Annoying Toilet
October 31, 2022 2:53 PM Subscribe
I moved recently and my toilet is annoying. I have to hold down the handle a bit to flush it. It has also clogged twice when there really has been no reason for it to clog.
My landlord told me the toilet is a 1.6 gallon flush 3 year old toilet and that there's nothing wrong with it. However, I have had to have his plumber come out twice to (successfully) unclog it. I guess my question is twofold--is there actually something wrong with the toilet? I'm tempted to say yes since I have to hold the handle down a bit to flush, but clearly he says no. Also, I do have a plunger but I think I'm doing it wrong. :( I push down and pull up but nothing happens. Can you give me an explanation for a total novice about how to plunge a toilet? I have a plunger like this.
I have read several past questions about this topic which have proved a bit helpful.
My landlord told me the toilet is a 1.6 gallon flush 3 year old toilet and that there's nothing wrong with it. However, I have had to have his plumber come out twice to (successfully) unclog it. I guess my question is twofold--is there actually something wrong with the toilet? I'm tempted to say yes since I have to hold the handle down a bit to flush, but clearly he says no. Also, I do have a plunger but I think I'm doing it wrong. :( I push down and pull up but nothing happens. Can you give me an explanation for a total novice about how to plunge a toilet? I have a plunger like this.
I have read several past questions about this topic which have proved a bit helpful.
First of all, a good toilet in good condition with good drainage does not need to be plunged except once in a blue moon. Yearly, maybe. We have a toilet plunger (the acorn shaped kind, for toilets, not the trumpet-shaped one, which is for sinks) but it gathers dust. There used to be very poor quality low-flow toilets, but now basically every toilet is low flow, and toilets still flush pretty well.
Test your toilet by getting a small bucket with a couple gallons of water in it. Making sure the toilet is empty of waste, pour the contents of the bucket into the bowl. If the toilet flushes and the water promptly evacuates the bowl, then your drainage is good. If it's slow, the drain may need to be snaked. We had toilets that had to have the handle held down and it turned out to be internal mineral deposits between the tank and the inlet to the bowl. 3 years is quick for that to happen, but are there a bunch of minerals on your showerhead? You can also take a dental or makeup mirror and point it at the inlet to see if there's a buildup.
posted by wnissen at 3:05 PM on October 31, 2022
Test your toilet by getting a small bucket with a couple gallons of water in it. Making sure the toilet is empty of waste, pour the contents of the bucket into the bowl. If the toilet flushes and the water promptly evacuates the bowl, then your drainage is good. If it's slow, the drain may need to be snaked. We had toilets that had to have the handle held down and it turned out to be internal mineral deposits between the tank and the inlet to the bowl. 3 years is quick for that to happen, but are there a bunch of minerals on your showerhead? You can also take a dental or makeup mirror and point it at the inlet to see if there's a buildup.
posted by wnissen at 3:05 PM on October 31, 2022
When I plunge, I think of making a seal with the plunger around the toilet's shithole. Then, moving the plunger up and down (aggressively!) would cause air and water and whatever else is down there to move back and forth, pushing on the clog until it goes away. So I recommend you try that: make a seal, then plunge hard.
posted by entropone at 3:05 PM on October 31, 2022
posted by entropone at 3:05 PM on October 31, 2022
Response by poster: wnissen do I have the acorn-shaped plunger?
So should I push back on my landlord and ask him to further inspect the toilet? I have a feeling he won't. :(
posted by bookworm4125 at 3:09 PM on October 31, 2022
So should I push back on my landlord and ask him to further inspect the toilet? I have a feeling he won't. :(
posted by bookworm4125 at 3:09 PM on October 31, 2022
I don't know about the flush issue, but you shouldn't really ever have to use a plunger on your toilet. it sounds like there is a partial blockage further down the pipe that's causing the toilet to back up sometimes. Try wnissen's idea of pouring a bucket of water down the toilet and see if it drains quickly. If it doesn't, you need a plumber to clear out the drain.
posted by dg at 3:33 PM on October 31, 2022
posted by dg at 3:33 PM on October 31, 2022
I really like the accordion style of plunger, it seems to move more water per plunge than an acorn type.
posted by Marky at 3:41 PM on October 31, 2022
posted by Marky at 3:41 PM on October 31, 2022
It's possible there's corrosion around the incoming water valve. This blocks the water flow and water pressure such that even though the tank may fill, the tornadic force of water of the water used in the flush (vs. the tank refill) isn't great enough to push things all the way through.
