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Every year, there are about 28 million toilets in the United States that become clogged. That’s a pretty large number.

That is why it is important to know how to unclog a toilet, as it is a commonplace occurrence. One of the most common ways to unclog a toilet is with a plunger. If you do not know how to use a plunger, this guide is for you.

We will walk you through everything that you need to plunge a toilet, how to plunge a toilet, and other ways to go about unclogging a toilet.

What Do you Need to Plunge a Toilet?

Before you get started even thinking about plunging a toilet, there are a few things that you need. These are a few things that you should already have around the house and not something that you need to buy. However, if you do not have these things, you should go grab them just in case you have to deal with a clogged toilet in the future.

You’ll need rubber gloves to be sanitary, a toilet plunger to do the job, and water in a bucket to fill the toilet bowl.

Steps to Plunge a Toilet

Once you have all of these items, you can get started with unclogging a toilet. However, you really only need to use a plunger if the toilet won’t flush. Here’s how to get started.

The first thing that you want to do is prepare for a mess. This means that you should put towels or dirty rags on the base of the toilet in case water splashes out or something overflows. Instead of the dirty water getting on the floor, it will get on the towels that you can wash or simply throw away.

You also need to make sure that you were wearing your gloves during this process to be as sanitary as possible.

The Nitty Gritty

Now that you’re set up to plunge the toilet, you need to determine your first step. If the toilet bowl is full, you need to get rid of some water by dipping in a copper bucket of some sort. If the bowl does not have enough water, you need to pour water in with a bucket to be at least half full.

You are doing this to make sure that the plunger is submerged under the water.

Once the toilet bowl has enough water, you can insert the plunger into the toilet at an angle so that it covers the entire drain hole at the bottom of the toilet. You should be using both hands to grip the plunger.

With a lot of strength, you’ll want to move the plunger up and down just enough where it is pulling and pushing the water with a suction without breaking the seal around the plunger. You should be doing this for about 15 to 30 seconds. After you reach this time, you can remove the plunger from the toilet.

At this point, you should try to flush the toilet. Hopefully, it flushes and you have done the job properly. However, there will be times when it will not flush and you’ll have to repeat the process stated above.

If you continue to repeat the process, and it is not working, it may be time to call a plumber to figure out the issue. Before you do this though, you should be sure to clean up the area and throw away any unsanitary products like your gloves and towels.

Other Ways of Unclogging a Toilet

If the plunger does not unclog your toilet successfully, there may be a few other things that you can do if you are trying to do it yourself.

The first thing that you can try is soap and hot water. You should add a gallon of hot boiling water with a little bit of soap to the toilet bowl. Let it sit for 30 minutes and then flush the toilet.

If the soap doesn’t work, you can try baking soda and vinegar. You are going to follow the same process, but instead of soap, you are adding one cup of baking soda into the bowl first and then 2 cups of vinegar.

Another way to unclog a toilet is by using an auger. There are so many different types of augers such as drain and cable augers, power augers, toilet closet augers, and others.

Most of these are used by professionals because they can be a little bit more difficult to use. However, you can usually get one at a local hardware store to try to do it yourself. When you begin, you will insert it into the drain opening the toilet and turn the handle clockwise.

When it does not go any further, you have reached the clock. This is when you turn the handle the other way or counterclockwise.

Now You Know How to Plunge a Toilet

Hopefully, you do not need to use this guide very often. However, if you do, you now know how to plug the toilet properly so that you do not have to deal with it for too long at a time.

However, there will be times when your toilet clogs and you will be unable to fix it. This is one of his best to call a professional.

You can save our contact information found here for the next time you find yourself in need of our expert help.