Clogged toilet in guest bathroom

[faheem]

Thanks for the link. But this toilet is just an ordinary toilet, honest.

[faheem]

@EllenN

Ours don’t typically have bidets and they are designed for lots of toilet paper. I was mostly assuming that they were different based on you not owning a plunger and having not encountered a clogged toilet in years.

It’s possible. I don’t really know how these things are designed, but I thought the basic model was pretty standard.

[Maggieroni]

@Clyde

plunger. Usually a big wad of toilet paper clogs up the system. The plunger creates pressure forcing it on its journey.

Just get a plunger, works every time. I’ve even used the toilet brush, pump away and voillá all is well. MINOR PROBLEM LOL

[Maggieroni]

Non no no!
And no no no

[MsJTherrien]

I can’t afford to hire anyone to do ANYTHING around my house, lol, so if it needs fixing I’m doing it myself with the help of YouTube and many Google searches…

Definitely don’t put Drano into the toilet, there’s something important I recall about how toilet pipes travel down and then upward… something to do with the force of the flush… and Drano is meant to sink to the bottom, it can corrode the pipes because it won’t flush out.

The trick my father taught me growing up was to get a pot and fill it in the sink and dump it in the toilet until it reaches the brim, almost always works… I had to buy a snake two months ago and thought for sure it wouldn’t work because nothing else did, but I followed some YouTube directions and it cleared it!

[eliel]

@sandy2

Try pouring a cup of liquid laundry detergent in the bowl, let it sit for a bit, and then flush with hot water from the stove (not boiling as it may crack the porcelain). The liquid laundry detergent will help break down the poo and help it to slide easier. Has worked for me when I couldn’t find the plunger (damn teenagers!).

This. Absolutely this. I’ve even had success just with the hot water. It also breaks up the paper

Don’t be afraid of hot water. It’s just like your kitchen plates - they can all withstand hot tapwater, it’ll be fine.

And yes, as MsJTherrien said, pour it forcefully and quickly from some height so it stirs up the mess as it goes in. Gravity is your friend.

[sandy2]

@Faheem – any success?

[faheem]

Hi guys,

The plumber is here now. There’s a leak in the outside pipe, possibly related, so he needs to fix that as well. I tried putting detergent and hot water in the toilet - it does seem to have lessened the blockage. I’m told that the pipes leading from the toilet are unusually convoluted because of the location of the bathroom, so this makes blockages more likely - stuff tends to get stuck in there. He’s cleaning it now.

Thanks for the advice. Let’s hope this isn’t a recurrent issue. I’m told this has been building up for some time.

[SandyToes]

I would be interested to know what a plumber in India charges for what we call “rotor-rooting” (clearing a toilet blockage). In my experience with rental units, a plumbing company charges about $75-$100; an independent charges $40-$60.

A few years ago, I had the resident manager purchase an auger-type 100-ft snake for about $150, and she has cleared toilets, tub and sink drains in nothing flat.

[Chris]

I have different tools for this:

1. A set of long rubber gloves. To go into the toiletbowl and remove the clogging by hand.
2. A toilet “spring”, to quickly remove small blockages, that cannot be reached by hand.

A

3. A 15 meter hose with a jet-rotor that connects with my pressure washer.

The last one I use only when there are real problems further down the pipe, or clean the pipe as part of a renovation.

[faheem]

Hi @SandyToes,

@SandyToes

I would be interested to know what a plumber in India charges for what we call “rotor-rooting” (clearing a toilet blockage).

The plumber charged Rs. 1500 (USD 22.36). He was at it for around 1 1/2 hrs. I think he opened up the pipes leading from the toilet and cleared them out. It was quite a mess - apparently the bathroom is somewhat awkwardly placed, so the pipes have some distance to travel before they get to the main line, including an upward slope, so the pipes don’t clear properly on flushing, and human waste had been accumulating in the pipes for some time - nasty. He recommended taking a look again in 4 months.