Check where the pipe comes out of the wall. Is there greenish or whitish buildup visible (like the photo on this page)? If so, that might be the (an) issue.
posted by cocoagirl at 3:41 PM on October 31, 2022
Check where the pipe comes out of the wall. Is there greenish or whitish buildup visible (like the photo on this page)? If so, that might be the (an) issue.
posted by cocoagirl at 3:41 PM on October 31, 2022
Yeah, it sounds like you need to snake your stack, not your toilet.
We did that years ago, and found a bunch of old carpet scraps in it? Solved all our plumbing problems in one go, and added one item to the list of reasons I hate my former homeowner.
posted by mhoye at 4:00 PM on October 31, 2022 [4 favorites]
We did that years ago, and found a bunch of old carpet scraps in it? Solved all our plumbing problems in one go, and added one item to the list of reasons I hate my former homeowner.
posted by mhoye at 4:00 PM on October 31, 2022 [4 favorites]
Yes, the site you linked to is a toilet plunger, acorn-style. You have the right tool, but I agree with others that it shouldn’t be this hard to flush and there is a non-plunger addressable problem.
In terms of bad landlords, mine has a preferred handyman who isn’t super great at plumbing (your story sounds a lot like our guy). I have had good luck with by waiting for the handyman guy to go on vacation, then contacting my landlord about the problem, and making it be something that can’t wait, like the sink won’t drain, the toilet is running continuously, or the shower is not draining. My landlord then hires a real plumber, who will diagnose the problem (respectively: tree roots in the outflow pipes under the house, needed a new sealing ring, tree roots again).
posted by holyrood at 4:09 PM on October 31, 2022
In terms of bad landlords, mine has a preferred handyman who isn’t super great at plumbing (your story sounds a lot like our guy). I have had good luck with by waiting for the handyman guy to go on vacation, then contacting my landlord about the problem, and making it be something that can’t wait, like the sink won’t drain, the toilet is running continuously, or the shower is not draining. My landlord then hires a real plumber, who will diagnose the problem (respectively: tree roots in the outflow pipes under the house, needed a new sealing ring, tree roots again).
posted by holyrood at 4:09 PM on October 31, 2022
Can you give me an explanation for a total novice about how to plunge a toilet? I have a plunger like this.
That's the right plunger. I like to have water in the toilet (usually not a problem). I tip the plunger so the bell is around 2/3rds full of water. Then get the bell positioned to seal against the bottom of the toilet as much as possible. Proceed to plunge by moving the handle in and then out 1-2". You want to maintain the seal between plunger and toilet and you don't want your stroke so long that the handle gets inverted in the bell (you'll know what I mean if it happens).
Have a couple rag towels spread around and be wearing something you don't mind getting "water" on. Personally I always seem to end up getting some splash back so I just get ready for a shower and then step right in once things are moving.
When I was having problems with always having to plunge the toilet I also was getting scum building up rapidly below the water line. Turned out the large hole at the bottom front of the bowl was partially obstructed with a calcium? build up. Which is pretty weird cause our water isn't hard but since cleaning the hole no more plunging and the water stays clear with no scum build up.
posted by Mitheral at 7:00 PM on October 31, 2022 [1 favorite]
That's the right plunger. I like to have water in the toilet (usually not a problem). I tip the plunger so the bell is around 2/3rds full of water. Then get the bell positioned to seal against the bottom of the toilet as much as possible. Proceed to plunge by moving the handle in and then out 1-2". You want to maintain the seal between plunger and toilet and you don't want your stroke so long that the handle gets inverted in the bell (you'll know what I mean if it happens).
Have a couple rag towels spread around and be wearing something you don't mind getting "water" on. Personally I always seem to end up getting some splash back so I just get ready for a shower and then step right in once things are moving.
