Fixing a Running Toilet Yourself, Step by Step

Topic

running toilet

For

Newmarket homeowners

Need a hand?

(365) 990-3021

The reason it counts

A running toilet can waste a surprising volume of water, enough to show up on a quarterly bill in Newmarket. Because the sound fades into the background, many households live with it for months. The parts involved are inexpensive and standardised, and most repairs take less than an hour.

Steps, in order

1. Lift the lid and watch a flush. Note where water goes once the tank refills. If it spills into the tall overflow tube, the fill level is set too high or the fill valve is not shutting off. If the level drops slowly and then refills, water is escaping past the flapper.
2. Try the dye test. Colour the tank water with food dye and do not flush for twenty minutes. Any tint creeping into the bowl gives the flapper away.
3. Mind the chain. Taut, it props the flapper open; too loose, it gets trapped beneath. About half an inch of play is right.
4. Fit a new flapper. Turn off the stop valve behind the toilet, then flush so the tank empties, unclip the old flapper and fit a matching new one. Bring the old part to the store to compare sizes.
5. Adjust or replace the fill valve. Most modern valves have a screw or clip to lower the float. Set the water roughly an inch beneath the rim of the overflow tube. If it still will not shut off, replace the whole valve.
6. Turn the water back on slowly and check every connection for drips.

Other sounds and their causes

• Phantom flush every so often: a slow flapper leak.
• Loud whistle while refilling: a worn fill valve.
• Water on the floor at the base: a failed wax ring or a cracked tank, which is not a flapper problem.

Leaks you cannot see are harder to spot; our circular on reading your water meter shows how to check the whole house overnight. Before winter, it is also worth reviewing winter pipe protection.

Ringing for help

Call us if the shut-off valve behind the toilet refuses to close, or the china of tank or bowl is cracked, or if water appears around the base. Those jobs are better handled by a professional. We provide toilet repair throughout Newmarket, and in Stouffville and surrounding towns when booked ahead. A toilet that rocks or leaks at the floor may also need its flange inspected, and we will tell you plainly if replacement is the better choice. If you have been meaning to deal with a basement drain at the same time, ask about a backwater valve during the visit.