Bear in mind that this is a fairly old building, and three of the 4 bathrooms here are add-ons. And so the plumbing is probably not optimally laid out.

This gentleman’s name is Mr Shankar. He’s one of two plumbers we use regularly. The others we’ve tried have mostly not proved satisfactory. India is full of people who have no idea what they are doing, and plumbing is no exception. Licenses and suchlike don’t mean much here either.

I’m surprised that you can get a plumber for as little as USD 40 in the US. I had the impression you can’t get any plumber to do anything for less than three figures. Though I have no recollection of ever calling a plumber there myself.

“rotor-rooting” is a funny term. It sounds like something from the lyrics of a movie musical song. Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang, perhaps.

[faheem]

Hi @Chris,

It sounds like you are well-equipped. Do you do all this work yourself? I would find it daunting.

[Chris]

Yes, I do most work myself.
I do not have another job, so I have plenty of time to try, and learn while doing.
And I am not afraid to get my hands dirty.

Getting professionals to do the work is very expensive.
I only call them, if special knowledge or special tools are required, or if they can do it quicker and more efficient.
A good example is hiring a professional painter to paint the walls and ceilings. I need 2 days, to accomplish what he does in 3 hours, and his works is of better quality.

I am a mechanical engineer, and during my study I had a lot of jobs in cleaning, maintenance and construction. I learned a lot more during the jobs, than in the classroom.

And nowadays we have youtube. If something is possible, there is a guide for it on youtube. I learned to do maintenance on things, where the manufacturer would tell you it is impossible and you should buy a new one.

[SandyToes]

Thanks for the info. I was curious to know the difference in costs which I knew would be significant. It is interesting to know such things from a valid source.

When the opportunity presents itself, I will offer up this information as “another interesting tidbit I learned through the Airhost forum!”

Your Mr. Shankar’s name rings a bell. I don’t know if the spelling is the same but I’m thinking of a famous sitar(?) player, Robbi or Revi…something like that.

The plumbers I have gotten for as little as $40-$60 are those who do it as a side job after hours and not through their employer. When one self-manages a fair number of investment rentals, it is imperative to build up a list of repair people who ‘work on the side’.

[faheem]

@SandyToes

Your Mr. Shankar’s name rings a bell. I don’t know if the spelling is the same but I’m thinking of a famous sitar(?) player, Robbi or Revi…something like that.

That’s Ravi Shankar. But in Mr. Shankar’s case, I was using his first name, not his last name. Maybe it’s an Indian idiosyncrasy.

[SandyToes]

Another interesting tidbit of information! Thank you Mr. Faheem.

[superhostnyc]

Since starting doing Airbnb, this is the single most common “problem” that guests contact us about. The toilet is usually clogged/blocked/choked the night of arrival. They’ve flown in, are dehydrated and constipated and finally can relax in the apartment and get everything moving. Lots of TP, lots of matter (sorry if you’re squeemish) and bam, you’ve got a blockage. There is usually no need for a plumber, but there is always the need for a good quality toilet plunger left where guests can access it themselves.

I used to almost throw up when I had to use the plunger, now it’s no different to plunge the toilet or wipe the dust off a fan blade. It’s all gotta get done.

[faheem]

@SandyToes

Thank you Mr. Faheem.

Note: not an idiosyncrasy I’m particularly fond of. But in Rome, one sometimes finds oneself doing as the Romans do. Often without noticing it.

[eliel]

It might be worthwhile disabling the “half-flush” or put up a sign, if you have this. I’ve had one plumber tell me it caused the ongoing problem in a previous home because there’s just not enough water going through to flush debris away in the pipes.

You might also be doing yourself a favour by flushing it half a dozen times in between guests.

[faheem]

Hi @eliel,

This particular toilet doesn’t have a half flush. You mean one of those buttons with two halves, right?

Also, we have access to the bathroom throughout the guest stay. The bathroom is private (in the sense that nobody else uses it), but not en suite. However, I’m not sure repeated flushings would accomplish anything other than wasting water.

Does anyone else have an opinion?