I accidently flushed a Bic lighter down the toilet, is this going to create a clog? what will happen?

Answer 1

It shouldn't, but you can reach up in the trap and see if it is still in there.

Answer 2

The lighter could well get caught in the toilet before it goes in to the bigger drain.

If it is before the first bend you may be able to use a mirror (There are mirrors on a rod that swivel) to see & maybe you can fish it out.

If it is clear in the first bend The chances of it having passed through is better.

The lighter in the trap will let water pass but it will catch the paper & other stuff.
Try flushing toilet paper down the drain, do this several times

If the drain is a little plugged the water level in the bowl will go down slower & the level in the bottom of the bowl will be lower than in a normal flush. (In a normal flush the bowl starts to fill back up just before the flushing stops. When the drain is partly stopped up the draw of the water isn't as strong)

The thing is that the toilet may seem to be working OK but once in a while it will back up when things get caught around the lighter.

I unplug lots of toilets. I use a toilet auger and in most cases that pushes the obstruction through the toilet.

I hope that this in some small way is of help.

Answer 3

No it shouldn't - depending if it is already a bit clogged, but here is a plumber's tip !
take 25-30 sheets of toilet paper and put them in the bowl, fill 2 buckets of water (15-20l ea) pour the bucket quickly in the bowl, from 1m high then the second one. the reason of the exercice is to create a powerful flush (from 1 meter and in 3 seconds per bucket) the paper is used as prop to push everything down the drain - this work 95% of the time

Answer 4

a bic lighter is nothing. A G.I. Joe with the kung fu grip would be. I wouldn't even worry about it.

And someone tell Dalton that after a lighter goes down a toilet it gets really wet, and the odds of it ever causing a spark are worse than winning the Lottery. amateurs.......

Answer 5

was it a little one are big one. ether way it depends on what condition your toilet is in. i would try to retrieve it but if you cant then i would call a plumber to remove the toilet and get it out if it gets to far down the drain and the drains not in good shape it might cause a lot more problems then you want and right now it would be really easy to get out but if gets down the drain it will just make it harder to retrieve but chances are that it will just flush down the drain and you will have no problems it could go either way if your going to try and flush it down then flush the toilet a bunch of times to try and make it flow as far as possible im a plumber of 15 years and really theres no telling what would happen if it were my house id pull the toilet but i now how to do it if you hire a plumber id charge $150 to pull and reset your toilet good luck

Answer 6

I doubt it will, if it was going to cause a problem, most likely it would by now. You can however check the trap and see if it is still there. If it isnt, odds are you are ok, unless you decide to go ahead and flush all the other lighters you own down :P

Answer 7

Depends on the size of the throat of your toilet and the connecting pipes and bends. It will very likely make its way out of your home in short order with no noticeable problem.

Keep a plunger handy if you notice a backup.

Im really sure nothing will happen.

Answer 8

If it was going ot cause a problem then it probably would have by now. Since it hasn't, I would say you're all right. It'll wind up in the sewer. Good luck

Answer 9

you have got to be kidding me. if it brushes up against the inside of the pipe and causes a spark it will explode all the sewer gas and all of Manhattan will be demolished and you will be responsible. WHAT HAVE YOU DONE???