Cloudy Water in Tank After Refill

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Glnow

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Hi

I’ve got a toilet which over the last week doesn’t seem to be flushing as well as it used to. I’m judging this by the "gurgling" sound that comes from the bowl when the last of the water runs down the drain; it doesn’t seem as loud and forceful. I did a quick snake of the drain with an auger and there was no change or sign that I had dislogged any debris down there.

I opened up the tank and what I noticed is that when the tank refills, the new water in the tank is very milky/cloudy for ~1 minute and then becomes clear as it sits in the tank.

My first thought sediment somewhere in the fill line. But the water flow into overflow tube looks steady and the flush/refill process still takes about the same amount of time. Also, the cold water flow coming out of shower and sink in the same bathroom look good as well. If there was a suddenly a large amount of sediment in the line I would think I’d be seeing some flow restrictions.

Also, no other outlets in the house are giving water with this degree of cloudiness.

Any other causes that may be behind this?

Thanks,
Greg
 
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Jadnashua

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Sounds like you're seeing micro bubbles that eventually all pop as they rise to the surface. If the tank is filling to the normal height and the bowl is too, then there's likely a partial clog that may be beyond where your auger got to.
 

Glnow

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Thanks!

Regarding the micobubbles, some other people have mentioned that as well and that they may result from water at different temps mixing? If true, that may really explain why it started recently as we just went through a heat wave here. Either way nice to know that isn’t something major.

I usually do an enzyme treatment on that toilet every 30 days. I'll do another one and see if that clears up the partial clog.
 

Glnow

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About the microbubbles or the enzyme treatment?

If it's the latter, I see your point that it may not be enough. However, since I started to use the treatments 2 years ago, the frequency that I need to clear this toilet has gone down dramatically, from once every 1-2 months to about once every 12 months. So maybe I’ll get lucky this time :)
 
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Jadnashua

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Drain pipes should go decades without problems...if you have difficulties every year, you likely have a failure or design problem. There could be a low spot (belly), pitch problem, crushed pipe, rough spot, or roots, or something in there causing a restriction, and then a periodic clog. You can treat the symptoms, or effect a cure. Maybe it's time for a plumber to run a camera down the line to see what's actually going on.
 

Glnow

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Thanks, I will definitely keep that in mind (hiring a pro), especially if the problems gets any worse. By the way, a lot cooler today and no more cloudy water in the tank when it fills.
 

Redwood

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The enzyme treatment was what I wasn't overly optomistic on...

That is more for lines like kitchen and lav sinks...
Not toilets....
 
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Sounds like you're seeing micro bubbles that eventually all pop as they rise to the surface. If the tank is filling to the normal height and the bowl is too, then there's likely a partial clog that may be beyond where your auger got to.

if the thread is concerning bubbles Estero the tank then why would an auger be used to clear a clog? Tank has nothing to do with the conditions of the drain line. Can you please explain? Am I missing something here?
 
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