Blocked toilet? We'll clear it — Manchester & Oldham, 24/7
A toilet that fills to the rim and drains away in slow motion is the one blockage nobody can live with. We clear blocked toilets across Greater Manchester day and night, and we find out what caused it so it does not happen again next week.
What a blocked toilet actually looks like
Not every blocked toilet is obvious. These are the things people describe to us on the phone most often:
- The pan fills right up when you flush and then creeps away over a minute or two
- Water rises to the rim and you have to stand there hoping it goes down
- The flush works but the waste sits there and comes back
- Bubbling or gurgling from the bath or basin when the toilet is flushed
- A drain smell in the bathroom that has appeared in the last few days
- Waste backing up into the shower tray on the ground floor — usually a main run problem, not the toilet itself
- The toilet was fine, then a nappy, wipes or a cleaning block went down it
Clear quote before any work starts. A call-out fee may apply — always confirmed on the phone before we travel.
How we clear it
The aim is to clear the blockage without cracking the pan or pushing the problem further down the line.
- 01
Work out where the blockage sits
First question: is it just this toilet, or is everything in the house draining badly? If the basin and bath are fine, the blockage is in the pan or the short branch behind it. If everything is slow, the problem is in the main run and we lift the chamber outside. - 02
Clear the pan and trap
Most domestic blockages sit in the trap of the pan itself. We use a proper closet auger rather than forcing it with a plunger, so the glaze and the pan connector do not take the punishment. - 03
Move to the branch or the main run if needed
If the pan is clear and it still will not go, we rod or machine the branch pipe, or open the inspection chamber and clear the run from outside. Jetting is used where the build-up is heavy or has come back before. - 04
Flush test and check the pan connector
We run several full flushes with the seat down and watch the chamber to make sure the waste actually travels. A lot of repeat blockages are really a displaced pan connector or a bad fall on the branch. - 05
Tell you what caused it
Wipes, cotton buds, cat litter, a dropped bottle top, a collapsed section of clay pipe — you get a straight answer, not a shrug.
Why blocked toilets come back
If you have had the same toilet block three times in a year, the blockage is a symptom rather than the fault. In older terraced and semi-detached stock around Oldham, Rochdale and north Manchester, a lot of below-ground drainage is still clay with rigid joints. Roots find those joints, and silt builds up behind them.
The other common cause is much simpler: so-called flushable wipes. They do not break down like paper. They wrap around anything slightly rough inside the pipe and gather everything that follows. If wipes are being used in the house, that is nearly always the answer.
Where we find something structural — a collapsed section, a badly laid branch with no fall, or a soil stack that has been extended awkwardly — we will tell you plainly and quote for putting it right rather than clearing the same blockage every few months.
Is this an emergency, or can it be booked in?
Both are fine — but it helps us prioritise if you know which one you're describing.
- The toilet is overflowing onto the floor
- It is the only toilet in the property
- Waste is backing up into the bath, shower or a ground-floor gully
- There is a tenant, an elderly resident or a young family with no working toilet
- One of two or more toilets is slow but still usable
- The flush is weak but the waste clears eventually
- You have noticed gurgling but nothing has backed up yet
- You want the drain run checked before a tenancy starts
Emergency? Here's what to send us
A photo or short video helps too. The more we know before setting off, the less time is wasted when we get there.
Your postcode
So we can tell you straight away whether you're inside the radius we cover.
What the problem is
In your own words — where the water is coming from and how long it's been going on.
A phone number
The best number to reach you on when we're close, so nobody is left waiting at the wrong door.
House or flat
Flats, shared risers and upstairs neighbours change how a leak has to be isolated.
Blocked Toilet — common questions
Will a plunger make it worse?
A decent flanged plunger on a soft blockage is fine. What causes damage is repeated forcing on a hard object — a bottle top, a toy or a cleaning block — because you push it further into the branch where it is harder to reach. If two or three attempts have not moved it, stop and call.
I poured caustic drain cleaner down it and nothing happened. Is that a problem?
Tell us before we arrive. Standing caustic in a pan is a burn risk for whoever puts their hands near it, and it rarely shifts wipes or solid objects anyway. We can still clear it — we just need to know so it can be handled safely.
Is a blocked toilet my responsibility or the water company's?
Anything inside your boundary is generally yours. Shared lateral drains and public sewers beyond the boundary are usually the water company's. If we open the chamber and it is clearly their side, we will tell you and point you at United Utilities rather than charging you to fix their pipe.
Can you clear it without pulling the toilet off?
In the large majority of cases, yes. Removing a pan is a last resort — usually only where a solid object is lodged in the trap and cannot be retrieved any other way. If it comes to that, we will say so and quote before touching anything.
How do you charge for a blocked toilet at night?
You get a clear quote before any work starts, and a call-out fee may apply — that is confirmed on the phone before we travel, whatever time it is.
More answers on our plumbing FAQ page and in how it works.
Related jobs we take on
Areas we cover for this
Plumbing emergency right now?
Call and speak to the plumber who will be doing the job — not a call centre. Lines are open 24 hours a day, every day.
You get a clear quote before work starts. A call-out fee may apply — confirmed on the phone before we travel.