TOILET CONTAMINATION PROBLEM

[BugI02]

The water inlet CM is talking about enters the bowl at the front below the waterline. You can check for entrained 'stuff' by gripping the small angle of an allen wrench and scraping around inside the inlet (which is about finger sized) with the longer shank. I think CM is right and that's the only place such 'residue' can be trapped from the earlier plunge-a-thon. If the allen wrench comes up poo, you might shut off the water valve and flush the reservoir so the tanl is empty. Then holding the plastic/rubber/synthetic parts of the flush mechanism out of harms way pour a little liquid plumber or similar down the flow outlet from the tank and let sit for 15 to 30, then open water valve and refill tank and flush a couple of times to see if you have loosened things up in the 'bowels' of the flush mechanism. Be careful to not get drain cleaner of the flush mechanisms parts as the cleaner usually contains sodium hydroxide (strong base) and could damage their ability to seal

 

[rhino]

Sounds like you might have some mold growing in the channels in the bowl downstream from the tank. You've already tried bleach...my personal solution would be not watching...turn the lights out...just walk away. It's not like I'd be going to use that water for anything else.

Possible, but it's in globs that look like poo and smear like poo. I don't have experience with mold that would look like that. I'd also expect the amount of bleach I've put through it to kill any mold.

We get the same thing from time to time being on a well with a lot of iron in the water. It's rust/lime scale breaking loose. It does look like poo, but it's not. Actually what hoosierdoc suggested about letting it run isn't far off from what I do. Just hold the flush handle down while flushing. Do that a few times and it should clear up (until enough accumulates to start doing it again).

You could also get some Iron Out and put in your tank and let it sit for awhile then do the "long flush" like described above. Might take a couple of times but the Iron Out should help clear it up. I suspect something like Lime Away or CLR might help too.

I really don't think it's iron or rust sediment. It's 3-d globs that will squish and smear. I'm not familiar with any rust or metallic sediment that has those physical properties.

Is the toilet used regularly or less used? Could it be mold build up in the water jacket around the bowl and coincidentally it's started breaking off? We're on a well and when we first moved in we were seeing a lot of sediment coming out of the ports during flushing, we found our tanks to be pretty heavily sedimented. After flushing them thoroughly, adding a whole house sediment filter and a water softener we have spotless tanks.

I'm on city water with a good water softener. It's possible that it's mold, but I'm inclined to believe that it's not (see above). Might be, though!

If you want to rule out your drain/backfill into the tank, see if it will flush by dumping a 5 gallon bucket in it.

I can try that!

I have a suggestion, but it requires a good deal of caution.
Remove the toilet tank lid.
See the bowl fill tube where the little hose dumps water?
O.K. get a bottle of muratic acid from your local hardware store.

Pour about 2 cups of muratic acid in the fill tube.
Let set for at least 30 minutes, then flush, rinse and repeat as needed.

CAUTION- muratic acid will create a fog when dispensed.
You must NOT breathe these fumes!
It can kill you!

Pour into fill tube, while holding your breath.
Leave the room and shut the door. Turning on the fan will help as well.
I would also shut the lid.

This works to clean most anything from a porcelain toilet, but will wreak havoc on a septic system.
Wear gloves and eye protection.

I appreciate the suggestion! I think I'll exhaust the other possibilities before I resort to concentrated hydrochloric acid, though!

The water inlet CM is talking about enters the bowl at the front below the waterline. You can check for entrained 'stuff' by gripping the small angle of an allen wrench and scraping around inside the inlet (which is about finger sized) with the longer shank. I think CM is right and that's the only place such 'residue' can be trapped from the earlier plunge-a-thon. If the allen wrench comes up poo, you might shut off the water valve and flush the reservoir so the tanl is empty. Then holding the plastic/rubber/synthetic parts of the flush mechanism out of harms way pour a little liquid plumber or similar down the flow outlet from the tank and let sit for 15 to 30, then open water valve and refill tank and flush a couple of times to see if you have loosened things up in the 'bowels' of the flush mechanism. Be careful to not get drain cleaner of the flush mechanisms parts as the cleaner usually contains sodium hydroxide (strong base) and could damage their ability to seal

It's not entering from that area. It's coming with the water that flows from one of the small ports just under the rim.

 

[halfmileharry]

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Whink-Ru...hguid=3d765d5f-cde-16875c5a755c65&athena=true

I get a lot of rust residue and build up. Here's what I use. It breaks the stuff down fast.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Whink-Ru...hguid=3d765d5f-cde-16875c5a755c65&athena=true


I usually use this to keep the problem down to nothing. Keeps my bowl white instead of orange. It's easy to tell when I forget to put in a new one.

