How to Repair Toilet Tank Components | Ask This Old House
Ask This Old House plumbing and HVAC expert Richard Trethewey explains the failure points in toilet tanks and how to repair them.
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Time: 30 minutes-1 hour
Cost: $10 and up
Skill Level: Moderate
Shopping List:
Toilet flapper [https://amzn.to/30b0Aj9]
Fill valve replacement parts [https://amzn.to/2tKX9U4]
Steps:
1. Every toilet tank has only a few components that can fail and cause the toilet to stop operating properly: the flush valve, and the fill valve.
2. If there’s a failure with the flush valve, it’s possible that the attached rubber flapper has worn off or isn’t sitting properly in the opening.
There are two things to check in order to repair this:
a. The slack on the chain connecting the flapper to the lever. If it’s too loose or too tight, adjust it so the flapper lifts high enough to flush the toilet and then seals tightly again.
b. The condition of the rubber flapper. If it’s worn out, it needs to be replaced.
i. Start by shutting off the water to the toilet tank.
ii. Pull the old flapper off the flush valve. There are usually two little ears on the side where the flapper loops on.
iii. Put the new flapper on using the same process in reverse.
iv. Hook the chain onto the tank lever and make sure it’s adjusted properly.
v. Turn the water back on.
3. If there’s a failure with the fill valve, it’s possible that the float hasn’t been adjusted properly and excess water is falling into the overflow. Fix this by adjusting the float on the fill valve, which will vary depending on the type of fill valve.
Resources:
All of the repair parts for this project can be found at home centers.
About Ask This Old House TV:
Homeowners have a virtual truckload of questions for us on smaller projects, and we’re ready to answer. Ask This Old House solves the steady stream of home improvement problems faced by our viewers—and we make house calls! Ask This Old House features some familiar faces from This Old House, including Kevin O’Connor, general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, and landscape contractor Roger Cook.
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Keywords:
This Old House, Ask This Old House, DIY, Home Improvement, DIY Ideas, Renovation, Renovation Ideas, How To Fix, How To Install, How To Build, Richard Trethewey, Kevin O’Connor, toilet, plumbing
Watch the full episode:
https://www.thisoldhouse.com/watch/beehive-oven-jimmy-diresta-ask-toh
How to Repair Toilet Tank Components | Ask This Old House
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I still use a 7 gpf 1953 American Standard. Sure, it's carbureted, but it flows just great.
Good news: Just replaced the flush valve on one of our toilets last month.
Bad News: It's a Mansfield; I replaced the valve with a more universal one instead.
An explanation of how to properly attach the chain to the lever would be good. I have always put the hook over end of the lever arm, but I see from the video that the hook actually goes through a small hole in the arm, and then a chain link fits on the end of the arm. I wish I had known that 20 years ago! Every toilet I've ever seen has the hook on the knob, which I guess isn't right. Next time my chain comes off the arm, I'll put it on correctly.
My toilet seat has the like plastic. Screws that don't stay tight is there something else i can use ?
The building is about 15 years old. While the innards of my toilet still work I am contemplating just replacing them completely as a preventative measure. As my vision is extremely poor and is going to get worse I won’t be able to do any work on it now or in the future. Is replacing everything a good idea?
Saving leaks and taking leaks!
The flush valve they demonstrated is actually made out of a much more durable material than most people have. Many are plastic with a ring gasket and that gasket gets warn and cracks.
They forgot to mention why there's a sprayer in the overflow! There's actually a subtle form of automation in your toilet besides the on and off values. The fill rate is being used as a timer to run the jet which is the stream of water that goes directly down the drain hole. This jet makes the siphon over top of the trap and causes it to suck all the water out of the bowl. This means the overflow has duel purposes it carries the jet stream inlet (the sprayer) and the overflow. It's not totally necessary to have the overflow also build the siphon but its useful for diagnosing problems with the toilet because the bowl will be continually low water level which is an easier way to see this is happening than shown in the video. You can actually take a water bottle and dumb it down there to see this in action.
Don't forget to measure how long the new supply tube needs to be and an organic sponge will come in handy. Some supply valves are crap and quickly plug up, and others never have a problem.