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If you try a drain snake and various DIY methods for unclogging drains to no avail, bring in a professional plumber to assess the situation. Also, if multiple drains in your home are backing up or you smell sewage, a visit from a plumber is best. You can expect your drain cleaning costs to fall around $250, and this can include an assessment of what’s caught in your plumbing and if there’s a larger, underlying problem. You should also consider calling a pro if you need to snake a toilet, as DIYing this could lead to a cracked fixture.

Drain pipes carry wastewater from sinks, toilets, showers, and other fixtures to the main sewer line. They’re typically located within the walls and floors and beneath a home’s foundation. Meanwhile, sewer pipes transport collected wastewater to a septic tank or a municipal sewer system.

If your washing machine drain is clogged, that isn’t a good sign. Unlike toilet drains or kitchen sink drains, there isn’t matter that is easily broken up with a plumbing snake, and more care is required. If you’re in an old house or have mineral-rich water, there could be a buildup inside the pipe. Either way, if the blockage isn’t obvious and doesn’t dislodge with a snake, you need to call a pro—otherwise, you risk damaging integral plumbing.

Yes, frozen pipes can prevent a toilet from working correctly. If the pipes are frozen, water cannot flow, which means your toilet tank won't be able to refill after a flush. This will prevent the toilet from flushing again. Depending on which lines are frozen, the ice can also block the drain pipe, preventing water from flushing away.

As a temporary workaround, you can manually add water to the tank for each flush. To clear a frozen drain pipe, you can try filling the toilet bowl or tank with warm water and flushing to help thaw the ice. However, the best long-term solution is to unfreeze the pipes to get your toilet back in working order.