The Problem
Many of us have witnessed the horror of our toilets filling themselves up with water instead of just flushing whatever we had dumped into them. Most of us have cried tears of desperation when our toilets had refused to drain our waste. Sometimes, the toilet drain gets clogged and the waste remains there along with the water. Most people don’t know how to fix a toilet that won’t flush.
This is, perhaps, the biggest problem that many of us face even with all the advancement and technology in today’s world. Many of us have lost our peace and hopes to thesetoilet flush problems. The questions that have been asked for centuries are‘What to do when a toilet fails to do the only thing for which it wascreated?’‘What to do when a toilet doesn’t flush all the way’ ‘why is the toilet not flushing’or‘what to do when a toilet won’t flush’the answer might shock you because it is quite simple; you fix it.
Now, you may ask, How to flush a toilet that won’t flush? Well, first things first, you need to know how to flush a toilet. Pretty simple, just press down the handle (flusher) or the push the silver button (flusher) and the toilet will flush itself but if you really don’t know how to flush a toilet then we got instructions for you in ‘How to flush a toilet for dummies’.
These instructions will teach you how to use flush toilet. These instructionsare simple and extremely easy to use. Once, you are done doing whatever it is that you do when you go to the toilet. Just press the silver handle (flusher) that’s usually on the top left or right side of the toilet. Sometimes there’s a silver button (flusher) on top of the toilet, press that and the toilet will flush itself and you’re done. It’s simple, right?
Now, we know that you are not a dummy and that you don’t need a ‘How to flush a toilet for dummies’ instructing you on how to flush your toilet but sometimes we all need to be reminded of simple things.
What is a toilet?
A toilet is a piece of hardware that’s sole purpose of creation is for the collection or disposal of human defecation. Toilets can be with or without flushing water; they could either be the flush toilets or the dry toilets.
There are different types of toilets in the world and each toilet has a different way of flushing. The most common toilet in the entire world is the typical ‘flush toilet’ which is a ceramic bowl connected to the ‘up’ side to the tank that allows the water to flow rapidly, and on the ‘down’ side to a drain pipe which drains the waste and the water with it. Then there are squat toilets, which are in the ground; meaning that a person has to squat over them in order to defecate.
So, when we are faced with the problem of a toilet not flushing, we ask ourselves; how do we fix a toilet that is not working properly? How do you get to fixing your toilet the easy way without hiring a plumber; which would cost you a lot of money?
When people are faced with toilet problems, most of them ask ‘How to get a toilet to flush’. Well, there are a lot ways that can really help you in fixing a toilet that won’t flush or when a toilet fills up with water. Sometimes, the toilet won’t flush no water in tank.
The Solution
To solve these problems, first you need to make sure that water is being supplied to your toilet. If the water is, in fact, reaching your toilet then make sure to turn off the water supplybefore working on the solution because you would need to see clearly inside the tank. The next thing you need to do is to remove the tank cover and check for the connectionbetween the handle, the flush chain and the flapper. Also,check if any connection problem persistsbetween the handle, the flush chain and the flapper.
Most people complain about their toilet flusher not working.This happens due to the disconnection between the three parts of the insideof the tank of the toilet; the handle, the flush chain and the flapper. Disconnection between these three can prevent a toilet from flushing properly.
If the chain is disconnected or if it is loose then re-attach the chain to the end of the handle (flusher) inside the tank cover, be careful that you don’t tighten the chain much or it will lift the flapper up even when the handle (flusher) is in its normal position. The chain is important because it is attached directly to the handle and the flapper.
And don’t worry about touching the water inside the tank because that is fresh water and not toilet water.
A flapper is made up of rubber and chlorine resistant material which holds the water from running down the toilet until you press down the handle, which would then pull the chain connected to the flapper. Doing this would then lift up the flapper and allow water to flow directly into the bowl from the tank. If the water leaks into the bowl without you pressing the handle then adjust the flapper and make sure that the chain is not too tight so that it does not prevent the flapper from sealing properly.
If you want to maximise your flush then you might need to hold down your handle or press down the button for a bit longer because that would lift the flapper up and would allow the tank to completely drain all the water that was stored in it into the bowl.
How to get rid of Clogging
Another problem that occurs is when sometimes the flush works but the water still remains in the bowl. This happens because the toilet won’t flush all the way or that the toilet gets clogged.
Another question that people ask is ‘How to flush a toilet that is clogged’
Unclogging a toilet is not something what most people think it is. Though it would require a bit of hard work but don’t fret it’s not that difficult.
