Blocked toilet. Who should pay?

[Letmegonowihavehadenough]

I am going through a divorce and live in the family home at present which is currently on the market. He moved out. My toilet is blocked and we cannot use it for this reason. My stbxh won’t go halves to get the problem fixed saying it’s my fault for blocking it. Over the years it has occasionally got blocked and we have been able to unblock it. My dad has a long thing that goes far into the toilet but it can’t be unblocked and I have tried products including bicarbonate of soda and white vinegar along with other branded unblockers. Nothing except poo/wee and toilet paper had been put down it. I can’t afford to pay to get it unblocked by myself and it has been like this since November. AIBU to think my stbxh should pay half?

He’s not been using the toilet so why should he pay?

You are using the toilet it's your problem to fix he is not your landlord.

If you didn't want to pay the costs of maintaining the house then you should have moved out & he stay.

Actually, if he's going to get 50% of the sale proceeds he should be paying 50% of maintenance costs.

I'd just want my toilet back so I would just pay to get it sorted.
He doesn't live there currently so to save more drama I would just sort it out.

Then OP should be paying him rent.

You could try shoving a section of hose pipe as far down it and giving it a good old blow?

Your toilet your bill. Don't understand why he needs to pay. He not living there. Yabu

If it's being stubborn get a pump from a hire shop. £20.

Put some towels on the floor around the base of the loo to catch any splashes or overflow, then get a bucket of water and sling it down the toilet with as much force as you can muster, then flush, do it a couple of times if it doesn't work first time. This is what worked for me when my plunger broke.

Is there more to this. Sounds like the type of thing some ex partners do to have some control of the estranged partner.

@Letmegonowihavehadenough

Get a bucket full of water. Stand as high as you can next to the bowl and tip the bucket in as fast as you dare. The more you can tip in suddenly, the better, although I appreciate that it's blocked, so you don't want flooding.

You need to be high so that gravity helps you. The water pressure from the bucket will push the blockage through, although I concede that if the blockage is further into the drain this might not work. I'm assuming that it isn't as you haven't mentioned any other drains blocked (sink etc.)

This method has never failed for me.

There must be a plumbing issue. A normal toilet doesn't keep blocking, and how have you coped since November? I feel you need a professional.
Morally maybe he should contribute, but legally, I'm not so sure. If it effects the value of the house then when it's sold deduct half the amount for the plumber? Ask the EA how much less it will sell for without a functioning toilet, lol? Then see if xH still wont pay.

@Letmegonowihavehadenough you are being petty about this. Call someone in to unblock and move on. If it’s not just the toilet and a bigger issue with the pipes then talk to your ex about halves.

There's no point in making suggestions. This is probably a backed up issue and needs to get a dude out to check down the man hole.

Your ex isn't going to pay, it doesn't affect him.

If there's a problem deeper in and needs proper repairs, then it's going to cause issues selling really, which I assume will.affect him.

How have you been coping without a bog?

I can’t afford to pay for another property plus the mortgage on the house. He moved out into a rented house as he is a high earner.

Pooing in a bag

Is this your only toilet? If so, how on earth are you managing?

If not, it suggests the problem is not due to external drainage but the immediate toilet plumbing. Buy yourself a set of drain unblockers and force it round the u-bend.

I'd say it's your cost to bear, but if the house is a joint asset and you are both wanting to sell and get the proceeds, your STBXH is a bit stupid if he prioritises the principle over the sale. You are going to struggle to sell without it being resolved and even if you get an offer, the new owners may insist on it being fixed before proceeding (you can't lie when answering the fixtures and fittings section that asks if everything is in good working order).

So he is renting and paying the mortgage on the marital home?

Put a plastic round the bottom of a mop if you have one and use it as a plunger. Do it gently to get the water moving. Many toilets are shaped that a normal shaped plunger won't work. To save I. Some mess out plastic of some description over the rim. Make a hole in the middle and put the mop through it. Can you tell I've done this before.

Next option is to open the main toilet sump outside. Ours had a lip o. It and it would build up. Again use the covers mop to give it a good jiggle if it's blocked.

It is literally a shit job. But this method should work.

Other option is drain rods. You open man hole furthest away and go in from that end.

I am the family un blocker and much as I hate it you really just have to get on with it unfortunately.

Legal fees are astronomical. So far it’s cost £35 000. I don’t earn this a year but work a 60 hour week job. I haven’t eaten in 3 days as can’t afford it. I can’t afford to get the toilet unblocked. Tried everything under the sun to sort the problem. I am suicidal. I can’t survive like this

You’ve been pooping in a bag over a call
out fee to even have it looked at or the £30 gas in a can that can actually be strong enough to blow pipes.

Cross post.

Then you need to sell the house.

Whole packet of washing soda crystals down the bowl, leave for an hour or so, then full bucket of hot water (with more soda in if you have some) in quickly.

I don’t have £30