Clogged toilets can be frustrating in any situation, but if you find yourself without a toilet plunger to handle the clog, you might feel especially helpless. Believe it or not, there are several methods you can utilize to get your stubborn toilet unclogged, even without a plunger. While using any of these methods, it’s a good idea to wear some rubber gloves because toilets are naturally full of germs and bacteria. You should also consider whether you need to remove some water from the toilet bowl before implementing any of these methods; the last thing you want to do is accidentally cause an overflow in the process of unclogging your toilet!
First, you can try to push the clog through by squeezing a warm water bottle headfirst into the toilet drain. If it works, celebrate your victory with an extra flush! If not, try it one or two more times. A similar method to try is heating up about a gallon of water on the stove (making sure it gets hot but doesn’t reach the boiling point), adding some soap or shampoo to the toilet bowl to help things move better and then pouring the hot water into the toilet. (This is definitely a method that might require removing some of the water from the toilet bowl first!)
If it’s still not unclogging, don’t freak out and call your go-to plumbing company Ohio straightaway; try snaking the clog! If you have a plumbing snake on hand, that will work well, but if you don’t have one, you can replicate a rough version of one out of a wire coat hanger and use that instead. Unless the clog is too deep to snake out, you should encounter some resistance in the process of snaking.
Another method for clearing out a clog is adding baking soda and vinegar. Before you begin this method, be sure the water level is low enough for some serious bubbling to occur. Simply add baking soda and then vinegar (at a 1:2 ratio) to the toilet bowl and let it settle. Then flush the toilet and see if the clog has cleared.
If none of these methods works for you, buying a plunger might be the right next step, as plungers are affordable and effective for clearing toilet clogs. It’s also worth noting that, depending upon what is actually clogging the toilet drain, sometimes a clog might clear itself out on its own if you give it enough time, so simply waiting for 30 minutes to an hour might actually be all you need to do to fix the problem.
Of course, it’s a good idea to take steps to avoid toilet clogs in the first place. It may be obvious, but be sure not to overpack your toilet with toilet tissue before flushing. (If you have kids, you might need to work on this one with them.) And don’t let objects such as medications, floss, or trash of any kind find their way into the toilet. (This is also an important lesson for young children.)
All it takes is a little bit of time, energy and ingenuity to take care of even a stubborn toilet clog and get back to what you really want to be doing with your day.
