl or in the main drain (trade secret, if we tell you we’ll be forced to kill you 😉 … hello detective work)
Will a blocked toilet eventually unblock itself?
Sometimes, but we wouldn’t recommend the wait and see option. Human waste gets smelly!
The pressure in the drain can build up and the blockage can “let go” meaning the blockage will flush down the drain. Sometimes that can work in reverse (hello poonami inside your house), do you really want to risk it?
How to unclog a toilet when nothing works
Call a plumber! Worst case scenario is replacing some pipes either above or below ground.
Can you put drain cleaner in a toilet?
We don’t recommend it.
In a toilet, products that don’t work quickly on clogs can create a serious issue. The heat generated from the chemical reaction can not only burn your skin, but crack the porcelain of the toilet or soften the drainage pipes.
There are cases where your plumber can use a special acid to unblock a drain, but that is a product for your plumbing specialist to determine where the product can be used safely without causing damage to your home or injury to the people!
For bookings or emergencies, call now 03 9311 9511.
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About working with Sunshine Plumbing
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