Last night around 7PM we dropped a bar of Dove Soap down the toilet. It’s too far down to reach, but it’s still preventing the toilet from flushing the way it should. The water will go down, but it doesn’t “suck and gurgle” the way it’s supposed to. Instead, after it’s flushed, the bowl nearly fills to the top and then the water level slowly goes back down in a few seconds. Is there any way to make the soap dissolve more quickly?
Well, you could try and make it so the toilet runs non-stop (tape the handle down or something). Probably take hours though to dissolve (although it really only needs to dissolve enough so it will wash down the pipe). Best choice really is to get a pipe snake and dig it out. Or, shut off the water and drain the toilet and undo the pipes in the back if it is stuck there. Or call a plumber.
If a tooth will dissolve when left in a can of cola overnight, why won’t a bar of soap also dissolve that way? Pour a few liters of Coke down there! Actually, I would think that just from sitting there soaking in the water it would soften up and be flushable before too long. As long as you have a different bathroom to use in the meantime!
A similar thread from a different message board (I wasn’t reading a non-Dope MB, honest! I just Googled “what dissolves soap.”). It’s got a couple good suggestions, a good science answer, and a nice list of things to do with the perpetrator.
One suggestion in that thread was boiling water, but you may want to be wary of this option. In theory, boiling water could crack the bowl.
Very hot water will do and is easier. And have you tried a toilet plunger?
You don’t use a SNAKE to clear a toilet, you use a Closet Auger.
It doesn’t
FTR it seems to have dissolved, as of this morning, sufficiently to allow the toilet to flush normally.
Whenever I run across a clogged toilet I’ve downed a couple cans of coke (or dr pepper) & let it sit for a couple of hours then flush. It’s always worked for me.
Spectre of Pithecanthropus:
And a nice clean toilet it is, too.
My uncle the plumber told me to use white vinegar on the clogged stuff in my toilet (it was grit and dirt that was on the toilet when we moved in). You empty the bowl, pour in a ton of white vinegar and let it sit for 6-8 hours. Then flush. Anything should be dissolved and the way should be clear.
Think soap is bad? My Mom recently accidently flushed a wash cloth down the toilet ! Thing couldn’t be snaked out or anything. Anyways, after about a month of flushing, the toilet started acting right again. No probs since. I would turn the water off in back of the toilet and then just take the whole toilet off the wax ring it’s sitting on and try getting it out that way. But that’s me.
A washcloth? Child’s play, says I! When I was 15 years old, I worked at a YMCA camp, and one of my jobs was cleaning the bathrooms. Those little monsters would flush anything not nailed down. Some of the more creative included pine cones and light bulbs, carefully shoved deep into the siphon. Another bitch to remove was a roll of toilet paper that had swollen up until it was stuck tight; I had to dig that one out by hand.
Yeah, well… …try fishing out a still-vibrating motorized dildo out of a toilet. Yeah, I don’t miss working at Goodwill.
Pine cones and light bulbs? Ha! When I was younger I would have been GLAD to pick that stuff out of the toilet. My dad used to flush live bears and used cars down the toilet, and we, the kids, had to try and get it out. He did it every day, and it took us FOUR days to get one thing out. We had no tools to use, and dad had broken our arms, so we had to use our teeth!
I wonder how this would work on soap. It could work because it protonates the soap and causes it to separate out, but I strongly suspect that acids are going to do a lot of nothing. Bases like draino won’t do anything either. I think the best bet is to leave the toilet running until it clears out, but I don’t know how the water bill would be on that. Hot water will be more effective. Maybe if once every couple of hours you dumped some hot water in. Eventually it will dissolve. I’m sure you’ve seen soap that’s been sitting in a wet soapdish for a while. Soap will dissolve.
I would suggest the first thing to try would be to reach in and try to grab what ever is in there with your fingers. Before trying repeated flushes. But, you seem to have gotten it. Peace, mangeorge.
Ordinary drain cleaner is mostly sodium hydroxide (lye), and works on grease clogs by reacting with the fatty acids to form SOAP. Soap, being water soluble, really shouldn’t be seen as a long-term clog problem in the first place, as the OP has discovered. Had the issue come to my attention sooner, I’d have recommended time and a bit of hot water.
You just leave any toilet blockage overnight and the toilet fairy comes and clears it. I just wish there was a dirty dishes fairy. next page →
If you have a wet/dry vacuum (ShopVac) handy, it can be used as a powerful declogger to clear a clogged toilet in a pinch.
