Wondering if you should repair or replace your old toilet?
Believe it or not, there are good reasons for both. Here’s the information you need to make the right decision.
Should You Repair or Replace Your Toilet?
How to Fix a Running Toilet
A working toilet requires running water, but when that water runs continuously, it means a bigger water bill and an unnecessary dent in your budget. Taking steps to fix toilet problems like this is something that every homeowner should be able to handle, given the relative ease in dealing with the issue.
Everyday Items that Clog Toilets (And How to Avoid Them)
If you ever explore older parts of Europe, like Greece, you will notice signs that prohibit even the flushing of toilet paper down toilets. Their older sewage system can’t handle modern toilet paper. This seems crazy to those of us who never think about how our plumbing works! Fortunately, the American sewage system is capable of handling toilet paper.
However, our pipes aren’t designed to accommodate many of the everyday items that people unknowingly flush down them. Clogged toilets are never fun. Depending on the source of the clogging, they can also be a costly problem to fix. Even if the foreign items manage to make it through your plumbing, they can cause problems at your local wastewater treatment facilitates later on.
Avoid clogged toilets by refraining from flushing the following items.
Toilet paper
Of course, you can’t refrain from flushing toilet paper entirely. That is what it is designed for, after all! But young children often use far too much or see it as a game to see how much they can flush down at a time. Make sure to teach your children about a reasonable amount to use each time.
Feminine Supplies
Public restrooms often have signs prohibiting the flushing of feminine supplies, but sometimes we don’t enforce this same practice at home. Sanitary napkins and tampons are not biodegradable, so they quickly clog pipes. Trash them instead.
Diapers and baby wipes
Putting diapers in the toilet may not have occurred to you, but it’s more common than you think. Flushing them may seem like a good away to avoid odors. However, diapers are large enough to instantly clog pipes. While baby wipes build up over time until eventually leading to a clogged toilet. Use odor eliminating trash bags instead.
Paper towels and cleaning wipes
As these are in the paper family, they can seem appropriate for flushing. Paper towels are too thick though and cause clogging. Cleaning wipes, even those marketed as “flushable”, have all sort of chemicals that aren’t biodegradable and will eventually lead to clogged pipes.
Hair
Hair is a common cause for clogging your shower drain, but if you repeatedly flush human and dog hair down your toilet, it will clog those pipes, too.
Toys
Again, young children sometimes see it as a game to flush toys down the toilet. This often causes a clog that requires a plumber to fix. Avoid the expense by ensuring your children don’t play with toys in the bathroom unsupervised.
To be on the safe side, just assume that only toilet paper should ever be flushed down the toilet – and even then, watch the amount of paper you use.
Simple Advice for Unclogging Your Toilet
It has happened to all of us at one point. We’re using the bathroom at home or (even worse) at a friend’s house, and when we flush, instead of going down, the water starts to come up. The immediate reaction is panic. You definitely don’t want the water to overflow onto the bathroom floor but you also have no idea how to use a plunger.
You can breathe easy. We’re going to outline the simple steps for unclogging a toilet, so in the future, you can feel like a plunger-wielding superhero.
Okay, we know unclogging toilets isn’t a very glamorous superpower – but someone’s got to do it. And imagine never having to panic in the face of malfunctioning toilet ever again!
Stop the toilet bowl from filling up
Instead of immediately reaching for the plunger, start by stopping the flow of water. Lift the lid off the tank of your toilet and quick as possible and close the toilet flapper.
The flapper releases water from the tank and into the bowl, and by closing it you can stop toilet water from overflowing onto your bathroom. You don’t want to deal with a clogged toilet and a smelly, flooded bathroom.
Use the correct plunger
What is the right plunger, you ask? You need a funnel-cup plunger to effectively create a good seal between it and the toilet bowl. Often people have cup plungers instead, which don’t have the necessary added piece that extends off the bottom of the rubber cup.
Heat up your plunger
Pliant plungers work much better than hard, stiff ones. Run yours under some warm water before using it. We know it’s an extra step, but it’s the difference between a plunger that works the first time and one that doesn’t.
Use the right plumbing technique
Chances are you’re not an expert on plunging, or you wouldn’t be reading this! Push you plunger into the toilet, until you have formed a seal. Give a few up and down strokes and the flush the toilet. If the water drains, your toilet is unclogged. If it begins to rise, close the flapper again. Repeat the process until you fix the clog.
Hot water and dishwasher detergent is your secret weapon
If your toilet is still clogged, turn to dishwasher detergent and hot water. The combination helps to break up whatever is clogging your pipes. Also, if a plunger isn’t on hand at a friend’s house and you’re too embarrassed to ask, the hot water may be enough to clear the clog without the use of the plunger.
Know when to call the plumber
Simple clogs can be fixed at home, but if you see backed up water appearing in the shower or sinks when you flush, it’s time to call a plumber. That is an indication of a blocked main line and will require more than a plunger.
Need a plumber? Contact the experienced plumbers at Legacy Plumbing.