How can I increase the suction in my toilet?

Question

Both in my current house and at my mom's house, the basement toilet has a much harder time flushing. I have a feeling it's a mechanical issue (gravity and whatnot), not just cleaning the grime out, and I was looking for a relatively cheap, simple, DIY fix.

Answer 1

It is not a question of "suction". Being in the basement means there is less "gravity" pull on the waste since it is not "falling". Make sure the water level in the tank is set properly (1/2" below the top of the overflow pipe). Basement toilets are not usually used as much which allows calcium deposits to collect in the holes under the rim. Use a mirror to check these.

Answer 2

Like the other poster said, it is not a matter of suction- but it kind of is. The drain piping is ( or at least should be) vented to the roof so suction is avoided-- It's a good thing, it allows the p trap to hold water so sewer gases don't drive you out of the house

Toilets have three simple things that work very well together that make up the system. The first is the tank with a automatic filling mechanism. This tank is placed above the bowl part so that water can run down into the bowl at a very fast rate-- it's critical that the water gets in there very quickly-- so make sure that can happen. The second part is the bowl, that's where business is taken care of and it has a funnel shape at the bottom where the force of the rushing water can be concentrated and push waste down the drain. The third part is the syphon. When the water rushes down the syphon it creates-- well a syphon, and pulls the water up and over and then back down again- and into the drain. From the drain it goes through an additional  ptrap to block sewer gases and on it goes into a vented drain.  Without the syphon the water might no pull waste down the drain.

Anyway all these systems need to work together for the toilet to work correctly. So make sure the toilet can deliver a bunch of water very quickly.

Is the toilet very old, it may not have a good syphon and simply can't "suck" the waste through. Is the drain vented properly?

I had a problem in my own home a while back, my aunt did too, and I hear this same problem all the time. If you cannot figure out where the problem is just buy a new toilet.

Do other toilets use the same drain? If they do, flush them all several times and try to see if they slow down also-- if they do it could be a busted clay drain line or one filled with roots . In that case call the roto rooter guy-- if it's busted pipe -- oooooohh that's real real bad, look to spend about 10 grand if you can't get insurance to pay for it.

Answer 3

There isn't an 'adjustment' anywhere.  How well a toilet flushes is a matter of design.  In the early '90s the government mandated that all toilets are 6-liter flush.  This appears to have caught the manufacturers off-guard, and some of the early 6-liter flush jobs were garbage.  You may as well sell someone a plunger with the toilet - they were awful, and some of them are still around.  The date of manufacture is usually stamped into the inside of the tank.

Another possibility is that the toilets are obstructed.  You can get a toilet auger (snake made for toilets) and try to clear the bowl.