It can happen day or night and usually happens without warning — we’re talking about an overflowing toilet. Much like other unexpected hassles, you need to act fast to come up with a temporary or permanent solution before additional damages occur.
What Causes an Overflowing Toilet?
There are several reasons a toilet could be overflowing. Those include:
- A clogged or blocked drain;
- A blocked vent pipe; or,
- A high filler float.
Those aren’t the only reasons a toilet could overflow, but some of the most common. The most important thing to do once you realize you have an overflowing toilet is to stop the water.
What to Do First
As just mentioned, you need to stop the water from overflowing as quickly as possible. The first step you should do is go into the toilet tank and lift up the float — this will indicate that there shouldn’t be additional water going into the bowl. Rig up the float as best as possible until you can figure out the larger problem at hand.
No matter whether you’re able to rig up the float or not, your next step should be turning off the water supply. This is a pipe near the bottom of the toilet base with a valve on it. Turn the valve clockwise to stop the water flow to the toilet.
If you can’t find the valve or are having difficulty turning it, then go to your home’s main water supply and try to shut off the water. However, keep in mind that this will not allow any running water into your home whatsoever, so this should only be used as a last resort option.
Contact Red Lilly Plumbing
At Red Lilly Plumbing our plumbing professionals are here for you no matter how urgent your plumbing problem is. Especially if you have an overflowing toilet, time is of the essence, and you need a crew out right away who will be able to stop the issue. Whether you have an overflowing toilet or other plumbing dilemmas, our team is here to help. Reach out to us right away by using our online contact form or by calling (323) 319-4102.