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Fire & Water - Cleanup & Restoration

What Should You Do If Your Toilet Overflows?

11/7/2022 (Permalink)

Person unclogging a toilet Plunge the toilet

What Happens If Your Toilet Overflows?

If your toilet overflows, you need to act fast. When a toilet overflows, the first thing people tend to do is flush it again. That's the worst thing you can do. Flushing will only make the problem worse by sending more water into the bowl and potentially damaging your flooring. Read the article down below to learn what you should do if your toilet overflows.

Turn Off the Water Supply to the Toilet

If your toilet begins to overflow, turn off the water supply line to the toilet. Most toilets are connected by a control valve that is attached to the side of the bowl and can be turned using a wrench. This will stop water from entering your toilet through that line. This will prevent any damaged walls or floors resulting from the excess water overflowing.

Turning off this valve should stop any further overflow problems until you have time to take care of them.

Don't flush

If your toilet overflows, don't flush it. You've probably already figured that much out. The next step is to keep anything else from going into the toilet as well—don't put anything in there! If you think of something that needs to go down the drain while your sink isn't working, just use a bucket or something else instead.

And finally, don't use the bathroom at all! If you really need to go, try using an alternative means. That way you don't accidentally make things worse by adding more wastewater into an already overflowing system.

Remove the Excess Water from the Bowl

The next step is to remove as much excess water from the bowl as you can. While it’s tempting to reach down into the bowl, this isn’t a good idea because you may get hurt. Instead, use a wet vacuum or bucket to scoop up as much water as possible. Be sure not to use your hands—you might end up with cuts from broken pieces of porcelain or other objects that were in your toilet before it overflowed.

Plunge the Toilet

Plunging is an easy technique that can be used to remove the blockage from the toilet. To do so, put a rubber plunger on the drain opening and push down gently but firmly until all of the remaining water is drained away.

Call a plumber

If you don't know how to fix your toilet, call a plumber. This is one of those things that you might think you could do yourself, but as we've established in this article, there's more to it than just turning off the water. A good plumber should be able to solve your problem in no time at all—and charge less than if you tried to do it yourself.

When choosing a plumber to help with an overflowing toilet and other plumbing issues, consider these tips:

  • Talk with friends and family who have hired a plumber before; ask them which ones they recommend.
  • Check out online reviews from websites like Yelp and Angie's List or search for local companies on Google Maps.
  • Research any company's reputation by doing some research online.

By following these steps, we hope that you can avoid the unpleasant experience of water damage to your bathroom. If you have any questions or need more advice on what to do next, please don’t hesitate to contact us today!

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