Toilet gurgles when washer drains

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The toilet in the bathroom on the opposite side of the wall from the laundry room started gurgling and bubbling tonight, while the washer was draining. It didn't overflow or anything. Just a few bubbles and then it stopped.

House is on a septic system, it was flushed out a few years ago. There are no other problems with the other drains in the house, but I had to snake out both toilets last weekend, My gf had been flushing used cat litter clumps down the toilet before I met her and the same toilet that is gurgling would stop up a lot of the time. After using a 25 foot snake on both toilets, they and the rest of the drains in the house have been running OK. Toilet has never had washing machine related problems till tonight.

Any help or ideas are very much appreciated on this one. I know nothing about plumbing.
 
normally gurgling is caused by blockage in the vent pipes although the toilet should drain to a 3 or 4" stack - which would be pretty hard to block. perhaps check the vent stack from the roof and look for a nest or other signs of blockage. after that, I would snake the drain line for the washer. after that, I would suspect there's still some cat litter somewhere along the lines that is causing a problem. Instead of just a snake, I would be tempted to remove the toilet and take a look.

feel free to check back. I've seen some pretty crazy stuff with plumbing: One building we worked on had a 6" diameter hole in the stack caused by the building shifting. same building had plaster down the drain lines - and a blocked line to the street. I really disliked the plumbing in that building! and right this moment my kitchen sink is gurging - the vent line for the sink freezes solid shut during cold snaps due to moisture from the dishwasher. I insulated the line and the roof, but apparently I need to run a second vent line.
 
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When my tub drain used to gurgle it was caused by roots growing into the iron drain pipe. I now have new PVC plumbing and it no longer makes that noise.
 
Thanks for the info. I sure hope it's not roots in the pipes. I'll get on the roof soon as I can and check the vent pipes. I'll snake the washer drain pipe and the toilet again too while I'm at it. Hopefully that will take care of it. I have never in my whole life seen anything like that before. Thanks again for the help.
 
It may be cat litter in the pipes. Is cat litter water-soluble? I don't think so, though I'm not too familiar with it. Cat litter in the pipes may provide a foothold for other debris to catch and pile up. Or, conversely, roots could provide a foothold to trap cat litter.
 
Thanks. I snaked it all out the best I could the other day and the drains all started running much better. Even the shower drains quickly now. Before I did the snake the shower drain was really slow, like a hair clog or something. Where can I find the main cleanout plug for the drain system? I looked all around the house in the yard for it and didn't find one at all. Is it possible to have it located inside the house? If so, where is it?

It's a single story house. As you look at the house from the front, the kitchen sink, disposer and dishwasher are on the right. Then down the hall is the laundry room where the washer is located. Just down the hall a few feet is the hall bathroom. The toilet that made the gurgling is on the opposite side of the wall behind the washer. Then at the end of the hall is the master bedroom and bath. The master bath is on the opposite side of the hall from the other bath. If it had windows you could see the front yard and the street.

I read online you can snake out the main cleanout drain too but I don't know where it is. If it means anything, the sink drain in the master bath is running slow. It drains OK but takes a while if it is more than half way full of water. My gf has long hair so I thought maybe it was a combination of stray hair and cat litter in the toilet drain causing the original clog problem. All the drains worked great after I snaked the toilets the other day though.

Thanks very much for the help.
 
what kestas said. as well, you must make it sink into the gf's skull that it is a stupid, stupid thing to do to throw ANY foreign objects into a toilet. if it doesn't come from your body, or a toilet paper roll, it does NOT belong in a toilet. i'll bet you a canadian beer that you have this problem again before the year is done.
i know from experience. i've cleaned out many dozens of toilets because of food, tampons, pads,lipstick tubes & disposable diapers tossed in. every single time -- it was a woman.i'm not knocking women -- just stating fact. good luck.
 
To be fair to the ladies, I'll point out that my neighbor regularly flushed dental floss down the toilet. He had to pay to have a plumber snake out a big "hair ball" of dental floss from his pipes.

Oilbabe also has long hair. One maintenance item I do 2-3 times a year is I bring the garden hose into the house and blast away at the drains. It cleans out the traps without having to take them apart.
 
kestas -- i'm sure that some guys do these stupid things, as well. i was pointing out my many experiences. there are many more experiences with clogged kitchen drains. bacon grease, and food debris issues. apparently, strainers should come with instructions. and, who is stupid enough to dump bacon grease down a drain ???? i stopped trying to clean out these clogs a few years back, and just cut out the trap, and install a new one. it's easier, and faster.
 
My place is eventually going to suffer a coffee grounds jamup. Percolator rinsing gets about 1/2 teaspoon each time. At least it will smell nice.
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My gf now knows not to flush kitty litter in the toilet. I just asked her to leave the litter box maintenance to me from now on. She is very good about not putting anything else down the toilet. I guess she flushed the cat litter because the cat box is conveniently located in an alcove in that bathroom.

I hope to be able to get on the roof Saturday and check the vent pipes and then I will snake the toilets and the washer drain. I still have no idea where the main cleanout is located. I'm guessing it is under one of the sinks in the house because I sure don't see it in the yard anywhere.
 
jimmy -- if possible --since you'll be on the roof, bring your hose up there, and run it down the vent as far as possible, and have the gf turn on the water. it's good PM, and it just might loosen up a small blockage. you should have a main cleanout in the front yard, before the city property. stand in your yard in line with the roof vent, and it should be between the house, and the front property line.it's likely just below the surface of the ground. good luck.
 
Originally Posted By: Jimmy9190

House is on a septic system, it was flushed out a few years ago.


How long has it been since it was pumped (flushed)? What is a few years? More then likely the drains that are making noise are closest to the septic tank, drains further from the tank will not show any problems. If the tank is nearly full you will start having problems with the drains that are closest.

I just went through this myself. A combination of higher then average rain fall and a full tank slowed the drains. My tank needs to be pumped every 2-3 years. If she has been putting material that will not easily break down it will fill that tank faster.
 
Thanks for the info. I don't know exactly how long ago the septic was flushed, I think maybe 3 years ago. I hope it's not backing up or having other problems. I also hope there is no rain Saturday so I can check it out. Thanks.
 
If you are not sure how long its been or the tank size you may want to call around for a estimate. Having mine pumped was $225 last year and it really needed to be done. Only took about 45 minutes even though the tank was close to completely full. My tank is only 1000 gallons instead of 1500.
 
I should have asked how old is the home? Make sure the leach feild is still in good condition etc. Make sure you know where the tank is and that no one ever parks or drives on top of it.
 
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