Welcome to this week’s episode of “How NOT to Call the Plumber!”.
This week, we’re going to talk about 4 different ways to try to unclog your toilet using every day household items. Toilet clogs seem to happen at the most inopportune times. Let’s see what we can do about it!
As we said before, a toilet clog is inevitably going to happen at the worst time. Maybe it’s an hour before you are having people over for dinner, just as you are about to go away for a week, or right in the middle of the holidays! Try these 4 steps before having to call in a pro to take care of it for you.
1. Old Fashioned Plunging
The one we all know best, the plunger, is still the best way of pushing that clog through the toilet; it just takes a bit of elbow grease! First, remove some of the water from the toilet bowl so it doesn’t overflow while you’re working. Next, place the plunger directly down into the opening of the toilet and start working it up and down, keeping a good seal with the toilet. If this doesn’t work after 5-10 minutes, its very unlikely that it will work at all, so you’re best to move on.
2. Dish Soap and Hot Water
Yes, you read that right. Dish soap with hot water can help “smooth the way” for the clog. To try this, remove most of the water from the toilet bowl, then pour in some liquid dish soap. Fill up a bucket of hot water (not boiling) and slowly pour the water into the toilet. Let the soapy water sit there for about 20-30 minutes, then try to add some more water for the flush. *Be careful with this method. Adding hot water to the toilet has the potential to cause it to crack, so try this at your own risk!
3. Baking Soda and Vinegar
Yup, here we go again! Just like your Grade 3 science experiment, a combination of baking soda and vinegar can help to remove clogs from not only a toilet, but kitchen and bathroom sinks as well. For toilets, again remove about half of the water from the bowl to allow for the chemical reaction that will take place. Then add about 1 cup of baking soda and 2 cups of vinegar to the toilet. Leave this for about 20-30 minutes before trying to add more water to the toilet to see if it will flush.
4. DIY Toilet Snake
If you don’t have a toilet auger (as most of you won’t), you can try to make one yourself using a simple wire coat hanger. Put on some gloves, unwind the hanger, then start to push it through the toilet (or better yet, call your spouse to do all of this). Be aware that this may cause some visible scratching in the bowl of the toilet. Once you’ve pushed it through, work it back and forth to try to break up the clog. When you feel satisfied you’ve done it enough, try to pour some water down the toilet and see if the clog clears!
That’s all for this week! I hope you all learned something once again. See you next time! 😊