Blocked Toilet? How To Unblock Your Loo Without A Plunger
Oh no! You’ve got guests arriving soon and your toilet is blocked. A problem that’s easily solved if you could only find that plunger. But where is it? By the toilet? In the cupboard under the sink? No! Did you ever even buy one?
If you don’t have a plunger and have no time to visit a DIY store, what can do you do? Tell your visitors it’s off? No way. Because there are plenty of ways you can quickly and easily unblock a toilet without a plunger and they all involve using items that you’re likely to find lying around your house.
So, step away from that blocked toilet, find a seat somewhere and discover some easy ways to unblock your loo that you might never have thought possible.
Before attempting any of the following hacks, be sure to place newspaper on the floor around your WC and pull on some rubber gloves. Here goes.
THE LIQUID LOOSENER
Items required:
- Washing-up liquid
- Mug
- Bucket
- Baking soda
- Vinegar
Method: This is probably the best-smelling way to unblock a toilet, although obviously, that does depend on whether you like the smell of washing-up liquid.
Start by half-filling the mug with washing-up liquid and then pour it into the toilet, letting it drip around the bowl so you get a ring around the water line. Next, pour the rest of the liquid in a criss-cross shape across the water surface itself.
Leave for about half an hour so that the liquid can work its magic on whatever’s causing the clog.
When the time’s up, fill the bucket with hot water and, standing over the toilet, hold the bucket near your waist and pour the water into the toilet. The power of the water being poured from such a height should dislodge whatever’s blocking the toilet.
Wait about ten minutes before flushing. Hopefully, your toilet will be back to normal. If not, repeat the process until the blockage clears.
To make extra sure that whatever was causing the blockage has totally gone, fill the mug with baking soda and pour it down the toilet. Then fill the mug twice with vinegar and send all that into the toilet as well. It’ll create a bubbling mixture similar to the brew you might expect to see in a witch’s cauldron. Leave it for half an hour before flushing. Any remnants of that blockage-causing item simply won’t have stood a chance!
TOILET BOMBS
Items required:
- 70g citric acid
- 300g baking soda
- Water to spray
- Rubber spatula
- Ice cube tray
Method: Mix together the citric acid and baking soda in a bowl, then spray some water over the mixture until what’s in the bowl starts to form a single mass (it only takes a little water, so don’t spray too much otherwise it will start to bubble).
Next, scoop the mixture out of the bowl with the spatula and press it into the individual ice cube trays. You can add fragrance to the mixture to make it smell nicer if you want to but either way, you need to leave it overnight to dry out.
The next day, you’ll have lots of little square toilet bombs which you can use to unblock your toilet. You only need to drop one or two into your toilet bowl in the evening and leave overnight to clear any blockages. You can store the rest in a jar in your bathroom and use them when you need them.
THE CLING FILM CLEARANCE
Items required:
- An old towel
- Cling film
Method: Before you start, you need to know that the cling film clearance method works best with high pressure water systems. If yours is low pressure, or you don’t know what the pressure level is, this might not be your best option.
To begin, roll-up your sleeves and check the surface of your toilet bowl is dry because you’re going to be covering it with three layers of cling film. Make sure it’s firmly in place over the porcelain so your toilet is air-tight. Then flush.
What happens next should be pretty impressive. The cling film will balloon upwards because of the pressure caused by the flush. All you need to do is gently push down on the cling film to reverse the suction and clear the blockage.
THE COAT HANGER HACK
Items required:
- Wire coat hanger
Method: This one is easy but, for the best results, use in conjunction with The Liquid Loosener (see above). To begin with, you’ll need to untwist your coat hanger until it’s straight. Then bend one end to form a U-shape. Push and pull this end in and out of the toilet to break the blockage up so that it can flow away.
THE FULL-TOILET FREEDOM METHOD
Items required:
- Plastic bottle
- Scissors (to cut the bottom off the bottle)
- A small container
Method: Having a blocked toilet is one thing. Having a blocked toilet that’s full of, well… toilet, that’s a whole new level in the unpleasantness stakes. You will definitely need to wear gloves for this one, maybe even some old clothes too. It could get messy, but no full toilet ever got unblocked without a little mess.
Start by cutting the bottom off a plastic bottle. The reason for this will become clear shortly. Put the bottle to one side for a minute and start to scoop some of the water out of the toilet bowl using a small container. You want to be able to get your hand into the toilet bowl without water flowing over the sides.
When you can do that, back to your plastic bottle. Either put the lid on it or hold your thumb over the top to cover the hole. Lower the open end of the bottle into the toilet bowl and then thrust it up and down vigorously, just like you would if you had a plunger handy (but you don’t, remember, that’s why you’re holding half a plastic bottle!)
You need to ensure the bottle remains submerged in the toilet bowl water throughout as that will create the vacuum required to suck the blockage back into the main drain.
One of these hacks is sure to work for you and save you from the embarrassment of having a blocked toilet (not to mention the annoyance of not having a plunger).
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