 

[rhino]

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Whink-Ru...hguid=3d765d5f-cde-16875c5a755c65&athena=true

I get a lot of rust residue and build up. Here's what I use. It breaks the stuff down fast.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Whink-Ru...hguid=3d765d5f-cde-16875c5a755c65&athena=true


I usually use this to keep the problem down to nothing. Keeps my bowl white instead of orange. It's easy to tell when I forget to put in a new one.

Thank you, I'll keep that in mind!

 

[Tactically Fat]

Allright, boss...

Me thinks that the Great Plunger Episode of Jan 2019 is to blame.

It may very well have forced effluent up and into places that effluent isn't normally supposed to go - that being the supply-side of things within the toilet itself.

I'd imagine that there are several different toilet designs as far as this goes, too. Some may have a few larger holes - some may have many more smaller holes.

I'd don thee some nitrile gloves. Get some of those straw-cleaner brushes you mentioned up thread. And possibly a dental mirror to help you see up under the rim of the toilet. Locate those supply holes and see if you can clean them out as best you can with the brush.

I suppose it'd also work if you could fashion some that'll spray upside down to reach up under there to induce water into those supply holes and rinse/wash them out.

This would be after the continual running/flushing doesn't work.

Also - if there are multiple supply holes that aid in flushing - it's possible that if you could cut off the few holes the majority of water comes out of and force that water to divert around the rim to the lesser-used holes - that may also aid in, well, in flushing things out.

 

[cosermann]

What a crappy thread this is.

 

[2Lucky]

Dont know if you are on a septic system or city but if you are on your own septic system you should not be putting bleach in your toilet. This could be a costly mistake in the future.

 

[Thor]

Rusticles? Perhaps you are spawning new life in your plumbing.

 

[JettaKnight]

Time for Darnette disposable toilets.

https://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/darnette-disposable-toilets/n10986

 

[Sigblitz]

If we learned one thing, don't let Rhino use your toilet.

 

[bacon#1]

haha, someone give you an upper decker?

I prefer a good dry dock.

 

[rhino]

Allright, boss...

Me thinks that the Great Plunger Episode of Jan 2019 is to blame.

It may very well have forced effluent up and into places that effluent isn't normally supposed to go - that being the supply-side of things within the toilet itself.

I'd imagine that there are several different toilet designs as far as this goes, too. Some may have a few larger holes - some may have many more smaller holes.

I'd don thee some nitrile gloves. Get some of those straw-cleaner brushes you mentioned up thread. And possibly a dental mirror to help you see up under the rim of the toilet. Locate those supply holes and see if you can clean them out as best you can with the brush.

I suppose it'd also work if you could fashion some that'll spray upside down to reach up under there to induce water into those supply holes and rinse/wash them out.

This would be after the continual running/flushing doesn't work.

Also - if there are multiple supply holes that aid in flushing - it's possible that if you could cut off the few holes the majority of water comes out of and force that water to divert around the rim to the lesser-used holes - that may also aid in, well, in flushing things out.

I think you're spot-on. I think when I was plunging, I forced a lot of stuff back through the inflow at the bottom of the bowl and now some of it is stuck where the flow is at a lower pressure under the rim.

Stopping the non-offending holes might work... if i can figure a way to do it, I will try it. Of course, with my luck, it will push the contamination to where I've closed the holes!

 

[rhino]

Dont know if you are on a septic system or city but if you are on your own septic system you should not be putting bleach in your toilet. This could be a costly mistake in the future.

City sewer, not septic. No way I would mess with the bacterial colony in a septic system that way.

 

[rhino]

In the meantime, I have "discovered" a method to remediate new and potential clogs that eliminates the be need to plunge. I shall not describe it here!

 

[Dead Duck]

City sewer, not septic. No way I would mess with the bacterial colony in a septic system that way.

Ah come on....
Septics are fun. Some people even put gardens in their leach field so they can eat their own ****.

 

[Sigblitz]

In the meantime, I have "discovered" a method to remediate new and potential clogs that eliminates the be need to plunge. I shall not describe it here!

Less fiber

 

[Bigtanker]

In the meantime, I have "discovered" a method to remediate new and potential clogs that eliminates the be need to plunge. I shall not describe it here!

Poop knife?

https://www.buzzfeed.com/terripous/poop-knife-reddit

 

[halfmileharry]

Poop knife?

https://www.buzzfeed.com/terripous/poop-knife-reddit

I just use a 5 gallon paint stirrer on my 20v DeWalt.

 

[BGDave]

I just use a 5 gallon paint stirrer on my 20v DeWalt.

Great, now the cats are staring at me for guffawing. That is a wicked mental image.

 

[bwframe]