A mom on TikTok shared a clever trick to help unclog a toilet when you don't have the tools you need on hand. 

The scoop

TikToker Laken Banks (@lakenbanks_) shared the genius hack for draining a backed-up toilet when your plunger is nowhere to be found. 

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The trick is to use the toilet brush, pushing it into the entrance of the trapway and moving it like a plunger until the water begins to flow again. It may take a little bit of time and some elbow grease, but in a pinch, the brush will get the job done. 

How it's helping

Plungers work by creating a seal over and into the drain, and using suction and water pressure to maneuver the clog until it breaks apart enough to move down the drain. The brush hack works on the same principle, albeit a bit less effectively. 

You're creating an imperfect seal with the brush, but a seal nonetheless, and generating the kind of water pressure with the vigorous pumping that you need to get the clog moving again. Because the seal isn't perfect, and water can still pass through the bristles, it does take more work to accomplish than a plunger would, but in a pinch, the brush will absolutely get the job done. 

This is the latest in a long line of hacks using things in unexpected ways in the home, from baking soda in your bathroom, to using oil and baking soda to remove stubborn labels, to even using hot water and salt to unclog a stubborn toilet. Hacks like these drive home that with a little bit of cleverness and some effort, there's nothing in your home that is a one-use tool.  

What everyone's saying

Commenters loved this particular helpful hint.

"It's 3:30 in the morning I have been trying 2 flush my toilet for an hour this is the only thing that worked!" said one. 

"Ma'am it's 2:36 am and I desperately was searching for a quick solution, THANK YOU,"  said another. 

"It low-key worked," said a third.

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