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Photo Credit: István Benedek
If you’re anything like me, the extent of your toilet troubleshooting skills is something along the lines of, “Honey, there’s something wrong with the toilet!”
Our guest bathroom toilet has a hair trigger when it comes to clogging (as in, you use one sheet of toilet paper and you’re done for), and the plunger isn’t getting the job done anymore. After fighting with it for days, I remembered something I saw my mom do when I was a kid, an almost failsafe solution for restoring your potty to proper working order.
If your can is clogged with, shall we say, normal potty products (as opposed to fifteen plastic Army men or a tennis ball or something), it will generally drain very slowly even though it won’t flush. Once the water is completely out or close to it, fill a large bucket with water from the tub and tip it into the toilet. Don’t just pour it in as a trickle; you want a nice, solid flow that will power down your pipes and release whatever’s binding them up.
Most of the time, this works on the first try. If not, alternate plunging and pouring until you clear the clog. Be careful not to overflow the toilet in your DIY zeal. Allow the water to drain once it gets full to avoid an unpleasant mess.
Do you have any tricks for combatting an uncooperative commode on the cheap? Leave a comment!
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