What it costs to unclog a toilet, by situation
Prices are for Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley, during regular hours (9 to 5, Monday to Friday) unless the row says otherwise. Outside those hours, every price is double.
| The situation | What it takes | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Paper or waste stuck in the toilet's own trap | Cleared with a hand auger through the bowl. | From $269 |
| The same job outside 9 to 5, Monday to Friday | Same work, at the after-hours rate. | From $538 |
| An object the auger cannot bring back | Toilet lifted, object removed, toilet reset on a new seal. | Quoted before we lift it |
| The blockage is past the toilet, in the pipe | Cleared with an electric drain machine from the floor connection. | Quoted before we continue |
| Other drains are backing up too | This is the main line. Cleared from a cleanout with a large drum machine. | From $649 |
| You want to see what caused it | Camera inspection of the line, with the video sent to you. | + $249 |
| Another slow drain in the house | A second drain cleared on the same visit. | + $149 |
| Drain cleaner has been poured in | Protective gear, and the water vacuumed out and contained before work starts. | + $50 if you tell us |
| The drain will not clear within 2 hours | Something is wrong with the pipe itself. You get a written estimate for what it needs. | The fee still applies |
“From” is the price when the job goes the way it usually does, and it covers up to 2 hours on site. If it turns out to need more, you get the new price before the extra work starts, and you can say no.
What changes the price
| Where the clog is | A blockage in the toilet's own trap is quick. One further down the line needs longer equipment. |
|---|---|
| What caused it | Paper clears easily. A toy, wipes or a hard object may mean lifting the toilet off the floor. |
| Other drains backing up | If the tub or sink gurgles when you flush, the problem is likely the main line, which is a different job. |
| Drain cleaner in the line | If drain cleaner has been poured in, the plumber needs protective gear and has to remove the water safely first. That adds $50 if you tell us, $100 if we find it on site without being told. Always tell us. |
| Time of day | Regular hours are 9 to 5, Monday to Friday. Outside those hours, every price is double. |
One drain, or the main line?
It is the question that decides the price. A single drain is a small job. The main line is a bigger one, and it gets worse with every tap you run.
Your answer appears here.
A guide, not a diagnosis. The plumber checks before starting work.
What causes it
| Too much paper at once | The most common cause by far. It lodges in the bend inside the toilet and clears with an auger. |
|---|---|
| Wipes, including the flushable kind | They do not break down the way paper does. They catch in the trap and at pipe joints and collect everything behind them. |
| Something that should not be there | Toys, toothbrushes, air freshener clips, cotton swabs and sanitary products. A hard object can sit in the trap for weeks, causing a clog every few days. |
| A tired toilet | Early low-flow toilets and worn flush parts move less water than the bowl needs. The result looks like a clog that keeps coming back. |
| A problem further down | The toilet is the largest drain in the house, so a blocked main line often shows up there first. |
Try this first
- Stop flushing. A second flush on a blocked bowl is how floors get wet.
- Use a flange plunger, the kind with the extra lip, and give it ten firm strokes.
- Still blocked? A toilet auger reaches past the trap without scratching the bowl.
Stop and call a plumber if
- Water comes up in the tub or shower when you flush
- More than one toilet or drain is slow at the same time
- You can smell sewage, or see it
- The clog keeps coming back within days
Call 1-800-604-0631, any hour.
What the plumber does
- Check the tub, shower and sinks nearby, to confirm the problem is this toilet and not the main line.
- Protect the floor, then run a closet auger through the bowl and around the trap. It is made for porcelain and does not scratch it.
- If the auger meets something solid, or the bowl still will not clear, shut off the water, lift the toilet and clear it from below. You are told the price for that before the toilet moves.
- Reset the toilet on a new seal if it was lifted, and check the base and supply for leaks.
- Flush several times with paper to prove it, then tell you what the blockage was and whether it is likely to return.
What the $269 covers
- Coming to you and working out where the blockage is
- Clearing the toilet's trap with a hand auger
- Flush testing until it clears properly every time
- Leaving the bathroom floor as clean as we found it
- A straight answer on what caused it
- Lifting and resetting the toilet
- Clearing the pipe beyond the toilet, or the main line
- Replacement parts, or a new toilet
- A camera inspection, unless you add one
The price covers up to 2 hours on site, and we prove the drain works before we leave. If it will not clear in that time, the fee still applies and you get a written estimate. There is no guarantee against a new clog. Unclog a toilet is booked through Unclog.it and done by a Pure Mechanical Group plumber.
Why is that other quote $99?
You will see drain specials advertised for $99 or less. Before you compare one with the price on this page, ask what it covers.
| What is included? | Many specials cover a set length of cable through an existing cleanout, on one drain, and nothing else. |
|---|---|
| What if it does not clear? | This is where the price changes. Ask what the next step costs before anyone arrives. |
| What does it cost tonight? | An advertised price is a daytime price. Ask for the evening and weekend rate. |
| Is the price in writing? | A price you were told on the phone and a price on the invoice should be the same number. |
It is hard to send a licensed plumber, a stocked truck and a drain machine to your door for $99 and cover the cost on the clearing alone. Often the visit pays for itself on what is sold once someone is inside. Our price is higher because it is the price of clearing the drain. You know it before we come, and anything beyond it is quoted before it is done.
Stop it happening again
- Flush only what comes out of you, and toilet paper.
- Keep a small bin beside the toilet, so wipes, swabs and floss have somewhere else to go.
- Treat flushable wipes as garbage. The pipe cannot tell the difference.
- With small children, keep the lid down and the bathroom door shut.
- If the toilet needs a plunger every week, the toilet is the problem. A new one costs less than repeat visits.
Questions people ask
How much does it cost to unclog a toilet in Metro Vancouver?
With Unclog.it it starts from $269 during regular hours (9 to 5, Monday to Friday) and from $538 outside them. That price covers a clog in the toilet's own trap, cleared with a hand auger. It costs more if the toilet has to come off the floor or the blockage is further down the pipe, and you are told that price before the extra work starts.
Why does my toilet keep clogging?
A clog that returns within days usually has a cause that plunging does not remove: an object lodged in the trap, a toilet with a weak flush, or a partial blockage in the main line. If more than one fixture is slow, suspect the main line. A camera inspection settles it.
Is a clogged toilet an emergency?
It is if it is the only toilet in the home, if it is overflowing, or if sewage is coming up anywhere else. If you have a second toilet that works, it can usually wait for regular hours, and that halves the price.
Can I use drain cleaner in a toilet?
No. Most labels say so. It sits in the bowl without reaching the clog, the heat it gives off can damage the toilet, and it turns a simple job into a hazardous one for whoever clears it next.
Why plumbers say no to drain cleanerWill the plumber have to remove the toilet?
Usually not. Most clogs clear through the bowl. The toilet comes off when a hard object is wedged in the trap, or when the blockage is in the pipe below and there is no other way in.
How do I tell a toilet clog from a main line problem?
Flush and watch the other drains. If water rises in the tub or shower, a floor drain bubbles, or a second toilet is slow as well, the blockage is in the main line and not in the toilet.
What if the drain will not clear?
The price covers up to 2 hours on site. If the drain will not clear in that time, it almost always means the pipe itself is damaged or something is lodged that a machine cannot move. The fee still applies, because the plumber, the truck and the equipment were there doing the work, and you get a written estimate for what it needs next.
Is there a guarantee if it clogs again?
No. We run water and prove the drain is working before we leave, and you see it for yourself. After that we cannot control what goes down it. If it blocks again, call us and we will come back and take a look. If there is a new blockage to clear, that is a new job at the full price.
