Hi,

I have been staying with friends for 6 months now. Their toilet upstairs hasnt worked since before I got here. But now their downstairs toilet isnt working right either.

I have a cat upstairs with me, and his cat box is also right there with me in closed quarters. So whenever he goes "poop" I take it out of there with tissue and bring it downatairs to flush it in the toilet. The woman who lives at the house here doesnt want me to put it into the trash in the kitchen because of course it smells. And I clean the overall cat litter box and then put it in the outside garbage every couple of days.

Anyway, the toilet downstairs is now having trouble flushing. It flushes normally at the first but then if anyone goes to use the toilet for anything soon afterwards it wont flush because it takes awhile for the previous toilet flushing to fill back up again.

They think it is because of me putting the cat pooh into the toilet and some of the kitty litter being there with it (only a little). I think its probably just that the floater thing needs replacing because I cant see how what you put down into the bottom of the toilet can have to do with how the toilet itself actually flushes. Especially in light of the fact that their upstairs toilet doesnt work and hasnt worked since before I got here and he told me its just that the thing needs replacing... the floater or whatever.

What do you think?

Thanks, Claudia

It sounds like there are two different issues...

The upstairs "doesn't work" is not enough information to even fathom a guess here. Is there water in the bowl? What happens when it's flushed? Etc...

The downstairs one reads as if the fill valve (your "floater thing") needs inspection/adjusting/replacing. Or it could be there is a partial blockage in the supply line. SOMETHING is preventing normal fill rate of the tank. OR it could be the flapper that seals the tank is not closing quick enough or completely. This toilet is likely easily fixed by someone qualified.

wow, cat litter? I would think even after a small bit of time, it would sit and clump and build up. Cat litter is not the most soluble in water.

I agree though hard to tell the actual problem, but one thing would be to never put cat litter, even a teeny bit in the toilet, but that is just my opinion

I think using tissue...i'm assuming you're referring to the Kleenex type rather than the Charmin type....could be causing a problem. Mayhap not THE problem...but a problem none the less. Facial tissue isn't really made to just break down like bathroom tissue.

IN ADDITION, the cat feces should NOT be flushed down a toilet anyway...:

"Studies are showing that toxoplasmosis, a parasite found in cat feces, has infected marine mammals and otters. Toxoplasmosis cannot be destroyed by sewage treatment, and therefore escapes into our waterways, where crabs and starfish will feed on it, thus jeopardizing the health of other marine mammals who feed on the crabs and starfish. Toxoplasmosis can cause brain damage and death in sea otters. Most (if not all) litter manufacturers warn on their packaging not to flush feces or litter down the toilet, and that is the reason."

Its not kleenex tissue Ive been using, its toilet tissue.

My only option I guess is to put it all into a plastic bag and tie the end of it and keep it all there till I take the cat litter out or else take it outside each time and put it into the big garbage outside **sigh**.

But when I first got here, I noticed a little of the cat litter would stay at the bottom of the toilet and not flush anyway. So I think there was a problem to start with before I even got here.