Ghosts using my toilet

[scottgibson]

Got a downstairs toilet that has been working fine for years recently start acting up. It acts like it is clogged so I use a plunger and have used OTC drain cleaners (lye once and sulfuric acid once). Every time it clears and flushes fine. However here is the weird part: I go back to it later (a few hours or overnight) and now it's clogged again without anybody using it!

So basically it's clogged (without reason), I clear it, it works fine, multiple flushes, wait a little bit and clogged again. When I say clogged I mean the bowl backs up when flushed and it appears like a drain blockage.

I changed the flapper as I noticed it was leaking but this was during my troubleshooting and not before the problem started. No known event led to this.

 

[Caduceus]

You probably have a clog in the house sewer and use of water in other parts of the home is causing the toilet to fill from the bottom. Maybe look for a clean out access outside or inside for inspecting to determine where the clog is. Otherwise, removing the toilet and augering the sewer from there would be the next option.

 

[havasu]

....and please let the plumbers know you have shoved that caustic crap down your drains so they could protect themselves!

 

[Caduceus]

....and please let the plumbers know you have shoved that caustic crap down your drains so they could protect themselves!

One of the guys at work has been out for the past 5 weeks with chemical burns to his feet when sodium hydroxide and water soaked through his shoes. Of course he should have been wearing waterproof boots, but it's still a very dangerous chemical and a painful lesson.
So thanks for the added safety message, havasu.
It should also be noted that lye is neutralized by the sulfuric acid and vice versa, but does create a lot of heat in the process. Never mix chemicals and drain cleaners, read all label warnings.

 

[scottgibson]

One of the guys at work has been out for the past 5 weeks with chemical burns to his feet when sodium hydroxide and water soaked through his shoes. Of course he should have been wearing waterproof boots, but it's still a very dangerous chemical and a painful lesson.
So thanks for the added safety message, havasu.
It should also be noted that lye is neutralized by the sulfuric acid and vice versa, but does create a lot of heat in the process. Never mix chemicals and drain cleaners, read all label warnings.

Agreed. The chemicals were several days apart and useless. Yesterday I ran a hose down the toilet and connected to my hot valve of my washing machine. The hose only went about halfway through the S trap but I ran it full blast for about 10 minutes so I put close to 100 gallons through it.

The water in the bowl would rise about halfway, stop, then drain completely. It would keep cycling between half full and empty every 30 seconds or so. It's like it can't make up its mind if it's clogged or not! After this the toilet worked fine all evening.

This morning the bowl was nearly empty and the toilet backed up again when flushed. HELP!

 

[Caduceus]

You may need to remove the toilet and inspect it from underneath to see if something is lodged inside the trapway. While it's off, flush water down through the flange with a hose and dumping 5 gallon buckets of water quickly just to be sure the drain is clear.
Could somebody have dropped something in your toilet that is stuck inside like a tooth brush, toilet paper spindle, bar of soap, etc? An obstruction in the trapway would create the same effect. I was under the initial impression that the toilet bowl would fill up over night.

 

[scottgibson]

You may need to remove the toilet and inspect it from underneath to see if something is lodged inside the trapway. While it's off, flush water down through the flange with a hose and dumping 5 gallon buckets of water quickly just to be sure the drain is clear.
Could somebody have dropped something in your toilet that is stuck inside like a tooth brush, toilet paper spindle, bar of soap, etc? An obstruction in the trapway would create the same effect. I was under the initial impression that the toilet bowl would fill up over night.

Thanks. That occurred to me too that perhaps something got flushed that shouldn't have. My kids are older though and have more sense than that (mostly). I think it might be time to call in the professional.