Clogged toilet repair in Salem, day or night

Inside every toilet is a tight S-shaped channel called the trapway, cast right into the porcelain. It holds the water that seals out sewer gas and sends waste over its top bend with each flush. Most clogs happen in that bend, where too much paper, a wipe or a small object wedges against the curve.

A plunger works when the clog is soft and the water pressure can push it through. When something firm is stuck, like a toy, a cap or a mass of wipes that do not break down, plunging only packs it tighter. That is when the right tool, and sometimes taking the toilet off the floor, does the job.

How a toilet trapway clogs

The trapway is narrower than the drain pipe below it, often about two inches across at its tightest point, and it climbs up and over before dropping to the outlet. Paper breaks down in water, but a large wad can bridge that upward climb before it softens.

Wipes labeled flushable, paper towels, cotton swabs and dental floss do not break down at all. They catch on the rough cast surface inside the bend and build a net that traps paper behind them, which is why one problem flush can leave you with a toilet that clogs every few days.

Closet augers versus the cable we use on drains

A closet auger has a short, stiff cable inside a bent metal tube with a rubber sleeve at the bend. The sleeve sits against the porcelain so the spinning cable never touches the glazed surface. A regular drain cable would scratch the bowl and leave gray marks that never come out.

We crank the auger through the trapway and either break up the clog or hook it and pull it back out. Pulling it back is better for anything solid, since pushing it farther only moves the problem into the closet bend under the floor.

When the toilet has to come off the flange

Some objects, like a small toy, a phone or a hairbrush, sit in the trapway in a way no auger can grab. Then we shut off the water, empty the bowl and tank, unbolt the toilet and lift it. With the toilet upside down on a drop cloth, we can reach the object from the outlet side.

Putting it back means a new wax ring and fresh closet bolts, and a check of the flange. In older Salem homes the flange may be cast iron or set in wood that has softened from past leaks, which we point out when we see it.

• Water shut off and bowl and tank emptied
• Toilet unbolted and lifted onto a protected floor
• Object removed from the outlet side of the trapway
• New wax ring and closet bolts set before resetting

Toilets that clog over and over

If a toilet clogs often with normal use, something besides paper is usually at play. An older low-flow model from the early 1990s may not have the flush force of current designs. A partly blocked vent can weaken the siphon so waste only crawls through.

A restriction in the closet bend or the main line can also cause it, and then other fixtures usually show signs too. We look at all of these before suggesting a new toilet, because replacing it will not help if the trouble is in the pipe.