If all else fails, a plumbing auger, also known as a snake, will likely do the trick. Plumbing snakes are fairly inexpensive, available at most hardware stores, and made to push deep into a pipe to break up any blockage. If a clog won't budge no matter what you try, or if clogs frequently keep coming back, it's likely a sign of a deeper issue. You'll want to consult a professional plumber to figure out the next steps and keep your pipes in good working order. Now That's Useful According to good toilet etiquette, nothing should be flushed except for toilet paper. Thicker paper towels, cotton balls, and feminine products should all be kept away from the pipes. Even those wet wipes that are often marketed as "flushable" can wreak havoc on the plumbing system over time. Originally Published: Jul 13, 2011 LeeAnne from Maryland maxime_lawrence December 16, 20167 found this helpful Best Answer Hello all, First off, what a great little forum I have found here! Two days ago I intentionally threw a mushy bar of soap (it belonged to my roommate who had just been leaving it dissolve in the shower for weeks until I just couldn't take it anymore) that was about two thirds the size of a regular bar of soap. Before throwing I thought that I was about to do something stupid but figured that the bar of soap, being so mushy and not that big would just flush down easily. Big mistake. So for two days I've been flushing like crazy hoping to dissolve the soap. I also threw bleach in the toilet and even Drano (apparently you're not supposed to do that as per the instructions on the can) and nothing would work. My toilet was flushing so slowly that there was no way it could handle anything other than urine. I wanted to throw a bucket of very hot water down the toilet but then I read that I could melt my toilet's wax ring (whatever that is) or crack the toilet so I decided not to. I bought an auger, the kind plumbers use, and snaked the toilet two or three times. I did reach the soap as I could see lots of soap material stuck at the end of the auger but still my toilet was flushing way too slow to handle number twos. So today I read this thread and decided to pour three big buckets of WARM water and plunge the toilet for about 15 seconds in between each pour. I poured the water as quickly as I could. My toilet is now flushing great. I'll still monitor it for the next few days but all seems good. Reply Was this helpful? 7 Answer this Questionbbcougar77 January 2, 2018 I dropped new bar of soap in the toilet and can't get it to flush. What should I do? poehere January 2, 20180 found this helpful Best Answer You'll need a toilet snake to push this through and break up the bar of soap. Furthermore, you can try using a pair of gloves and stick your hand down in the toilet bowl and try to fish this out. I'm sure it is lodged in the bowl and will be hard to move around. However, the longer the soap sits in the water, it will start to dissolve and make it easier to move. Reply Was this helpful? Yes Judy January 2, 20181 found this helpful Best Answer You can take a wire hanger if you don't have a snake and try that. I would try a plunger first. Reply Was this helpful? 1 attosa January 2, 20180 found this helpful Best Answer If you can't get a hold of a snake, you can try dissolving it faster by adding hot water to it here and there. Reply Was this helpful? Yes Answer this QuestionBarbara Snyder November 7, 2008 My sweet autistic daughter put a bar of soap down the toilet. I tried getting it out but it went further back. Now every time we have to go to the bathroom we have to plunge the toilet because it gets real high. What do I use to dissolve this problem? I need ideas please. Barbara from Shoemakersville, PA Jill November 7, 20080 found this helpful I would think the more you flush, and move water past the bar of soap, the faster it will dissolve. I would flush the toilet each time I went by the bathroom. You might also ask your family to put their t. paper in the trash instead of in the hopper for a while, and that will minimize the solids trying to get by the soap. If you have a plumber's snake, or have a friend who has one to loan, you might try either retrieving the bar with that, or breaking it up so it will dissolve faster. Reply Was this helpful? Yes By (Guest Post) November 7, 20080 found this helpful Maybe vinegar would help it to dissolve faster or try boiling water poured down the toilet. Reply Was this helpful? Yes Athena November 7, 20081 found this helpful How about putting hot water down the toilet and see if that works?Zig P.S. Let us know the outcome. I'm sure there are other people that may have had the same problem and did not know what to do. Reply Was this helpful? 