Help!!! What can I do about a toilet overflowing when there is nothing in to obstruct it??

Question

I called a plumber who used a plunger and acid to clear it, two days later, I flushed it with only a kleenex in it and it overflowed again. So, the plumber is telling me to plunger it, but there's got to be some other problem. any suggestions?

Answer 1

I agree with most people here on using a good snake to clear the pipes out. Before you do that you may want to try this. It sounds like it will never work but it really does... Get a bottle of Dawn Dish-washing Soap. squirt about 5 good size drops of the liquid detergent into the toilet. let it just sit in the water for about 10 to 15 minutes. After the few minutes, you will return to see the clog has been dis-lodged. You may have to do some light plunging to get things really cleared out, but the grease cutting action of the Dawn Dish soap will do the hard work of loosening things up for you. I never thought it would work until I had a stubborn clog in a basement toilet... I tried the Dawn, and it worked.

I wish you much luck in getting things un-stuck!
And don't forget, fixing a toilet can sometimes be a really crappy job!

Answer 2

There's a valve at the bottom left of most toilets (maybe the bottom right of others) that you can turn to the right to stop the water flow. It will stop the toilet from overflowing. If the plumber says to plunge it, plunge it then. When I first started plunging weak university toilets (back when I lived on residence), it took some time to get used to. Get a good plunger and plunge so that the shaft of the plunger is absolutely vertical. Just keep moving it up and down. The thing that plugged your toilet is probably further inside the pipe, so the suction from the plunger should eventually move it.

Also, you should pour tons of hot water in there. That will break apart the feces and the toilet paper, so that your poo may flush more easily. Plunge with the hot water.

Answer 3

Your problem is deeper than a plunger or acid. Its time to run a snake (Roto-Rooter) through the lines. Call a plumber who knows what he's talking about.

Answer 4

The drain pipe is probably so built up with debris that it needs to be "snaked" by a plumber or someone familiar with using one. I would arrange for a plumber to come over and make an assessment and get it fixed in one visit.

Answer 5

The option to use acid depends on the quality of the pipe as well as the material used. Some materials are corroded of by the acid.

There are special drain clearning agents. They usually help with small clogging.

In your case it seems you need to redo the pipe from your toilet to the main sewage pipe.

You could also try hosing in water at high pressure. Put the hose in the drain. Wrap the remaining space with cloth.

Answer 6

Either find a plumber that knows how to do their job, or you can try some things yourself. You can go to any Sears store and get a plumbing snake and use that to try to clear anything in there. Pick one with a head on it that is larger than the shaft and has a nice spiral to it. The hardware store associates can help show you how to use it

Answer 7

Check the pipes, maybe there's something else wrong somehow further along the septic system. Also check the tank in the back, sometimes the little rubber flapper thing gets stuck and then the bowl keeps filling. Make sure there's nothing going on back there either.

Answer 8

your sewer line can have roots from shrubs or trees growing into it causing a major problem. I would get another plumber to check it out. Look for a company that has a CCTV that can be fed down the drain to see where the problem lies.

Answer 9

The waste line needs to be snaked. Your plumber was a lazy jerk - pick another.

Answer 10

there can't be any other problem. probably there is something blocking the pipe. you just have to get a long solid iron cable and stick it into the toilet as deep as you can get it. Try using hand gloves, because you'll get your hands dirty...