"crapper" wrote in message
...
crapper writes:
OK... so this is a little embarassing...

Just about anytime I take a crap in one of our toilets and the load is
"large" the toilet tends to clog. It happens almost all the time if I
use toilet paper but still clogs often even if I flush before
wiping. [sorry for the details]

I can always clear it with a few quick plunges. I have tried using one
of those hand screw augurs (the ones with the plastic sleeve to
protect the trap) and it didn't meet any resistance nor did it fix the
problem. I have also tried feeling down the trap with my hand and
didn't feel any objects there.

The toilet itself is a regular gravity flush one, maybe 5-10 years
old. I can't see the model number.

Where is the likely source of the problem? clogged/bad trap? too
narrow waste pipe? too many bends in the waste pipe? bad wax seal? bad
vent?

I can't see the waste pipe so I don't know the diameter but since this
is a 150 year old house, I wouldn't be surprised if there were issues
somewhere with the plumbing. By the way the bathroom (and toilet) is
on the third floor and I suspect that it was plumbed in sometime in
the last 30 years

Any thoughts on how to troubleshoot this? I would prefer not to remove
the toilet if I don't have too...

OK - I think I have tried everything mentioned in the thread but to no
avail.

1. Closet (toilet) augur - no obstruction
2. Trying to flush by filling toilet with bucket of water (to make
sure that not a water source or siphon issue) - no help
3. Using lots of Muriatic acid in the tank and in the bowl - no help
4. Removed toilet from wax seal (it had the type with a combination
wax seal and rubber flange)
- No visible or palpable obstruction in the toilet
- No visible or palpable obstruction in the drain pipe
- Probed both again with toilet augur
No improvement after cleaning the toilet base and flange and
replacing with new wax seal with flange

Drain pipe does make a 90 degree curve under floor but it seems
smooth and obstruction free otherwise. Also, the "load" seems to
clog before getting very far suggesting that the problem is with
the toilet

I AM STUMPED
Again:
- Any large load (without toilet paper) or even a normal "load" with a
moderate amount of toilet paper clogs the toilet.
- As a "control" case, I have never had such frequent problems with
other toilets

I am beginning to think that maybe it is a bad toilet design. The
problem (to me) at least seems to be with the toilet since the clog
seems to happen before the load has gotten very far (presumably ruling
out a drain problem). In fact much of the "load" regurgitates back
into the bowl.

It also doesn't seem to be a siphon problem because filling the bowl
all the way up doesn't restart the siphon and it takes some reasonably
forceful plunging to clear the clog.

Any other suggestions or should I just buy a new toilet...

The same symptoms came with a house we bought a few years ago. Turned out
that the house had a septic tank (in the middle of a residential community
with sewers). We pumped out the septic tank; but improvement was only
brief. Finally I found a sewer contractor who understood sewer lines. He
found that the pitch of the line from the house to the septic tank was less
than it should be (line was too level) and that caused slow flow and
frequent clogs.

It's relatively easy, of course, to snake the lines and the vent pipe; so
check those out thoroughly. I don't see how a new toilet will make anything
better, however, if the problem is in the pipes somewhere.

TKM