toilet requires two flushes

Hello,

my toilet very rarely flushes on the first try. Always on the second consecutive try. At first I thought I had a clog so I called a plumber. He used an auger and seemed to resolve my problem, he had two successfull flushes in a row. Anyway about a week later I started to have the problem again. Instead of calling a plumber again I purchased the same auger he used and tried to clear it but I still had the problem even after the auger went all the way in. I tried the auger three times with no luck.

What is weird is that after the first flush some "items" go down the drain but I don't get that good final flush. I have to flush again when the tank refills and what I did notice is that when I perform the second flush the level of water in the bowl is higher, since it has some remaining water from the last failed flush. Now I am thinking that perhaps my problem is not a clog somewhere that I can't reach with the auger but perhaps the level of water in the bowl is not high enough before the flush to complete the flush. Is this possible, does the water level in the bowl make a difference and if so what is causing this problem? Unless of course there is a clog that was not resolved by the auger and requires multiple flushes. I don't know, it is a flushing mystery. Any ideas would be appreciated, please don't tell me I need a new bowl, this one is only 9 years old, a unque, discontinued color that matches my sink, an American Standard elongated bowl.

thanks
cj

Still sounds like you have a clog. The first flush fills up the line, keeping the tank from self-leveling (emptying itself to the design level). Then when more is added, that increased level give the second flush a little more oomph.

I wonder if your toilets are first generation low-flow. These often caused problems of poor flushing. As I understand it, this was due to the fact that the manufacturers tried to used the old designs with less water. They have largely solved that problem, some manufacturers better than others, with larger trap ways that do an excellent job of flushing. If this is the problem, then the only answer is a new toilet.

Jim, if that were true then why does the flush complete itself when I don't wait for the bowl to fill up all the way, sometimes I am tired of waiting for the tank to fill up all the way and I flush before it has completed it's full fill and it flushes succesfully. If there is a clog and it is beyond an auger what is the next step in clearing a suspected clog. This bowl is in an upstairs bathroom.

I don't think it is a low flow, I would think I would have had the problem all the time and this is just a recent development.

Sorry I used the thumbs down icon before I meant use the question mark although the thumbs down expresses how I feel about my bowls flushing.<g>


thanks for your suggestions. I think that before I invest in a new bowl I will exhaust the clog possibility question becasue if there is a clog a new bowl won't make a difference.

cj

Sometimes a partial blockage will block the first flush and the second flush will clear it.
We come accross a lot of items like tooth brushes or Q-tips which will hold back the paper towel and a snake will pass right by it, but will dislodge itself until the next time.


Make sure you have the larger closet auger

cloged toilet

Cj,
If the bowl is 9 years old it still may need to be replace; other words its on the old side. It can possibly be a clog in the bowl. I would use a pluger and pluge hard right after eachother. Make sure to flush the toilet so that there is water in this while you are doing it.
Hope this helps!
TD

To check the "normal" water height in a toilet bowl, get a pail of water and slowly pour some in. If you do it slow enough, you'll reach a point where the level won't go up any more. That's as full as it can get. If it ever gets higher than that point and stays there, something is preventing it from flowing out. If it never gets to that point in normal operation, the bowl fill hose may not be directed to the overflow tube in the tank.