Cleaning drain clogs

[Ken]

Almost every type of drain cleaner specifies that they should NOT be used in a toilet. Why is that?

Is it because they feel there is too much standing water in the toilet due to the size of the trap?

Or does the cleaner have an adverse effect on the wax seal used for the toilet bowl?

The reason I ask is I had a poorly flushing toilet and plunging it did not improve the situation. I tried a snake but the trap of the toilet and the direction of the drain pipe underneath it made the snake ineffective. I ended up removing the toilet and used a snake. What I discovered is the toilet met up with the tub drain pipe, and I know this from the hair I pulled from the piping with the snake and the direction the piping went.

The toilet flushes, but my guess is there is still some hair from the tub that is restricting the flow. So my question is: If I were to remove the water in the toilet and put some drain cleaner into the toilet after the trap, would that cause any unforeseen problems?

I have already put some cleaner into the tub drain, and a snake will not go into this drain due to the drain hardware of the tub. Thanks.

[Vic Smith]

Might be the toilet internal passages are scaled up, and it has nothing to do with the drain.

[Ed Pawlowski]

It could have an adverse affect on the bowl too, but I'm not positive.

If you pour it into the toilet, it sits in the bowl and does nothing for the clog in the drain. You have to get it past the bowl.

[TomR]

If it is an old house with lead drain lines tied into the 4-inch cast iron toilet drain line almost right at the toilet, you can sometimes take the toilet off and see where the tub drain ties in there. You could then access the tub drain line from there with the toilet off. It just depends on what setup you have, but some of the old plumbing drain lines are set up that way.

[clare]

Blow the line with compressed air. I have an "air plunger" that clears blockages quite effectivey - air ofer hydraulic ram principal.

[Ken]

I appreciate your reply, but it is undoubtedly due to the hair from the tub, as that is what I retrieved when I removed the toilet. I used the acid to remove calcium from the passages of the toilet, so they are clear.

[Ken]

This is something I had not thought of. Why do they state that drain cleaners should not be used in toilets???

[Stormin Mormon]

You know, that opens up the question. Why do drain cleaners say not to use them in toilets?

[philoÂÂ]

The reason for the warning is that drain cleaners can cause a lot of heat and that could crack the porcelain.

[TomR]

My guess is that acid-type drain cleaners will damage the porcelain toilet. And, Drano-type alkali drain cleaners probably just don't work on toilet clogs -- they work (supposedly) on hair clogs etc. that are in sink and tub drains.

The drain hardware in the tub can be any one of a number of different configurations. I assume that you cannot, or do not want to, open up the ceiling below the tub drain to see which type of configuration you have. If you are just going through the tub drain itself, that sometimes does not work due to the configuration of the trap etc. But, if you are lucky, and you take to overflow cover off of the tub up near the spout, you can sometimes put a snake down through there and it will make the turns that you need to get into the drain line. But, again, it depends on what the plumbing configuration is for your particular tub.

Another possibility is (although you probably already tried this) is to go to YouTube.com and do a search for videos on tub drain cleaning. There are many, and you can look through them to see if they show any options that you have not yet tried.

Good luck. Let us know if you figure out something that works.

[TomR]

Somehow that seems doubtful to me. Do you happen to know of any source to confirm that? I am just curious.

[gfretwell]

It probably eats the porcelain

[philoÂÂ]

Plumbing Circle

[clare]

Because they are almost totally ineffective. The only thing they can accomplish is clean out the trap.

[clare]

That too.

[Ken]

The overflow idea sounds good, I might try that. Thanks.

[Bill Gill]

As Seen on TV. I recall the ads for a drain cleaner that was supposed to be wonderful at cleaning out traps. Essentially it was a very thin snake that could be run down into the trap. I didn't think much of it, but it might be possible to clean out the tub trap with it. I suspect that it would be pretty exasperating to use, but it might work.

Bill

[clare]

Sierra Tools - Drain Sweep. I have one - have never used it - Chintzy looking thing.

[J Burns]

When a toilet flushes slowly, sometimes it's because the water from the tank isn't entering the bowl fast enough to raise the level and get things flowing fast. If it happened to me, I'd dump a bucket of water into the bowl to see if that, too, drained slowly.

[Stormin Mormon]

The only Drano® product recommended for use in a slow toilet is Drano® Max Build-Up Remover. When used according to label directions, the microorganisms in this product will break down toilet paper and organic matter in pipes, which can slow water flow. (This product will NOT open a completely clogged toilet.)

Do not use any other Drano® product in toilets. Drano® Kitchen Crystals Clog Remover generates heat that can cause the vitreous china in the toilet bowl to crack. Drano® Liquid Clog Remover and Drano® Max Gel Clog Remover do not contain microorganisms. The trap configuration in toilets prevents the Drano® Liquid Clog Remover and Drano® Max Gel Clog Remover from reaching areas where matter can accumulate and cause plumbing problems?so these products are ineffective in toilets.