AboutSharon McCarthy Expertise I can help with most questions about residential plumbing problems including septic systems, and some questions about irrigation. I have no experience with commercial installations or codes.
Experience I have been a sole-proprietor service plumber in two small towns north of Phoenix Arizona for 26 years.
Publications I had a monthly column in the United Steelworkers of America, local 1033, newsletter 1978 to 1982. I wrote an article for "The Theosophist" in 1977. I've written dozens of letters to the editor in many newspapers.
Education/Credentials High school and three years of college. My step-father, having worked 40 years in the plumbing trade in Chicago, taught me for two years. The rest has been hands-on experience.
Past/Present Clients Many hundreds of good people in Cave Creek and Carefree Arizona
Question my tolit when i flush it the water goes to the top and then slowly goes down to nothing just a little water in the bottom
Answer Dear Steve,
That is a sure sign that something is in the toilet itself that is preventing the water from going down. The water leaving the tank goes into the bowl. If the water in the bowl can't go through, the bowl fills up.
When the water goes out the bowl, it goes up through a trap first before it goes down. The bend in the trap is a loop and this is often where something sticks. It could be too much paper and waste, it could be an object that fell in.
The other possibility is that something is caught on the flange under the base of the bowl. Did you try using a plunger? If you did and that didn't work you can buy a "toilet auger" at any hardware store. They cost about $20, and they come in handy when this occurs.
The "auger" is a long narrow pipe, and a wire cable goes through the pipe. On the top end is a handle that you turn to feed the cable into the hole in the toilet bowl. The bottom end of the cable has a wire bulb with a little hook on it.
You pull a little bit of cable out at the bottom and feed it into the hole so the cable starts going up [towards the trap]. Then you turn the handle and push at the same time, working the cable up through the trap. There is enough cable to go up through the trap and down to the floor.
You may have to do this a few times, twisting the handle all the time to try and work out the blockage, or pull out whatever is in there.
If nothing happens, you will have to remove the toilet. Take off the supply and loosen the nuts on either side of the bowl. Lift the toilet off and set it aside. Something may either be caught on the flange, or inside the hole right at the bottom of the bowl. You may have to tip the toilet a bit to feel underneath.
If you do remove the toilet, it's always a good idea to replace the wax ring before you reset it. One way or the other, you should be able to clear this up. Good luck! Sharon
