If your toilet fills and won’t drain, it’s time to plunge the toilet with a toilet plunger. Or maybe it did drain but it’s still showing that there’s a clog. Let’s get to work.

Prepare the Area Around the Toilet for Plunging

Sometimes plunging a toilet gets messy. You may want to wear gloves for this. Towels may be needed to clean up messes on the floor.

Ensure There’s Enough Water in the Toilet Bowl

If the water in the bowl is nearly to overflowing, then there is certainly enough water. Otherwise, you’ll need to fill the toilet bowl half full of water so there is enough water to cover the plunger cup when it is in the toilet.

Position the Plunger

Place the plunger directly over the drain hole.

Create a Seal

Push down on the plunger while it’s over the hole, squeezing the air out of the plunger.

Push and Pull

Now give the plunger a quick, sharp pull. Repeat pushing the plunger down and sharply pulling it back up quickly. You may need to do this 5 or 6 times before the blockage clears.

Check the Water Level

Break the seal between toilet and plunger (just lift up the plunger a few inches). The water may automatically drain out of the toilet if the toilet is full of water. If the toilet isn’t over-full of water, you can try flushing and seeing if the water will go down the drain.

Repeat as Needed

Repeat the steps to plunge the toilet as needed. Not more than 5 times as this could damage the toilet.

Call A Plumbing Professional

Some clogs are so stubborn that effective plunging doesn’t work. In this case, it’s time to call in the plumbing professionals at Jerry’s Plumbing, Heating, & Welding. Give us a call and we’ll get you taken care of. There may be larger issues in play than a simple clog and we’ll look into the situation and see what needs to be done.

_{Toilet Stock photos by Vecteezy}