Easy ways to unblock a toilet

If you don’t have a proper toilet plunger to deal with a blockage, improvise by wrapping a plastic bag round a mop head. Tie the bag to the handle of the mop so it can’t work free. If you have a set of drain rods and a rubber plunger disc, fit this to one of the rods to make a toilet plunger.

Try clearing a partly blocked toilet by pouring a bucket of warm water down it. If it seems to be draining more quickly after one bucket, follow up immediately with 2 or 3 more.

You’ll need a plumber’s snake with a hook attachment to clear the blockage caused by an item such as a disposable nappy. Feed the snake into the trap until you feel it has reached the blockage, then rotate it and push it forward gently so it grabs the object. Withdraw it slowly from the trap.

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