DIY Supermarket

When the toilet gets blocked it is no laughing matter. On the scale of domestic emergencies, a blocked loo rates pretty highly. So it is understandable, then, that the first thing many of us do is reach for the telephone to call in help from the emergency plumber.

Calling in the experts can be expensive, and if you are inclined to have a look at the problem yourself you may be surprised at how simple it is to fix. Blockages in toilets are most frequently caused by foreign objects or an excess of toilet paper being flushed down them.

Your first job is to locate where the blockage is. If possible, check below the outdoor drain inspection cover closest to the toilet’s evacuation outlet pipe. Should you discover the chamber is full, use a drain rod to clear the chamber and surrounding areas around the waste pipe. However, if the chamber is empty and pipework is clear, the blockage’s location is somewhere further up between the toilet and the inspection chamber.

Go back into the toilet and insert a drain-clearing wire down the toilet bowl – push it as far as it will go. Have someone keeping a watch over the drain inspection chamber outside so they can advise you if it becomes clear. Any material that comes free should be removed when it reaches the inspection chamber to avoid it causing problems further down the drain.

The plunger is the first tool many people reach for when the toilet is blocked and it is often an effective choice. Also useful is the toilet auger that can be found in DIY stores. This tool has a flexible reach that works in a corkscrew motion to clear pipe blockages. Less sophisticated methods can be popular too, with many householders reporting success using a domestic mop covered with a plastic carrier bag as an improvised toilet plunger.