The clothes hanger trick for unclogging a toilet that plumbers hate

I had a toilet clog last Tuesday that was just refusing to budge. The plunger was doing nothing and I was about to call the landlord. Then I remembered a video I saw where a guy used a metal clothes hanger to break up the blockage. I straightened out a hanger, bent a tiny hook on one end, and shoved it down into the drain. After about 3 minutes of wiggling and pulling, I fished out a wad of hair and who knows what else. The toilet flushed right after like nothing happened. Has anyone else tried something this janky instead of calling the plumber?

3 comments

3 Comments

sanchez.mary28d ago

Honestly I don't get why people act like this is some life hack. It's a toilet clog not a surgery. You just shoved a dirty hanger down there and hoped for the best. That could scratch up the porcelain or even push the clog further down where it gets way worse. Tbh half the time those things are just temporary fixes and you end up calling the plumber anyway a week later. Ngl I'd rather just plunge it a few more times or buy a proper drain snake for ten bucks. Seems like a lot of fuss for something that might not even be that serious.

ward.jamie28d ago

My buddy tried this and cracked his toilet bowl.

price.ray28d ago

sanchez.mary nailed it with that "temporary fix" thing. That's pretty much how most people handle stuff nowadays. We all want a fast bandaid instead of just doing it right the first time. I see it with home repairs, car maintenance, even relationships. Everyone's looking for the cheap shortcut that'll buy them a few more weeks before the real problem comes back twice as bad. Your buddy's cracked toilet is just the physical version of what happens when you patch over something instead of fixing it.