5 Reasons Your Toilet Won’t Flush & How To Fix It
Is your toilet not flushing properly? Don’t worry; you’re not alone. Many homeowners experience this problem at one time or another. And if you only have one toilet in your home, then you know how big of an emergency it can be.
While we recommend you let the professionals handle the dirty work, you may find your toilet troubles to be an easy fix. In this blog, you’ll learn some of the common causes of why toilets won’t flush and the steps you can take if you want to tackle it on your own.
If you’re wondering why you’re toilet won’t flush, here are 5 common causes and how to fix it:
1. The Toilet is Clogged
Though this symptom may be obvious, the cause can often be a mystery. If it’s something as simple as too much toilet paper, a small toy, or feminine care products, your plunger is your best bet. However, consider getting clogged toilet cleaning services if you’re finding that your toilet gets clogged too frequently or think the clog is deeper than you expected.
To help prevent clogs, be mindful not to flush anything other than waste and toilet paper. Yes, this means you shouldn’t flush “flushable” wipes, either.
2. Tank Has Too Little Water
If your toilet won’t flush and it’s not clogged, it could be that the tank has too little water. After every flush, you should hear the sound of water filling your toilet tank back up. If you don’t hear this running sound and the water in the tank is low, it could mean your valve was turned off. If so, the fix is as simple as twisting the flush valve back on.
Another reason the toilet won’t flush, even if it’s not clogged, is that your float ball isn’t adjusting to the water levels in your toilet. To fix this, you might need an expert.
3. The Flapper Is Damaged
The flapper is a rubber piece that opens and seals off the intake hole to allow water into the tank to flush everything down the drain. However, a warped, bent, or otherwise broken flapper will leave you with a constantly “filling” toilet. This is because the flapper can no longer close the water intake hole to allow the tank to fill back up, essentially resulting in never having “flushing” water.
Luckily, flappers are fairly easy and inexpensive to replace. If this doesn’t fix the problem, you may want to settle for toilet repair services instead.
4. The Lift Chain Is Loose or Disconnected
The lift chain lifts and lowers your toilet’s flapper to cover and uncover the intake hole. If it’s broken, disconnected, or has too much slack, it won’t be able to lift the flapper and allow your toilet to flush. If it’s disconnected or has too much slack, you can easily reattach or readjust it. Like the flapper, replacing a broken chain is relatively easy and cheap.
5. The Overflow Tube Is Cracked
When all else fails and your toilet STILL won’t flush, check your overflow tube. A cracked overflow tube will prevent your toilet’s tank from filling due to water flowing into the tube instead of the tank. And like we said before – no water means no flushing.
Unlike the flapper and lift chain, this part of your toilet is a bit more complex and requires tools to replace it. For this problem, it’s best to call our expert plumbers to handle the toilet repair for you.
Toilet Repair in Ohio & Northern Kentucky
If you’ve gone through the list but found no relief from your toilet turmoil, the expert plumbers at Schneller Knochelmann can help. No matter how big or small, we do everything from leaks and cracks to clogs and maintenance.