Start with the toilet auger
- Our toilet auger carries a rubber-sleeved bend that protects the porcelain while the cable goes through the trapway. We feed it in, crank through the blockage and pull it back. Paper clogs break up; solid objects like toothbrushes, toys or flushed wipes often come back hooked on the head.
- If the auger passes through cleanly but the toilet is still slow, the problem is beyond the toilet in the branch or the main, and we check other fixtures to see how far it reaches.
Pulling the toilet
- Some objects wedge sideways in the trapway and will not come out from above. Water off, tank and bowl emptied, remove the toilet and work the object out from the outlet side. Then the toilet goes back on a fresh wax ring.
- This is also the moment to check the flange and closet bend. If the flange is cracked or the bend is partly blocked with old wax, we deal with it while everything is open.
Signs you need this
- The bowl fills to the rim and drains slowly
- A toy or object went down the toilet
- Plunging helps for a day, then it clogs again
- Flushing pushes water up into the tub
- The flush swirls but does not pull
Low-flow toilet habits
- Older 13-litre toilets in some Richmond Hill homes have been replaced with 4.8 or 6 litre models. The newer ones flush well with paper but are less forgiving with wipes, even those labelled flushable. Keeping a small bin beside the toilet saves a lot of service calls.
- If your toilet clogs often with ordinary use, ask us to look at the venting and the flush valve. A weak flush is sometimes a partly blocked rim jet, which we can clear.
How the job runs
- 1
We check whether other fixtures are affected.
- 2
A closet auger is run through the trapway.
- 3
If needed, the toilet is pulled and cleared from the outlet side.
- 4
The toilet is reset on a new ring and flushed several times.
Richmond Hill note: most houses here sit on York Region municipal water with fairly hard supply, and many basements have a floor drain tied to the sanitary lateral. Mention both on the phone; it changes what goes on the truck.
Want a second opinion on your own pipes first? Dial (365) 363-1575; the person answering holds the wrench.