Fast Plumbing Answers: Gurgling Sound from Toilet?

There’s a gurgling sound from your toilet that won’t stop. Perhaps it starts 5 seconds after you flush, or you hear it randomly at night, it’s an unsettling noise that makes you worry. Do you have a simple clog in your drain? Is it a blocked plumbing vent, or a deep sewer line issue?

Don’t worry- we’ll answer all your questions in 2 minutes or less.

We’re Mother, a Dallas-Fort Worth plumbing company that provides dependable, hassle-free modern plumbing for homeowners who value quality. Call us 7 days a week for non-invasive drain clog repair and cleaning services and solutions that last.

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Gurgling Sound in The Toilet? It’s Probably a Clogged Drain

The most likely cause of that gurgling noise in your toilet is a drain clog.

“A gurgling toilet means air is being forced through the bowl due to a blockage,” explains our Journeyman Plumber Dillon Ashton. “This usually means a partially clogged drain.”

Why it happened: be careful what you flush down the toilet

Toilet drain clogs are a common occurrence, usually caused when you flush items down the toilet that you shouldn’t. Many homeowners are surprised at what’s not okay to flush.

A great example: did you know flushable wipes aren’t actually flushable? That’s just a name that brands slap on their products to make them more appealing to buyers- in reality, no wipes should ever go down the toilet.

Recently, one of our Master Plumbers cleared a clogged toilet and found a single Q-tip lodged horizontally in the pipe. That Q-tip was enough to create a large toilet paper clog that created a gurgling sound in the toilet.

What can and can’t you flush down the toilet? Read our quick list of 10 things most homeowners flush that they shouldn’t.

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Don’t keep flushing: it will make the problem worse

It’s a natural impulse to continue flushing your toilet to get rid of the gurgling sound. Avoid that instinct- it does further harm to your plumbing.

“Don’t keep flushing the toilet,” Dillon warns. “It can lead to a backup.”

Call a licensed plumber to inspect the toilet. You’ll limit the problem to a simple clog and not a complicated backup further down your drain pipe.

Not a Clog? 2 Other Reasons for a Gurgling Toilet Sound

If you’ve crossed a clogged toilet off your list, it’s time to move further into your home’s plumbing system to identify the cause of that gurgling noise in your toilet bowl.

Dillon says that if there’s no clog, there’s a blockage or venting issue in your sewer system. There are 2 potential causes for this problem:

1. A blocked air vent in your plumbing system; or
2. A deeper blockage in the main sewer line.

Use one simple question as a process of elimination: is only one toilet making strange noises, or are multiple fixtures noisy as well?

“If other drains are acting up too, it’s likely a bigger issue in your sewer line,” Dillon says.

A blocked air vent can cause gurgling noises

Home plumbing systems have air vents to create natural airflow in the sewer pipes. This airflow allows wastewater and sewage to travel smoothly through your pipes and safely away from the house. The vents are located on the roof of your home.

When a plumbing vent is blocked, it restricts the natural flow of air through the system. Think about pouring soda out of a 2-liter bottle too fast. Air forces its way back into the bottle, disrupting the proper flow of the liquid.

If your air vents are obstructed or blocked, this creates a vacuum effect in your drain pipes. You’ll end up with dried-out traps, slow drains, and gurgling noises in your toilet. 

This obstruction also impedes sewer gas from escaping your home. If your gurgling toilet is accompanied by a foul smell, you’re likely dealing with a blocked vent.

Multiple noisy fixtures indicates a sewer line blockage

If you hear gurgling sounds from multiple sinks and drains, you’re dealing with a deeper issue within your sewer pipes.

“If you hear those sounds in multiple fixtures throughout your house, there’s a blockage or air pressure issue in the sewer system,” Dillon says. 

Multiple noisy toilets and fixtures are usually caused by a sagging sewer pipe, also called a sewer belly. A sag causes water to back up, rather than flowing down your property’s natural slope towards the city sewer main.

“It acts as a water dam as water passes through it,” Dillon explains.

Your 3-Step Action Plan to Stop That Gurgling Toilet

When you call Mother Modern Plumbing with complaints of a gurgling noise in the toilet, we’ll conduct a 3-step plan to identify and resolve the issue:

1. Establish the existence of a toilet drain clog;
2. Check your air vents for blockages and obstructions;
3. Run a sewer camera inspection to identify sags or blockages.

We follow these diagnostic steps in order, as it’s the most cost-effective course of action for your home. Finding a drain clog is less expensive than an air vent issue, which in turn is cheaper than sewer line repair.

The goal isn’t just to resolve your noisy toilet(s)- it’s to do so in a way that makes sense for your budget.

Step 1: Resolving a clogged toilet or drain pipe

A simple drain auger (plumbing snake) should clear most toilet clogs that don’t extend past the S-trap. This integrated trap allows greater airflow through the system.

If you experience persistent clogs in your toilet, treat the system once per month with an enzymatic drain cleaner. Unlike the caustic chemical drain cleaners which can damage and corrode your pipes, enzyme drain cleaners are harmless to your plumbing.

The active bacteria and enzymes in these drain cleaning products continue to eat away at organic clogs in your sewer system long after application. They’re safe to use every 30 days to prevent future clogs from forming.

Our expert plumbing team recently rated 14 drain cleaning products, and we think Endure is the best enzymatic drain cleaner for most homeowners. 

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Step 2: Clearing a blocked air vent (if necessary)

Don’t attempt to DIY a plumbing vent obstruction- this requires navigating your roof line and should be left to an experienced, licensed plumber.

The plumber visually inspects your vent opening for blockages and obstructions, like leaves and debris. Deeper clogs within the vent may require hydro jetting, while simpler obstructions should be removed with pliers or a drain auger.

If a water hose is used to clear the blockage, be very careful with high water pressure. Pressurized water damage to your roof may void the warranty on your shingles- or your entire roof’s warranty.

Step 3: Sewer line inspection and repair (if necessary)

Start your service with a sewer line camera inspection. A small, high-definition camera is attached to a flexible cable and fed into your main sewer line, usually through your sewer cleanout.

The camera’s live feed allows our plumbers to identify leaks, blockages and sewer bellies in real time. (You’ll also retain the video footage for any insurance claims you might file.)

Blockages and deep clogs in your sewer line are best addressed with powerful hydro jetting services. 

A sewer belly requires partial or complete sewer line replacement. While this is costly and certainly not ideal, you’ll obtain new Schedule 40 PVC sewer pipes that will last 75-100 years with minimal maintenance requirements.

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Live in Dallas? Call Mother to Stop That Gurgling Toilet

A gurgling noise from your toilet isn’t fun to hear, but the solution is usually rather straightforward. Most noisy toilets are resolved with drain cleaning service, which usually combines drain snaking with an enzyme drain cleaner like Endure.

Persistent gurgling noises accompanied by a foul smell indicate a blocked air vent. Your plumber can clear this issue by accessing the vent opening on your roof. Multiple gurgling fixtures are caused by a deeper sewer line issue, such as a sagging sewer belly or a complex blockage in the pipe.

Whether it’s a simple clog or a sewer line repair, Mother Modern Plumbing has the deep local plumbing experience to resolve your issue and provide lasting solutions for your home. Call us 7 days a week for fast scheduling in Dallas. 

We’ll deliver the peace of mind that comes with a silent, stress-free bathroom. 

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