Just curious, but what does the stuff poured directly into the bowl do? Is the intent of the whole exercise to also clean off any calcium deposits in the trap area along with those in the bowl rim passages?
Jeff
Not too long ago someone in this group explained how to use muratic acid to clean the calcium deposits from a slow running toilet. If the person is still here, or if anybody remembers the instructions, could you please post them. I had printed it out, but lost it. TIA
Cheri
It was me, it works awesome!
First IDEALLY the toilet bowl will have NO water in it! So plunge or sponge out the water in the bottom of the bowl.
Tank water doesnt matter.
Wear safety glasses, have window on or exhaust fan on.
Use funnel pour about a cup down the dip tube, and perhaps a cup in the bowl. Work pretty fast.
Like take a deep breathe, hold it, pour in acid, leave room wear rubber gloves.
Shut door wait 15 minutes, flush repeatedly like 5 to 10 times.
Actually despite the warnings muriatic acid is pretty mild, you DONt want it in your eyes or splashed on floor or belongings but I touched some just to see, my finger didnt rot off:)
dO IT TWICE IF NECESSARY, you will likely see lots of brown gunk from the bowl rim in the bowl.
Do you know about groups.google.com ? Try that too, and you can probably find it. Regular google doesn't search newsgroups, or at least not much.
Do the advanced search, and specify the newsgroup. Although sometimes it will still mix in other groups. I can't figure out how that works.
I mentioned in another post of how I used the "hallerb method". Helping a Realtor to fix a toilet. A tank washer had a leak, so I pulled the tank. Having planned ahead from your previous advice I had the acid with me. I poured about two cups of acid into the flapper hole directly. Up floated a syringe from the bowl rim. Used a needle nose pliers thinking it was a q-tip. Apparently the krack head was hiding a syringe in the tank and it got past the flapper into the bowl rim.
The toilet worked perfect once back together.
Outstanding advice.
-- Oren
"The voices in my head may not be real, but they have some good ideas!"
It's been a long time since chem class, but it seems to me the gas given off would be hydrogen (and possibly oxygen). I would expect the chlorine to combine with the calcium.
Not that hydrogen gas isn't pretty hard on the eyes and nose.
Go to Google, then groups, then "advanced search". You will be able to specify the group (alt.home.repair), date range, sub., etc.
Nope, the fumes are hydrogen chloride (HCl) gas.
Muriatic acid, aka hydrochloric acid, is just a solution of HCl in water.
I know how to specify the group. I recommended it.
I mean that I don't know when or why it sometimes mixes in threads from other groups, EVEN when I specify the group.
Cheri,
I have also posted a version of this in the group. I never suggested pouring in down the overflow tube. I always just added it to the bowl. Pouring it down the overflow tube is good advice as it will remove any build up in the rim area.
Please follow the instructions to open the window, turn on the exhaust fan and close the bathroom door. If you do not have an exhaust fan, use a box fan in the window blowing out. The fumes are really nasty.
Colbyt
Thank you so much, and thanks to everyone who answered.
Cheri
I do know about them, but for some reason my machine is freezing when I go there and try to bring up different pages. I have win 98, and I think it's just about ready for the scrap heap.
Cheri
yeah it cleans the trap but more important the large water entrance hole, thats where the flapper water goes.
all combined its amazing how much crud dissolves.
I fixed a friends toilet her hubby had given up on 2 years earlier. Its their only toilet:( whewn flushed water just swirls around but if flushed with a bucket everything goes down fine. this means the passages are clogged.
Sorry to be a putz, hallerb, but when I pour into the diptube most of the acid comes out the fjirst couple of holes in the rim. Is there a trick to getting it past the first ones? Maybe I poured too slowly. I wonder if that's it (the putz thinks to himself). I have done one other thing in the past for the rim holes. Using a 6 penny nail with a 90* bend for a handle, I twisted and worked it into the holes. Your acid method sounds far easier and more effective, though.
I have win98 also. That's not the problem. Groups.google and web-search google are mostly text oriented and don't use fancy graphics or fancy html commands. Precisely so everyone can use them. You should ask on the win98 group, not because it is a win98 problem, but because we don't know where the problem is, or on a browser group. IE, which I avoid using more than once every 3 months or so, has a new version that won't run on win98 (but I'm sure the version of Ie that you have is capable of reading groups.google) and FireFox 2 works fine, and there is Netsacpe 7.1 and the new verions 8.1.
microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion
It's probably my browser, I have upgraded to IE 6, but my machine is pretty full too, not much of the pie left. My newsreader for OE is 4.5 very old, but I like it, so never upgraded it. I do ask lots of questions in the windows 98 group. That's the only reason that I know the little bit that I do know, that and help from people in the groups.
Cheri
well you can duct tape all the holes shut.... but its really not necessary, then you would have acid soaked duct tape:(
just repeat the doses, and pour fast so the acid has enough force to reach ALL the way around.
its not a bad idea to open all the holes the best you can with a bent coathanger BEFORE doing acid.
Yes it does. I tried it this morning...it's a miracle. The funny thing is, I spent $311.47 having all the lines roto-rooted in the past few months, and it cost me $6.11 with funnel included to use your method. Thanks again. :-)
Cheri
I need to save this discussion for some odd reasons people dont want to use it or believe it doesnt work:(
If roto rooter found tree roots heres another cheap miracle cure, 4 or
5 times a year dump 25 pounds of rock salt or softener in your basement wash tub, add hot water and stir with a board or something. get lots of salt water in the main sewer line, then leave the house for the day so no water is used.the salt water safely kills the tree roots while leaving the trees unharmed. espically important in early spring just before trees leaf out, thats when max root growth occurs, they are looking for a good supply of water, bonus if its fertilized.
best 25 bucks a year you will ever spend. my main sewer line has roots in every terracota joint but one, this has worked for about 10 years now and saved 8 to 10 grand for new line plus lots of restoration........
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