Need advice - still have toilet/plumbing problems

[JWK]

A while back I posted problems I was having with both my toilets. One upstairs, one down. Over the past couple of years they have both become worse. Would flush every other time, then once every couple of times, then once every three or four, now they never flush without plunging.

I took the advice given from this board. Today I had my septic tank pumped. The men said the level was good, but it was definately ready. No problems detected. I checked the vent which is a PVC out of the main line in the ground about 3 feet from the house and capped on top. The vent is clear. I cleared the calcium deposits from the holes in the top of the bowl with a coat hanger wire.

The toilets still do not flush without plunging.

I have absolutely no idea where to go with this. Any ideas?

We thought we would have this taken care of by winter. This is very depressing.

John

[Katey]

Have you run a snake down each toilet as far as you can?

Have you had small children visiting?

[plowjockey]

Snake the lines out to the tank?

Maybe some buildup, or blockage in the lines.

Your vent should be sticking out of the roof, nearly directly above the toilets. The PVC line on the ground is the "cleanout".

A plugged vent can cause flushing problems also.

[Toads tool]

Check your DWV- Drain waste vent.
They can sometimes get plugged with bug nests, cottonwood seeds, bird nest etc.
They can also sometimes not be installed properly or sometimes not at all.

[Macybaby]

My folks had the same thing with their toilet. After years of everyone just knowing it wouldn't flush without plunging (it ran over if you didn't plunge) they finally got serious about trying to find the problem.

They had an old house and the toilet was installed near the chimney in the middle of the house. Over time the chimney settled and pulled the center of the house with it. Was just enough to change the slope of the 2' horizontal drain that went from the toilet to the down stack.

So, they raised 11 kids in a house with one toilet that never worked right - only to find it could have been easily fixed.

I grew up being afraid to flush toilets if there was not a plunger near by.

Cathy

[poppy]

Yep, either a plugged vent or drain line. Your toilet drain lines are connected to drain lines from your sinks, bath tubs, and possibly your washing machine before exiting the house. Grease down kitchen drains can build up and block lines. Powdered laundry detergent will often not dissolve completely and will cake up lines completely. Often the amount of water down a sink will do fine but the sudden surge of water from a flushing toilet will not.

[Old Vet]

Check to see if there are something in the toilet like a small toy or something like that. It will get hard to flush with something in their and will get worse if you don't get it out.

[Cheryl in SD]

The only plumbing repair I know how to do is to replace the flapper inside the tank. Our toilets wouldn't flush unless you held the handle down for 8 seconds. I replaced the flapper and now it works. It had continued to get worse over time. It couldn't be something as simple as that, could it?

[Ken Scharabok]

It is time to call in a profession plumbing/sewer service.

[Alice In TX/MO]

Ken is right. Call a plumber.

[Cabin Fever]

Are you saying that the toliets worked fine for years and this problem is something new?

I don't know who gave you the advice of having your septic tank pumped to correct the problem....bad advice IMHO. If every water using appliance in your home did not drain properly (eg washing machine, bathtub, kitchen sink, etc), then "yes" the problem could be a plugged septic system. But if the problem is isolated to just toliets, its not a full septic tank or plugged septic system.

Likewise, if the problem is a plugged vent you'd also be having problems with bathtub, washing machine, kitchen sink drainage. If those things drain just fine, my bet is on a plugged sewer line or trap in your toliets. I'd start by buying a "toliet auger." These short snakes are cheap (~$10) and are specifically made to clean out the trap within the toliet.

[Terri]

Do you have kids?

Many years ago I called a plumber out, and he said that kids brought him a lot of business.

As it turned out, we had 2 small plastic balls and a rubber duckie in there. According to the plumber, they float and an auger will go around them without grabbing them. Kids float the toys in the toilet and then flush to see them go round and round.