In order to flush a clogged toilet, you need to wait for about 10 minutes for the clogged toilet bowl to drain. Then turn off the water supply and let the water drain completely so that when you use the plunger you don’t spill water everywhere.
If you do not know how to flush a toilet with a plunger then do not worry, it is not that difficult of a task. Use a plunger with a flange extension, or an extra ring of rubber that extends from the bell; which is the bottom of the plunger. Then plunge the clogged toilet.
Do this by making the first thrust gentle, this would allow air to escape from the plunge bell and will make it seal better around the bottom of the toilet bowl. After you are done with the first plunge, now plunge vigorously and quickly for about 10 to 20 minutes. Take special care of not lifting the plunger from the bottom of the toilet bowl. You can also use hot water to help loosen up the clog. Double flush can help reduce clogs, as well.
Flushing without Water
Another problem that occurs very often is when there isn’t enough water to completely flush your waste, which leaves you with a toilet not flushing properly. To tackle the problem of ‘How to flush a toilet without water’ or ‘How to flush a toilet from the inside’ the tank, you need to make sure that water is being supplied to your toilet and if not, then fill up a bucket with water. Now, use that bucket of water to flush the toilet.
Learning how to drain a toilet doesn’t flush all the waycould be a very useful skill that may not solely prevent some embarrassment however could also be a necessary beginning to learning of how to repair toilets. When the flush mechanism of your toilet malfunctions, the repairing of the flush of your toilet, sometimes, is not troublesome.
The flushing of the toilet depends on gravity – an outsized volume of water flows through the drain, which seals the pipe and creates a sort of vacuum that is able to pull water behind it. So, in short all you need to do to drain the contents of the bowl is to pour a big quantity of water into the toilet bowl.
If you don’t know how to flush a toilet from the tank then the first step you need to take is totake the tank cover off and fill the tank with the water in the bucket, which you previously filled. Then press the handle that would then flush the water from the tank down to the bowl and then thecontents of the bowl down the drain. You can also pour a large quantity of water straight into the bowl but be careful because doing that might spill water out of the bowl and onto the floor and your clothes.
Plunging a toilet is one of the ways to force flush toilet. You can also drain a toilet by using the method mentioned above of pouring a large quantity of water directly into the toilet bowl but be careful because doing so would splash water from the toilet and onto your surroundings.
For you to solve the problem of water splashing everywhere you should not pour all the water at once, rather you take it slow and steady.
Check the water
Having done all of the above and if you still find that your toilet is not flushing, then you can check the supply line. To do this, turn off the water supply and then remove the supply tube from the bottom of the toilet and then redirect it to your toilet bowl.
Now, turn on the water supply and if you are still unable to get water out of the supply tube then shut off the water to the house and remove the valve from the wall because the blockage might be in the inlet to the valve.
Call for a professional plumber to get your water pipes checked.
Sometimes you might get a weak flush. This happens because the water level in the tank is set to low. You can solve this by removing the cover tank and check the water level inside. If the water level is set to low then that would reduce the amount of water in the tank and the amount that it drains down to the bowl. Water level set to low would not do a good job with flushing your waste.
To fix the water level in a tank, take off the tank cover and search for the line that is engraved inside. If, you’re unable to see the line, search around the pipes that come up from the tanks bottom. Try checking the flapper, which is located at the bottom of the tank. A tube made of plastic isvisible in the tank sticking out from under the flapper. This is known as the over flow pipe. The water line might be there, if it is not anywhere up at the start of the tank.
Due to some reason, if you are unable to find the line, you can draw one yourself. Just measure an inch(1 inch) starting at the very beginning of the over flow pipe. Now, make a mark at the start of the pipe andmake use of the mark as your water level line.
Fill the tank with water. Once it is filled to its full then make sure to check the level of the water, which should be near the line that you drew. If the water level is below the line, then the toilet won’t flush and the flush flow will be weak. If the water level is too high, the over flow pipe will be filled with water and then leak into the toilet.
After, you’re done adjusting the water level and checking if the water is levelled around the water level line that you drew then you can press down the handle to see if the toilet flushes.
If it still does not flush after troubleshooting the clog, unclogging any clogs, and adjusting the water or any other solution that are described up in the given article then you might want to hire a professional plumber to help get your toilet fixed.
Article Source is https://yourproplumber.com/toilet-doesnt-flush-just-fills-with-water/