[plumber101]

My toilet won't flush. I opened the tank and there was very little water in the tank as well as ice chips. Is my pipe frozen? What should I do?? I tried pouring boiling water in the toilet and the tank. The toilet flushed, but, the water in the tank did not refill. Also tried pointing a blow dryer along the drain pipe. -??

[mygirlsdad77]

If there is ice in the toilet, it's a pretty good bet that your water supply is frozen. Can you gain access to the water line below the floor? If so, use your hair drier there.

[plumber101]

If there is ice in the toilet, its a pretty good bet that your water supply is frozen. Can you gain access to the water line below the floor? If so, use your hair drier there.

Do I locate this by following the pipe from the toilet into the floor when that snake hose thing is? None of the other sink faucets or tub seem to be affected.
Would they be?

[mygirlsdad77]

Yes, follow that pipe and find where it is prone to freezing (near an outside wall, etc). How cold did it get in the home for ice to form in the tank? I surprised the whole house isn't frozen up. Good news is, it sounds like just the toilet supply froze.

[plumber101]

Yes, follow that pipe and find where it is prone to freezing (near an outside wall, etc). How cold did it get in the home for ice to form in the tank? I surprised the whole house isnt frozen up. Good news is, it sounds like just the toilet supply froze.

Thank you very much - am working on it now! God Bless!

[mygirlsdad77]

Good luck, and please do let me know how things turn out. When you do find the frozen portion, find a way to keep it from happening again (insolate, heat tape, etc).

[plumber101]

Yes, follow that pipe and find where it is prone to freezing (near an outside wall, etc). How cold did it get in the home for ice to form in the tank? I surprised the whole house isnt frozen up. Good news is, it sounds like just the toilet supply froze.

Is there a way I can insulate the pipe or put more insulation in the area to keep it warmer?

[mygirlsdad77]

Sure, you can insulate the pipe with armoflex or equivalent. You can also insolate any areas where the "cold" is getting in. If the pipe is in an unheated area (crawlspace, etc,) you may need to also heat tape the line. Lots of options here, but you are the one that has to track down the issue, as you are the one that is there to see it first hand.

[hkstroud]

Sounds like the piping is underneath the floor. If so you are going to have to get under the floor and warm the pipe with a hair drier. Until then you can always fill the tank with a bucket and water from the tub.

Is this a mobile home?

[mygirlsdad77]

I agree Harold, but I would find the frozen portion of pipe asap before it freezes hard enough to split the pipe. Frozen pipes are bad enough, burst pipes are a completely different headache.