Slow Toilet

[Gazoo]

Minerals in the trapway causing slow flushing? Seems improbable to me, because a trapway is big. The toilet is slow to accept water, and the minerals would have to be incredibly thick to slow water significantly.

Minerals in the siphon jet can reduce flushing performance, but in this case, pouring a big bucket of water right into the bowl also shows reduced acceptance of water. So something other than minerals in the trapway IMO.

What would be a good solvent to dissolve or weaken the something?

I'm the only one living here and using the toilet. I don't flush anything not supposed to be flushed. I would need something safe on porcelain and safe on pipes.

I also did the thorough process of an enzyme cleaner every morning for a month. No help. I don't know if the quality or effectiveness of enzymes varies from brand-to-brand, but the store only had the Drano version...Max, I think it was called.

 

[Fitter30]

Bathrooms back to back?

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Peterson]

I think you should pull the toilet and inspect the trapway of the toilet bowl. Something could be lodged in there. I had a similar situation years ago with a slower flushing toilet when the other toilets in the house flushed just fine. Turns out that someone accidentally flushed a dryer sheet down the toilet and it was caught in the trapway on a snag of rough porcelain.

 

[Gazoo]

Bathrooms back to back?

No, but the bathrooms are across the hall from each other and one sets about five feet behind the other.

 

[Gazoo]

I think you should pull the toilet and inspect the trapway of the toilet bowl. Something could be lodged in there. I had a similar situation years ago with a slower flushing toilet when the other toilets in the house flushed just fine. Turns out that someone accidentally flushed a dryer sheet down the toilet and it was caught in the trapway on a snag of rough porcelain.

This sound involved. Is it difficult? Would I have to replace the wax ring or something else?

 

[Reach4]

What would be a good solvent to dissolve or weaken the something?

A big drain cleaning machine run by a drain cleaning specialist.

 

[Tuttles Revenge]

I'm in aggreance with Peterson. There is no reason to attempt to dissolve any solids without knowing exactly what solids you're dissolving. It may be a piece of plastic that fell in, or the horn of a wax ring, or wax or a rat...

The best course of action would be to remove the toilet and investigate the cause directly.

And yes, removal and resetting a toilet typically involves replacing the wax ring with a new one. Possibly the bolts as well if they're rusty.

 

[Reach4]

Note that no reasonable chemical would be useful for these:

GI Joe, What we find in toilets

GI Joe takes a ride in a toilet, and finds that life can be the dumps at times. We got a call this week, "Their toilet was plugging up, so they had called a plumber to come out. He thought that maybe it was a defective bowl." Though we had installed the toilet for her previously, she...

terrylove.com

Badly Plugged Toilet

I live in an apartment I sublease a coop. I have lived in apartments all my life I never seen one I could not unplug either with a plunger or auger until yesterday. Eventually the water seeps down but something is clogging it badly solids will not flush. I called the super and he came with this...

terrylove.com

 

[Peterson]

This sound involved. Is it difficult? Would I have to replace the wax ring or something else?

It shouldn't be too difficult. There are several videos on Youtube for replacing the wax ring on the toilet. If you have never done this before, I would have a friend help you. It involves draining and lifting the toilet off the floor.

 

[Robert Gift]

I have two Briggs 4440-1.6 gpf toilets in my home. One is rarely-used and flushes fine. The other is frequently-used and has started to flush slowly down the drain. When I flush, the water gets alarmingly high and then unimpressively flushes.

I would pour a half gallon of white vinegar into the toilet and let it soak a day or longer by using the other toilet.
Is there an unseen jet in the trapwayvhich is clogged and not forcing the water up the trap and out?

 

[Gazoo]

I would pour a half gallon of white vinegar into the toilet and let it soak a day or longer by using the other toilet.
Is there an unseen jet in the trapwayvhich is clogged and not forcing the water up the trap and out?

I don't know if there is a hidden jet in the trap way. The toilet is a Briggs 4440 but I can't find much about its internal workings.

Where does the water from the tank go after I flush a toilet...any toilet? Are all toilets designed to not only send water into the bowl but also into the drain behind the bowl?

 

[Gazoo]

I don't understand the inconsistencies of my tests.

With water idle in the bowl, I'll pour a 10-oz glass of water into the bowl, and then all the water in the bowl will whoosh down the drain...except a little bit at the bottom.

With water idle in the bowl, I'll pour a 5-gallon bucket of water into the bowl, but the water will rise to almost an inch under the rim and then slowly lower down the drain...replicating the same problem when I flush the toilet with the handle.

What's the difference?

 

[Reach4]

I don't know if there is a hidden jet in the trap way. The toilet is a Briggs 4440 but I can't find much about its internal workings.

Where does the water from the tank go after I flush a toilet...any toilet? Are all toilets designed to not only send water into the bowl but also into the drain behind the bowl?

When you are pouring the bucket of water directly into the bowl, neither the the siphon jet nor the rim holes play a part.

I never heard of a siphon jet hidden in the trapway.

 

[Gazoo]

When you are pouring the bucket of water directly into the bowl, neither the the siphon jet nor the rim holes play a part.

I never heard of a siphon jet hidden in the trapway.

If I do not see a siphon in the bottom of the bowl, then there is no siphon filling the legs of the drain, correct? Therefore, all the water from the tank is only going into the bowl, correct?

I'm assuming air (vacuum) is playing a role during the flushing, so it appears no air is helping. As I mentioned earler in my post, I don't know much how a toilet works.

 

[Gazoo]

GReynolds929

I don't understand your "wow" emoji. I understand my questions may be surprising, but I'm here to get help.

 

[Reach4]

If I do not see a siphon in the bottom of the bowl, then there is no siphon filling the legs of the drain, correct? Therefore, all the water from the tank is only going into the bowl, correct?

I don't know what "legs of the drain" might be.

A siphon jet, as far as I know, is a hole opposite the outlet. Not all toilets have a siphon jet. I am thinking that the hole was pretty small -- I am picturing penny size on older toilets, but bigger on newer toilets.

I have no knowledge on your toilet.

 

[Gazoo]

I don't know what "legs of the drain" might be.

A siphon jet, as far as I know, is a hole opposite the outlet. Not all toilets have a siphon jet. I am thinking that the hole was pretty small -- I am picturing penny size on older toilets, but bigger on newer toilets.

I have no knowledge on your toilet.

As far as the "legs," when I look behind the toilet at the exit area of the bowl, there is a drain. The drain angles up, curves and then goes straight down into the floor. The section of the drain curving upward is shorter (short leg) than the section going down into the floor (long leg).

I read there is air (vacuum) in this drain area somewhere (siphon jack?) and a siphon fills the drain with enough water to push the air into the longer leg to help "pull" the water from the bowl.

However, none of this would matter if I don't see a bigger-than-a-penny size hole at the bottom of the bowl.

I don't beleive the drain is clogged because waste will flush down the drain. Without going into details, however, some will not go down the drain. The other toilet will flush everything because it has a more forceful flush. These toilets are the same makes and models. The water in the problematic toilet just doesn't "whoosh" down the drain. The water rises to an inch beneath the rim and then lowers down the drain...(and the biggies get stuck).

 

[Reach4]

I don't beleive the drain is clogged because waste will flush down the drain. Without going into details, however, some will not go down the drain. The other toilet will flush everything because it has a more forceful flush. These toilets are the same makes and models. The water in the problematic toilet just doesn't "whoosh" down the drain. The water rises to an inch beneath the rim and then lowers down the drain...(and the biggies get stuck).

Back to the big bucket test. If I believed the drain line was not clogged, I would replace the toilet.