When I was having problems with always having to plunge the toilet I also was getting scum building up rapidly below the water line. Turned out the large hole at the bottom front of the bowl was partially obstructed with a calcium? build up. Which is pretty weird cause our water isn't hard but since cleaning the hole no more plunging and the water stays clear with no scum build up.
posted by Mitheral at 7:00 PM on October 31, 2022 [1 favorite]
My apartment has terrible toilets/plumbing, and they clog at least weekly. So, here's more detail than I ever expected to type out about how I deal with the problem.
Mitheral's step of filling the plunger bell with water was the key for me. I wish I'd known this when I moved into my first apartment, rather than figuring it out in my mid 30s!
Air is compressible, so if the bell is full of air, you'll be compressing the air until the pressure is high enough to move the clog -- which always led to splashing for me, and often to failure. Water isn't compressible, so if the bell is full of water, pushing the plunger WILL push the blockage along. One push usually does it for me, but if it needs a second, I'll refill the bell and reseal it, rather than pumping madly. I can usually do this without any splashing.
If it's a partial clog where water drains slowly but a mass of toilet paper is just stuck, I'll flush again to have water to work with. (Every toilet I've had the displeasure of clogging has had room in the bowl for an additional full flush without overflowing.)
After everything drains, flush again and use the cleaner water to rinse the plunger off before putting it back in the caddy. (Also, I do lift the toilet seat before plunging, because there will usually be a drip on the way out.)
To help prevent the problem (or at least make dealing with it less gross), I always flush before wiping.
posted by Metasyntactic at 8:58 PM on October 31, 2022
Mitheral's step of filling the plunger bell with water was the key for me. I wish I'd known this when I moved into my first apartment, rather than figuring it out in my mid 30s!
Air is compressible, so if the bell is full of air, you'll be compressing the air until the pressure is high enough to move the clog -- which always led to splashing for me, and often to failure. Water isn't compressible, so if the bell is full of water, pushing the plunger WILL push the blockage along. One push usually does it for me, but if it needs a second, I'll refill the bell and reseal it, rather than pumping madly. I can usually do this without any splashing.
If it's a partial clog where water drains slowly but a mass of toilet paper is just stuck, I'll flush again to have water to work with. (Every toilet I've had the displeasure of clogging has had room in the bowl for an additional full flush without overflowing.)
After everything drains, flush again and use the cleaner water to rinse the plunger off before putting it back in the caddy. (Also, I do lift the toilet seat before plunging, because there will usually be a drip on the way out.)
To help prevent the problem (or at least make dealing with it less gross), I always flush before wiping.
posted by Metasyntactic at 8:58 PM on October 31, 2022
Do you have neighbors that share your plumbing? It's entirely possible for a neighbor to be the cause of a clog in an apartment building, so the fact that there's no obvious reason for a clog doesn't mean much in that case. All it takes is a neighbor who uses "flushable" wipes or whatever for the problem to propagate to you. If it happens more than about once a month (which is still high IMHO, but good luck getting a landlord to pay attention to you for less) and/or plunging doesn't clear it then I'd try to get the landlord to get someone to snake out the toilet drain.
posted by Aleyn at 12:24 AM on November 1, 2022
posted by Aleyn at 12:24 AM on November 1, 2022
This thread is closed to new comments.
Holding down the handle means one of two things:
- the chain connecting the flap to the flush lever arm is too long, so you're not lifting it up far enough when flushing;
- The flapper is damaged in some way because it's supposed to float upwards in the water once the seal is broken and the vacuum isn't holding it down any more
The second one is something I would expect a plumber to notice; however if they have the top off the toilet, they won't notice #1 because the lever goes higher without the top on and accommodates a larger chain. Also, this assumes you have a flapper-style flush and not a fancy mechanism.Edit: both of the holding-the-flush-lever issues I mention are average-person-repairiable for the most part. Getting clogged and having to hold the flush lever are probably not related to each other.
posted by AzraelBrown at 2:59 PM on October 31, 2022 [2 favorites]