Having any problem with daily usage is like a nightmare for everyone. So, if you woke up in the morning and found out the toilet’s floor is wet. Then you find out your toilet is overflowing. And I know you don’t like this after you wake up. It’s not problematic but also disgusting. But don’t worry. You need to understand how to control the situation immediately. For this, you need to know some simple steps to prevent this disaster. And this article provides you with every possible solution to immediately help you out with the situation.
What happens when your toilet is overflowing?
Overflowing the toilet is a nightmare for everyone. There are multiple reasons behind this issue, and before finding it, you need to stop this overflowing. When your toilet overflows, you got a disgusting bathroom. The smell adds extra pain there, making this place very unhygienic. Living in a type of washroom for one day makes anyone sick. So for the health issue and getting rid of this unpleasant situation, you need to fix this issue as soon as possible.
What to do when your toilet is overflowing?
When you notice there is something wrong with the toilet, you need to take some essential steps. Those are:
- I think you know, stop using the toilet for the first step. And after that, don’t flush it. If you accidentally flush the toilet, add extra water to the flow. And make the place worse than before. So, please stop using the bathroom and also stop flushing it. Otherwise, you end up with a flooded toilet with a disgusting smell all over the house.
- They find out the flapper of the toilet. This flapper is located at the bottom of the tank and made with a circular rubber. This flapper attaches with a chain or metal lever. When you discover it, push it to close. After you shut down the toilet flapper, it just seals the water against the bottom of the tank. That’s why it just stops flowing water into the bowl anymore.
- If your toilet has a water shut-off valve outside the bathroom, find the valve and shut it down. Not most modern toilets don’t have any of this kind of valve. That’s why they don’t need to shut down this. If yours have, then turn it clockwise to shut it down, and it just prevents entering the water in the toilet.
- Now take a look at the float of the toilet. There are mainly two types of floats, ball or cup. Cups are moving up and down with the level of water. On the other hand, balls float at the top of the water. Just watch if the ball or cup is moving or not. If it’s at a standstill, there is no water flowing from tank to bowl. And if it’s moving, then the water flowing is not stopped correctly. Try to close the water supply to enter the water in the tank if needed.
Use a plunger to stop overflowing the toilet:
After doing this primary job, now you need to find the overflowing issue. And the main reason for overflowing any toilet is a clogged drainage system, and you know there are many reasons behind this, like throwing hair, diapers, baby wipes, etc., in the toilet. Many times kids also throw their toys out of curiosity. And after that, you end up with a blocked toilet. So it would be best if you found the reason behind the clogging. 
There are many steps you can follow to unclog your toilet. But most of the time, people use plungers to clean up the blockage. The force of the plunger pushes all the dirt from the pipe from the drainage system to the septic area. So here are the steps:
- First, turn the water supply off and remove the excess water from the tank
- Adjust the toilet float and flapper correctly
- Use a folded towel over the spill to dry the floor
- Plunge the toilet and remove the blockage
- Now test the toilet and flush several times
How to fix an overflowing toilet without a plunger?
Baking soda solution: Many people like to add vinegar and baking soda to unclog the toilet. This is also an excellent home remedy to clean the bathroom. Just add vinegar into the toilet bowl and then give it rest overnight. After that, use a plunger if there is debris left in the pipeline, and this process is eco-friendly. But it takes a long period to solve the issue. When you get one washroom, you can’t wait for too long.
Use muriatic acid: If you don’t have enough time to wait, you can use a store-bought solution, like using muriatic acid in the bowl. And for this, dilute one part of acid into ten parts of water. Then pour the solution directly into the bowl. This acid reacts with the debris of the pipeline and heats up. This breaks all the clogging issues. It takes only ten minutes to dissolve anything into the channel. But this is very harmful to health. And acid is hazardous; after using this, you need to flush the toilet a minimum of three-time, so that acid can thoroughly wash away from the pipe.
Otherwise, it can damage your drainage system. And this acid also creates a burning issue if its splash comes across your skin. So always put safety equipment before using this acid. When working with this acid, ensure the ventilation system of the place and open all the doors and windows for this. The fume of the acid was also very toxic. And this acid not only cleans the clog but also kills all the bacteria there. Some bacteria are essential for composting human waste, and this kind of solution kills those bacteria. So, this is not a safe option to clean the clog of the toilet.
If you are unable to unclog the toilet, call a plumber to help you out with this issue. Only they can help you to solve this issue. I know it will cost you some money, but you can damage the whole toilet if you take any wrong steps. Then you need to change the entire toilet and install a new one.
Conclusion
If you use the toilet for a long time, you can face this issue. But most of the time, people are the villain behind the clogging point of the bathroom. So you need to maintain your toilet regularly. If you have any toddlers at the house, educate them on using the restroom. They are in an inquisitive stage now, and that’s a perfect age to educate them on how to use the washroom and what to do and what not to do in the toilet. If you take the proper steps, you can quickly overcome any disaster.
We are really lucky to have a hard-working, multi-skilled plumber on our team. Collin D. Gallegos, a professional plumber who has worked with us since 2012, is an expert in vent, septic, and drainage systems. He is a Certified Master Plumber and has worked on various commercial plumbing projects. He usually helps our readers resolve plumbing and pipe-related issues with a proper DIY troubleshooting and repair guide.