Toilet is a Tool, Right?

[Steve@Advance]

Under the category of unsolved mysteries...

Toilet in the seldom used guest bath. It always flushes good, no one in the house but my wife and me, no guests.

Friday afternoon I made a #1 stop, flushed, and the water just rose up, no flush.

I get the plunger, no success. It felt strange, like I could not get a good seal, could feel no resistance. Never got the water to move, clogged solid. All I got was some crumbly pieces of something black in the bowl, got no usual pieces of paper.

Asked my wife if she had any problem with it, or had cleaned it. No, said she hadn't been back there in a couple days and no one had been over.

I got up this morning with the intention of tackling it, probably have to take it up. The level had slowly dropped overnight, I flushed it again, it flushed perfectly! Tried it again a couple times today, no problem.

Strange!

 

[Charles in Aus.]

Vapour lock ? for want of a more precise term . Something may have generated gas :shock: and created a temporary buildup . That would tally with not feeling any resistance .

 

[the tractor vet]

HUMMM ya may have had some kind of CRITTER in the pipe . That is one job i really nee to scyic myself up for . But normally the only time i ever have had a problem was on a Sunday night on a Holiday weekend at midnight . when ya could not even run to walmarts for a makeshift fix . solved that problem after the first round as NOW i have a well stocked supply of parts for the sink , tub / shower and the throne . Even have 40 feet of 1/2 inch copper and every fitting made for man and 40 feet of 3/4 copper and fittings and all valves . I even have the new Delta shower / tub cartage and the tool to replace it with . Two yeas ago when the Cleveland Clinic kicked me out after the slice and dice job and new Hyd lines install all i wanted was a HOT SHOWER IN MY SHOWER and Low and behold the valve in the shower took a dump and i could not shut off the water . I was not allowed to work on it as the War Dept threw a Hissy fit , i called my one friend to lead a hand and like always something simple turned into a night mare and required MORE work .

 

[matthies]

Like Charles said, had a vapor lock or FART, it couldn't digest. Have the same problem here on a well used toilet.

 

[4play]

Another guess:
If other connections are upstream from this toilet, maybe things passing down the main, got diverted into the connecting line and clogged it. I'm envision a slug of paper collecting and plugging the line, maybe even partially drying Flushing the toilet not only applies pressure to the clog, the water might help soften and free it.

 

[Bill Tattersall]

Do other toilets in your house flush? If not and you have a septic system, check the spreader at the inlet in the first septic tank, Mine was clogged and a couple of quick pokes freed everything up.

 

[Stephen Newell]

Sounds about right, after the obstruction soaked in water long enough it got soft enough to go on through.

 

[Steve@Advance]

Well, more has been revealed...

This morning we both showered and when I was showering the drain backed up in the shower, and both toilets would not flush.

So I take the clean out cap off, and sure enough water comes up out of the clean out. Which means the line to the street is clogged, or the city sewer is backed up.

But what is strange, when I took the cap off the cleanout, only a little water came up, I was expecting a good amount. And the toilets still would not flush.

But after a few minutes they did go down, the shower drained, and now the level has dropped in the cleanout, but I still see water.

And why did the tub not back up? the level in the toilet was way higher than the tub drain.

I'm going to wait and see if maybe it's the city sewer, but probably have to go rent the machine and clean the pipe to the street.

More to come!

 

[ldj]

(quoted from post at 08:22:42 09/12/21) Well, more has been revealed...

This morning we both showered and when I was showering the drain backed up in the shower, and both toilets would not flush.

So I take the clean out cap off, and sure enough water comes up out of the clean out. Which means the line to the street is clogged, or the city sewer is backed up.

But what is strange, when I took the cap off the cleanout, only a little water came up, I was expecting a good amount. And the toilets still would not flush.

But after a few minutes they did go down, the shower drained, and now the level has dropped in the cleanout, but I still see water.

And why did the tub not back up? the level in the toilet was way higher than the tub drain.

I'm going to wait and see if maybe it's the city sewer, but probably have to go rent the machine and clean the pipe to the street.

More to come!

If city has sewer problems up then probably neighbors are having problem. Ask them.

 

[jimg.allentown]

From the evidence you present, I have a few thoughts...

Possibility #1 - tree roots or something similar in the line out to the street.

Possibility #2 - If there is an open vent someplace, it is possible that a critter may have crawled into the soil stack or exit line.

Possibility #3 - The vent on the roof could be plugged with something along the lines of a bird nest or the carcass of something that was killed and stashed by a raptor.

Possibility #4 - Municipal sewer line could be backed up from excess flow from whatever source. Storm runoff, broken water main, a stream overflowing or backing up into the sewer system.

When you are dealing with a (generally) 4-inch pipe, it takes quite a bit to plug it up.

 

[rustred]

it sure seams like a squirrel or cat something got into the top roof vent. i have went trough that ordeal. i now wonder why there is no screen on those vents.

 

[DoubleO7]

Until solved for sure, I would go outside and dig a hole away from house. And expose the sewer line that connects to the city mainline.
Hopefully at a spot that once the hole is full of sewage, it will flow away from the house.

Doing the above would allow me to do an emergency disconnect from the main. Using sawsall or sledge hammer if I had to.
If the municipal sewer is having problems, I would do all that before it backs up into the house.
I would not want to have a need to open the front door to let that crap out of the house.

 

[Janicholson]

I had one 2 years ago with the same issue: input no exit. After pushing 100 feet of rented saw toothed rooter into the pipe to the street, it cleared. A wise person at the rental place suggested using only reasonable cost TP, not expensive deluxe softer than goose down paper. The lower cost paper actually decomposes to fiber within a few minutes, and liquifies. The squeezable type can stay in sheet form and build up into a cork. Jim

 

[1948CaseVAI]

I dunno where you live but in our city of about 330,000 the city has a large staff that does nothing but maintenance and as a result we virtually never have a city sewer problem. They jet clean all lines at least every couple of years and dig and replace anything questionable. We know when they are going to jet the neighborhood because they go door to door and advise everyone to cover the toilets with saran wrap because they sometimes cause blowback.

If you have visible water in the cleanout there is no reason to dig anything at all. Just have the line cleaned by a sewer guy or, if you are experienced, rent the machine and DIY. It is 97 feet from my cleanout to the manhole and I hire it done every two years as maintenance and it costs less than $300, which I consider dirt cheap for the peace of mind (I have large trees).

 

[Charles in Aus.]

I once did a similar thing 007 .
Horrible next door neighbour's storm water drain was backing up and flooding under our house . I found the drain forty feet further away and used a hole saw on an extension rod to cut a 50mm hole in it. Water gushed up like a fountain a metre high for almost ten minutes running back into his yard .
When he realised it was flooding under his house as well he finally got off his @r$e and did something about it .