Plumbing question

[MaxMan]

The toilet wont flush right. It fills and slowly drains over a few hours. I have tried plunging it and have compromised the wax ring since it will leak out the base when plunged but not if allowed to drain naturally. I take this to mean that the clog is past the toilet and in the pipe. I figured I need to take the toilet off and snake ie it, but before that I was wondering if there is something I could flush since there is some drainage of the bowl that might take care of the problem. I was thinking of this stuff called green gobbler. I am on well and septic so I like to be carefull what I put in the ground.

Warning: Any jokes about this post will be considered toilet humor.

 

[eveled]

I wouldn’t use chemicals with the well. Just not worth the risk.

You can take the toilet off and plunge the pipe. Best bet is to snake it.

 

[PRichardson87]

When is the last time you had the septic pumped?

 

[xTopGun]

The toilet wont flush right. It fills and slowly drains over a few hours. I have tried plunging it and have compromised the wax ring since it will leak out the base when plunged but not if allowed to drain naturally. I take this to mean that the clog is past the toilet and in the pipe. I figured I need to take the toilet off and snake ie it, but before that I was wondering if there is something I could flush since there is some drainage of the bowl that might take care of the problem. I was thinking of this stuff called green gobbler. I am on well and septic so I like to be carefull what I put in the ground.

Warning: Any jokes about this post will be considered toilet humor.

I'm wondering if the wax seal wasn't already leaking, and it's sucking air when you try to flush...
is the toilet fastened tight to the floor, i.e. any rocking movement...

do you have a cleanout access plug you can use to snake prior to removing the toilet....

as for putting chemicals down it's not recommended...

 

[MaxMan]

I'm wondering if the wax seal wasn't already leaking, and it's sucking air when you try to flush...
is the toilet fastened tight to the floor, i.e. any rocking movement...

do you have a cleanout access plug you can use to snake prior to removing the toilet....

as for putting chemicals down it's not recommended...

No rocking at all. The seal does not leak if just flushed. The water comes up and then slowly (hour or so) drains back to normal. Closest clean out plug about 55 inches up in an adjacent room (utility room) I wish I had a plumbing schematic of the house.

The green gobbler is an organic bacteria type product that supposed to eat away clogs. I would never us anything caustic or acidic as mentioned above we are all on wells where I live.

 

[MaxMan]

When is the last time you had the septic pumped?

Yesterday. It needed it. I thought that was the issue but $$$ later still real real slow.

 

[xTopGun]

No rocking at all. The seal does not leak if just flushed. The water comes up and then slowly (hour or so) drains back to normal. Closest clean out plug about 55 inches up in an adjacent room (utility room) I wish I had a plumbing schematic of the house.

The green gobbler is an organic bacteria type product that supposed to eat away clogs. I would never us anything caustic or acidic as mentioned above we are all on wells where I live.

Ooh ooh, have you checked the roof vent ..... could it be blocked

 

[MaxMan]

I wouldn’t use chemicals with the well. Just not worth the risk.

You can take the toilet off and plunge the pipe. Best bet is to snake it.

That was my next plan after seeing what people here would suggest. The wax ring will be replaced anyway.

 

[NikA]

I've used the organic drain cleaner stuff but was under the impression that it's more geared towards fatty deposits like meat juices washed down the drain. Certainly wouldn't expect it to move much on a toilet.

I've snaked toilet drains without pulling the base in the past. Not sure if there was any damage to the wax seal but no issues after. The clog I was chasing that time was actually at the input to the septic tank, which turned out to be very accessible from that end.

 

[contender]

xTopGun has a point. Check the vent from the roof. It has to have air to flush properly. If you have one,, a fiberglass "snake" rod,, used for pulling wires through walls is inexpensive & can be used to check the vent pipe from above. A set from Harbor Freight will be around 18 ft long, and under $20-$25.

 

[s4s4u]

If it is a vent issue, you should hear gurgling from the sink drain when you flush the toilet. I don't think a plugged vent will slow a toilet like that. I would shut off the water supply and flush the toilet to empty the tank, remove the toilet, and then drop one of these in the pipe and let 'er rip.

https://www.homedepot.com/pep/Husky...KnVUXaKQPPkte6yzW32rwvHABkTGlJBIaAqynEALw_wcB

 

[Dan in MI]

I’m surprised your septic cleaner didn’t see/fix the issue. The guys that do mine flush the toilet multiple times to check function once the tank is empty.

 

[blume357]

I don't think it is the roof vent... you are plugged some where down the line.... hopefully in the hose and not in the yard.
I guess, pull the toilet and snake it and hope... might as we'll buy or rent a real plumbers snake for this.

