Can clogged toilet cause 50 gallons of water to come out?

[Jdona1]

My son urinated and flushed toilet and we left the house. Came back 45 mins later to flooded house, about an inch of water throughout house. I heard sound of water running when I came into house and I followed the sound and turned off the valve behind the toilet. A friend said that if toilet clogs the only water you should have is the contents of the tank. How did so much water come out and why did it continue to run?

 

[johnjh2o]

When your son flushed the toilet the flapper must have not closed. If the toilet was plugged then the water would have continued to run into the tank and with the flapper open into the bowl, which of course is over flowing onto the floor.

John

 

[Jdona1]

Thanks John. I'm just trying to confirm, for insurance purposes, that water damage was due to a faulty part in the toilet and not my son. A plumber came afterwards and said the cause was a clog, but my friend said the clog would only have caused the contents of the tank, about 4 gallons, to overflow. Do you agree that there was something else wrong besides a clog? Any help anyone out there can provide would be great!

 

[johnjh2o]

Your friend was correct. If the flapper didn't fail to close there would have been very little water damage. Good luck with your insurance company.

John

 

[Caduceus]

As John has stated, there would also have to be a problem in the tank for the toilet to overflow as you described. There may have been a flapper that didn't close properly or if the flapper did close, the fill valve failed and the water continued to fill the tank and pour into the overflow tube of the tank.
If all of the tank components operated as they were designed to, a clog usually results in just a bowl filled to the rim with water.