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It’s possible to snake minor drain clogs yourself, provided they sit within a foot or two of the drain itself, but it’s usually best to hire a professional plumber regardless. Even experienced DIYers have a high chance of accidentally pushing the clog further into the drain using a drain snake or another tool, so hiring a plumber is the ideal course of action. A professional plumber can use camera equipment to locate and identify the clog, and remove the entire blockage to fix your issue permanently.

Yes, frozen pipes can cause a toilet to stop working correctly. If the pipes are frozen, water cannot flow, which can lead to two main problems. First, the supply line to the toilet tank may be frozen, which prevents the tank from refilling with water after you flush. Second, the drain pipe itself can freeze, blocking water from flushing away. As a temporary solution for a non-refilling tank, you can manually add water, but this is not a long-term fix. To clear a frozen drain pipe, you can try pouring warm water into the toilet bowl or tank and then flushing, as the warm water may help thaw the ice blockage. Ultimately, the best course of action is to unfreeze the affected pipes to restore your toilet to full functionality.

A liquid drain cleaner can sometimes make a clog worse over time if you use it improperly or too much. The chemicals in drain cleaners can corrode and damage pipes, causing cracks and leaks that may cause further blockages. If the clog is more than the liquid drain cleaner can handle, the cleaner will simply add chemicals to a bigger overall problem.

Yes—your local septic company can clean your septic leach lines with a sewer jetter, a device that pumps high-pressure water through the lines to blast out any clogs and scum buildup. Unless there’s a clog or blockage in the lines, however, you do not need to perform this maintenance regularly. Do not attempt to clean your own leach lines, as you could easily damage them, leading to very costly repairs.