 

[MaxMan]

I don't think it is the roof vent... you are plugged some where down the line.... hopefully in the hose and not in the yard.
I guess, pull the toilet and snake it and hope... might as we'll buy or rent a real plumbers snake for this.

If it gets to that point, I will rent one. I have a hand snake, 30 foot, will try that before spending the money

 

[xTopGun]

If it gets to that point, I will rent one. I have a hand snake, 30 foot, will try that before spending the money

do you have easy access to the roof vent.... any tree branches overhanging, bird or insect nest, etc. "a plugged roof vent will absolutely cause a toilet to flush slower than normal."
are you hearing any gurgling sounds from other sinks or toilets, any faint odors of sewer gases....

 

[Busterswoodshop]

I have heard that cherry bombs work good.

 

[Jeepnik]

Toilet auger first. Snake all cleanouts. No joy, pull the toilet. There's just only two bolts. And once pulled all will be revealed. And if needed you can effectively snake the drain.

But, if the toilet is old it may just be limed up. In which case it's new toilet time.

 

[MaxMan]

do you have easy access to the roof vent.... any tree branches overhanging, bird or insect nest, etc. "a plugged roof vent will absolutely cause a toilet to flush slower than normal."
are you hearing any gurgling sounds from other sinks or toilets, any faint odors of sewer gases....

Roof vent all clear. No odors.

 

[nekvermont]

If the leach field or drywell fails it can cause the level of the septic tank to rise and introduce all that fatty crap that floats on top to back up into the waste line and plug it. Like Dan said, I'm surprised the septic pumper guy didn't have you flush the toilet a few times to make sure it wasn't plugged. Just an idea. Then again there could be a collapsed line, is it cast iron? Good luck to you.

Edit: Do your sink drains or tub/shower drains work OK?

 

[wproct]

I've snaked mine a few times without having to remove the stool but the blockage wasn't that far below the stool.

 

[MaxMan]

If the leach field or drywell fails it can cause the level of the septic tank to rise and introduce all that fatty crap that floats on top to back up into the waste line and plug it. Like Dan said, I'm surprised the septic pumper guy didn't have you flush the toilet a few times to make sure it wasn't plugged. Just an idea. Then again there could be a collapsed line, is it cast iron? Good luck to you.

Edit: Do your sink drains or tub/shower drains work OK?

Yes, I think the clog is between he the toilet and where it connects to the main pipe.

 

[Mobuck]

I have a 'snake/cleanout' T in the basement for this purpose. Had a section of PVC drain collapse about 6' beyond the basement wall several years back. Toilet got slower and slower sort of like what OP described.

 

[Mike J]

Ooh ooh, have you checked the roof vent ..... could it be blocked

This was the issue I had when my septic messed up. I had done a lot of stuff including having the tank cleaned & using a hand snake & was still having problems. I got up on the roof & ran water down the vent pipe & heard a pop noise & everything opened up.

 

[wheelgun1958]

I have heard that cherry bombs work good.

They did in high school.

 

[blume357]

Roof vent all clear. No odors.

I could be wrong but your "no odors" worries me... every roof vent I'd sniffed had an odor... that's part of their function.... I'm just having a hard time seeing the vent completely blocked air tight... I guess we'll know which end is plugged soon, I hope?

Should not tell this... but working on a roof ... too much trouble to get down when you got to pee... there is. perfect place to relieve yourself....

 

[gjgalligan]

Long time ago I had a similar problem.
I ended up taking the toilet off and found a pencil stuck causing the jamming. Removed pencil, replaced the wax ring and all was well.

 

[xTopGun]

Long time ago I had a similar problem.
I ended up taking the toilet off and found a pencil stuck causing the jamming. Removed pencil, replaced the wax ring and all was well.

hmmm, can't imagine how it got there sounds like the dang "Slime" our granddaughter made that my wife wanted to get rid of, so she dumped it down the sink. That only cost $400 to fix .....

 

[rcs9250]

Do let us know what the root cause was when you’re back up and running.

 

[TADD68]

I had this issue and it ended up being my toilet. Under the rim of toilet are all these small holes that the water come through when the toilet is flushed and also the small hole toward bottom of toilet water comes out of to help flush it on down the bigger hole. Mine were plugged with lime deposits really bad, i used a pipe cleaner for the small holes under the bowl rim and a small round brush on the flush hole in bottom.
Check the holes under the rim of bowl with a small mirror

 

[Yaworski]

hmmm, can't imagine how it got there sounds like the dang "Slim" our granddaughter made that my wife wanted to get rid of, so she dumped it down the sink. That only cost $400 to fix .....

What is a dang slim?