Rid-X is one of the most effective chemical products for dissolving toilet clogs caused by excess toilet paper. It works quickly and is septic-safe. Vinegar, combined with baking soda and hot water, is a great home remedy for dissolving toilet paper that won’t harm your plumbing. Heavy-duty lime and rust-removing cleaners can also be poured directly into your toilet bowl to break up clogs.
Avoid using bleach, cola, lye-based cleaners, or Drano to break up toilet paper clogs. Bleach and lye are both bases, and it is essential to use acids to dissolve paper. Cola is ineffective because it has very low concentrations of acid. Drano is not designed to dissolve paper—it is meant for removing hair and grease—so it is often defeated by paper clogs.
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What Should You Do to Fix a Toilet Paper Clog?
If your toilet is clogged with toilet paper, begin by waiting for 10 to 20 minutes. This allows time for water to soak into the toilet paper and begin to dissolve it. After waiting, attempt to flush the toilet again. If it is still clogged, follow our steps for dissolving toilet paper in a sewer line. Plunging and snaking a toilet are often faster-acting and more effective than pouring chemicals into your toilet bowl.
Which of These 10 Chemicals Will Dissolve Toilet Paper?
If you have a stubborn toilet paper clog, it’s essential to clear it quickly so you can return your toilet to working order. If you are wondering what chemicals can help dissolve toilet paper and which ones are safe for septic systems, here is the complete guide:
Will Ridex Dissolve Toilet Paper?
Rid-X is the best choice for dissolving toilet paper clogs. The chemicals in this Rid-X treatment can be poured directly into your toilet bowl. They work quickly to break up toilet paper and other clogs. As an added advantage, Rid-X won’t damage plumbing or cause damage to septic systems. So, you can use it whether you have a septic tank or not.
- Formulated to break apart toilet paper and other septic clogs.
- Prevent septic back-ups.
- An easy-to-use product that's gentle on pipes and tanks.
Will Drano Dissolve Toilet Paper?
Drano will not dissolve toilet paper. The cleaning compounds in Drano products are meant to break up clogs caused by grease, hair, and human waste. So, Drano won’t help toilet paper clogs break up faster. Most plumbers also warn against using Drano, especially if you have a septic tank. It can harm your septic system, so it isn’t a great choice for resolving toilet paper clogs.
Will Vinegar Dissolve Toilet Paper?
Vinegar can be used to break up toilet paper clogs when it is combined with baking soda and hot water. To use this method, first, pour 1 cup of baking soda into your toilet bowl. Follow this up with 2 cups of vinegar. Immediately after adding the vinegar, pour 8 cups of boiling hot water into the toilet. The foaming action of vinegar plus baking soda will help scour pipes and break up clogs. Plus, the acetic acid in vinegar helps dissolve toilet paper.
Will Peroxide Dissolve Toilet Paper?
Lime and rust removers with hydrogen peroxide are an excellent choice for destroying toilet paper clogs. Start by pouring this bottle of cleaner with hydrogen peroxide into the toilet bowl. Wait 1 hour for the chemicals to work. Then, flush. This amount of time allows the cleaner to work its way to the source of the clog and dissolve it.
Does Coke Dissolve Toilet Paper?
Cola contains small concentrations of phosphoric acid, but it’s not useful as a toilet cleaner or clog-buster. The phosphoric acid content in cola-style sodas is very low. When it is diluted by the water in your pipes, it simply isn’t strong enough to break up toilet paper clogs or clean your pipes. It’s best to leave the cola in the fridge.
Will Baking Soda Break Down Toilet Paper?
When used on its own, baking soda is not powerful enough to break down toilet paper. However, if you add both vinegar and baking soda to your toilet bowl, then force it down the toilet drain with some hot water, you will create a foaming clog-buster that clears clogged pipes. This mixture is also gentle enough that it won’t harm plumbing or damage septic systems.
Will Boiling Water Break Down Toilet Paper?
Pouring boiling water into your toilet can help break up clogs. The hot water speeds up the rate at which toilet paper dissolves. Even better, pouring a large volume of water into your toilet can sometimes have enough force to blast clogs apart. Boiling water works best when it is combined with baking soda and vinegar, but it can be used on its own. Just remember to work carefully when handling boiling water, to avoid getting burned.
Does Lye Dissolve Toilet Paper?
Lye is a very poor choice for dissolving toilet paper. Paper dissolves when it is exposed to acid, but lye is not an acid, it is a base. So, pouring lye into a toilet won’t speed up the rate at which toilet paper breaks down. Second, lye is extremely caustic, so it is dangerous to work around and causes severe damage to your pipes and/or septic system. Never use lye or lye-based cleaners as a solution if your toilet is clogged with paper.
Will Bleach Break Down Toilet Paper?
So many people consider using bleach to resolve toilet clogs that we wrote a detailed article on why bleach won’t help to dissolve toilet paper. Bleach is basic instead of acidic, which means it is almost useless for dissolving paper. Additionally, bleach harms plumbing and septic systems. Never pour bleach down any drain in your home.
Does Aspirin Dissolve Toilet Paper?
Surprisingly, aspirin is great for dissolving toilet paper and other paper-caused toilet clogs. This is because aspirin forms acetic acid and salicylic acid when it is exposed to water. These acids then work to dissolve paper. To use aspirin to fix a toilet paper clog, dissolve 4 to 6 tablets of aspirin in water. Then, pour the water into your toilet bowl. Wait 1 to 2 hours, then flush. The aspirin will help break up the paper clog.
What Chemical Will Dissolve Toilet Paper Fast?
When you have a nasty toilet paper clog and need to fix it quickly, here are the chemicals to use and avoid:
Use:
- Rid-X septic treatment.
- Lime and rust removal products containing hydrogen peroxide.
- A homemade cleaner made from baking soda, vinegar, and hot water.
- 4 to 6 aspirin tablets dissolved in water.
Avoid:
- Bleach.
- Drano.
- Cola and other sodas.
- Lye and cleaners containing lye.
Before you resort to using chemicals, it’s best to try a toilet plunger or toilet auger first. These tools can resolve clogs much more quickly than pouring a chemical into your toilet bowl and waiting for results. However, the right chemicals can resolve stubborn toilet paper clogs when other methods fail.