[pops550]

Have to agree with cabin fever. 30 yrs. at this place. Long story short, found plug of powdered soap,grease,etc. rat road up over it,so gave the illusion of no blockage. luckily I have a clean out on the end of line going from house to septic tank. used some 3/4 inch pipe and knocked the plug loose. It was about 12 inches long and 3inches thick. good luck.

[Rocky Fields]

Hey.

Sometimes it's a sharp edge on the inside diameter of your drain pipe or an intersection. A little TP or hair catches on it...then some more...until it forms a plug that never gets a chance to fully dissolve because you keep using the toilet. As said many times above, snake out your drain pipes.

RF

[ronbre]

never use charmin toilet paper # 1..and then do all of the above..and oh..the advice to pump was NOT bad advice..esp if your pumper said it was time.

have you put some really really good quality pipe clearer down? and the snake of course

[BobsBarn]

I had the exact same problem over several years. I snaked, pulled the plumbing apart in areas and had the septic tank inspected. I was at my witts end! Out of desparation I bought a new toilet and when I removed the old one the outlet at the bottom of the old stool was 75% plugged with hard water deposits. I knew my water was a little hard, but had little evidence of this with the rest of the house, so was very surprised. 5 years later the problem happened again, pulled stool and sure enough it was 50% plugged. You may want to pull the toilet and at least take a look. Snaking had no effect on fixing the problem.
Good luck
Bob

[Common Tator]

I don't know why, but after time the screws that hold the toilet to the floor loosen. When used, the toilet begins to wiggle, and the wax ring will work it's way into the hole that goes down the septic drain. That partially clogs the toilet. If there is a lot of TP or other solids, they hang up on the excess wax. You might just buy a new wax ring, and replace the old. If that isn't the problem, it is something inexpensive to try anyway, but I have had this happen on several toilets over the years.

[Harry Chickpea]

Snaking from the roof all the way to the tank is one possibility, and a lot of the other ideas are good as well. There is something else that can happen if you are in a "If it is yellow, let it mellow" house. The uric acid from urine can crystallize in the exit tube of the toilet. If this is the case, you'll know it almost immediately upon removing the toilet to inspect the base and wax ring. The smell is simply astounding. In a case like this, replace the toilet. Some of the crystals can be chipped away, but not all, and the smell will get worse, if anything. I have personally seen this in many public urinals and toilets.

[JWK]

Originally Posted by Cabin Fever

Are you saying that the toliets worked fine for years and this problem is something new?

I don't know who gave you the advice of having your septic tank pumped to correct the problem....bad advice IMHO. If every water using appliance in your home did not drain properly (eg washing machine, bathtub, kitchen sink, etc), then "yes" the problem could be a plugged septic system. But if the problem is isolated to just toliets, its not a full septic tank or plugged septic system.

Likewise, if the problem is a plugged vent you'd also be having problems with bathtub, washing machine, kitchen sink drainage. If those things drain just fine, my bet is on a plugged sewer line or trap in your toliets. I'd start by buying a "toliet auger." These short snakes are cheap (~$10) and are specifically made to clean out the trap within the toliet.

No problem with pumping the septic tank. We've been here almost six years and haven't done it, so it was due. I had that done without really thinking it would solve the problem.

I didn't mention that I took the upstairs toilet off and brought it outside. Ran water through it, looked it over, nothing seemed wrong. No noticable build up of anything.

[byexample]

OK, I'll take a stab here. I had a very similar problem with our toilet and I tried all sorts of things including snaking the line, unplugging the little holes around the bowl, readjusting the water level in the tank, checked the vent... all to no avail.

Just about the time I was ready to use the toilet for target practice I tried one more time to go over the toilet and it's operational parts in hopes of solving the problem.

In the bottom of the bowl, opposite the exit pipe is a small 1/2 inch or so hole that is supposed to send a gush of water into the bottom of the bowl to help with the flush. On our toilet that hole was plugged with calcium deposits and who knows what else. After running a wire in through there and unplugging that hole the toilet runs just like new again.

So give that a try and see if that doesn't fix your problem.

Good luck!!