1 By KLS8800 (Guest Post) November 7, 20080 found this helpful Aww. Poor love. I have two autistic children, ages 4 and 7. Life is NEVER dull with them. Call a plumber and ask. He might have some ideas, too. Then hug your little dear. I am sure she was trying to help 'clean' the bathroom. Just to ask, though... Have you thought of liquid soap? I bought a huge thing of it from Wal Mart for under 4.00. Then found a pretty pump for just a couple of dollars (although I am sure the dollar store also have pretty ones, too). That was not quite a year ago, and we still have a little bit left. So, for about six dollars, we have a nice pump and soap that has lasted about a year. Pretty good investment. Reply Was this helpful? Yes Jana November 7, 20080 found this helpful Try hot water, then baking soda, followed by the vinegar. Then hot water again Reply Was this helpful? Yes By SunshineRose (Guest Post) November 7, 20080 found this helpful I would put boiling water down the toilet. I agree to hug your daughter. Years ago my brother dropped his screwdriver down the toilet and we had to get a plumber. I never heard of another kid who refused to go anywhere without his screwdriver. Reply Was this helpful? Yes Barbara Snyder November 7, 20081 found this helpful Just wanted to let you know we had to take the toilet off and since we are renting an old trailer the flooring is horrible. Love I tried the hot water and everything when honey finally got the soap out using a hose from the bottom of the toilet the soap never got any smaller. So please dear people if you have little kids or pets or anything. Please do not keep the bars of soap near use liquid soap. I got rid of my last 2 bars. Plumber said they are buggers to get out. Talk to one on the phone. So we are not the only ones and makes we feel a bit better. Also to the mother of the 2 autistic kids you are right life is never dull and zoos are better calm and relaxing than our houses. Won't change it for the world just sometimes drives you crazy. Reply Was this helpful? 1 By Mary (Guest Post) November 8, 20080 found this helpful You might try purchasing a plumber's snake from the hardware. It will ream out the line. Reply Was this helpful? Yes By (Guest Post) November 8, 20080 found this helpful Exactly dietvanilla! We had this problem at work as one of the alzheimer residents did the same thing! Toilet had to come off and to get soap out, the maintenance man had to use a hose to flush it out. It did not melt or even get soft. Strange, as when it is in our bathrooms, it seems it melts in the air! Reply Was this helpful? Yes By SarahAnn (Guest Post) November 8, 20080 found this helpful Barb, Sorry, I don't have a method for that either. I have a sweet 8 year old Autistic son and we are forever plunging the toilet. We use only liquid soap. We plunge because of toilet paper and diaper wipes.. Hug that sweetie :) Sarah in Washington Reply Was this helpful? Yes Sarah Leach November 9, 20083 found this helpful Turn off the water to the toilet.Flush and plunge.Pour boiling water down. Let sit. four or five minutes.Plunge again.Do this maybe four or five times.. or until the boiling water goes down on it's own. Turn the water back on and, once the tank is full, Flush again. You might have to do this all several times, but it's better than the cost of a plumber. Good Luck! Reply Was this helpful? 3 Wanda November 6, 20090 found this helpful I wouldn't put boiling water in the toilet. The toilet is cold, and the hot water could cause your toilet to crack. It happened to me when my daughter was young, I had to replace the toilet. So, please think about putting hot water in the toilet. Reply Was this helpful? Yes maplehill August 26, 20160 found this helpful This procedure worked perfectly, thanks! Reply Was this helpful? Yes genorafreeman_phd1 November 11, 20160 found this helpful I was soaking my feet and accidentally pored the soapy water into the toilet with the bar of soap. I used about ten pot of boiling water and the plunger for about three days. I poured the boiling water in the toilet and put the lid down so the heat stayed longer. After doing this for three days the soap dissolved and now working great. This was a full bar of soap I had used for the first time. Good Luck Reply Was this helpful? Yes Read More Answersparislouise December 12, 2011 My mom put a bar of soap into the tank of the toilet because the detergent thing has spoiled. When she flushed, the bar stuck at the hole. So now the flush lever has to be pulled more than 1 time (or could not be pulled) to fully flush. Anyone have any ideas? By parislouise Frugal Sunnie December 13, 20110 found this helpful I might not be understanding the location of the soap bar, because from what I'm understanding in your question the soap is located in an easy to reach spot; I would have gloved up and pulled the thing out of there by now. Is that possible in your situation? Reply Was this helpful? Yes Gary S. June 12, 20170 found this helpful Ok...here's the REAL solution that I wish I had come across. I tried all the others...Coke, bleach, hot water, vinegar....nope. I did some powerful thinking about it, and thought...a flexible tube about one inch in diameter could be shoved down the thing and push the soap on through. I got about a three foot piece which I had in my shop, and, after having bent the end a few inches to create a bind, shoved it through, forcefully turning as it wound its way down. Eventually , I hit the soap. I did it for about fifteen minutes, pushing and turning, and finally felt a give. It worked! I wish I had read this before. Reply Was this helpful? Yes Read More Answers |
What do you do if a bar of soap falls in the toilet?
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