Does your toilet keep running? Strange gurgling noise arising from your toilet bowl? From water leakages to unusual noises, toilets can do all sorts of frustrating things.
Fortunately, with a little troubleshooting, there are lots of toilet dilemmas you can solve on your own. Here, the experts at Walter's-Eaton's Electric, Plumbing, Heating & AC will go over some of the most prevalent toilet problems, what they mean and whether it’s something you can fix yourself—or, if it is better to call in an expert.
1. Why Won't My Toilet Stop Running?
If your toilet keeps running all the time, it is a situation you should correct because it's in all likelihood also costing you money on your water bill.
A typical reason for a running toilet is something amiss with the overflow tube. Located in the tank in the back of your toilet, an overflow tube directs excess water from the tank into your toilet bowl so the water level in your tank won't get too high and leak all over your floor. Occasionally, the issue is that the plastic tube connecting your fill valve to your overflow tube is detached. If that’s the scenario, you can reach into the tank and reattach them. It also could be your toilet is running because the overflow tube is is not tall enough to maintain the correct water level and needs to be replaced by one that is the correct height.
Another factor causing a toilet to run could be the flapper--which serves as a plug in the bottom of your tank—has malfunctioned and no longer forms the tight seal needed to hold water in the tank. Not having a good seal allows water to escape out the bottom of your tank into your toilet bowl.
Occasionally a running toilet is caused by something wrong with your toilet float, which is a floating device that controls the water level in your tank. It accomplishes this by shutting off your fill valve when the water level raises the float to a predetermined height. If your float is set too high, this lets the water level to rise too high, and the unwanted water will flow into your overflow tube and down into your toilet bowl.
2. Why Does My Toilet Keep Gurgling?
A gurgling toilet is often caused by a partial obstruction in your toilet, drain lines, mainline or something blocking your sewage vent. If the cause of the issue is a clog in your toilet, you can try to fix this by using a plunger or drain snake to loosen the clog. If this doesn’t work, you can look at where your sewage vent exits your home to confirm it is not blocked by debris that would prevent air flow.
If you've confirmed the problem isn't a clog in the toilet or a vent obstruction, it would be a good idea to contact a professional such an expert from Walter's-Eaton's Electric, Plumbing, Heating & AC to evaluate the problem. As the trusted plumber in Ellsworth, Walter's-Eaton's Electric, Plumbing, Heating & AC will investigate whether the noise is caused by a blockage in one of the drain lines directing toilet water out of your home or the mainline that carries waste water away from your home to the municipal water system.
4. Why Is My Toilet Hard to Flush?
If your toilet is hard to flush, there’s a good chance the problem lies the chain, flapper or the handle. That’s because there’s a chain within the toilet tank that is affixed to the back side of the handle. The other end of the chain is linked to the flapper, which serves as a plug in the bottom of your toilet tank.
The quickest way to find out why your toilet is challenging to flush is to take off the lid, look inside the tank and investigate.
Here’s how the process ought to work whenever you flush a toilet: you push down the handle, which pulls up the chain, then the chain pulls the flapper up and that permits the water to drain out of your tank and into your toilet bowl.
Sometimes a toilet doesn't flush because the chain is caught on something in the tank, which keeps the chain from pulling up the flapper to let out the water. Or, the chain is too long or somehow comes unhooked from either the handle or the flapper. If this happens, free the caught chain or reach in and shorten it to the appropriate length.
Sometimes flappers can get stuck when they get old or become worn out. There also could be something awry with the handle.
5. Why Is There a Leak in My Toilet?
A leaky toilet can be a costly scenario, potentially leading to water damage in and around your bathroom. Usually, a leaky toilet is the result of a cracked supply line or a crack in the toilet tank. If your toilet tank is overflowing, it may be a malfunction in the toilet float.
Cracked gaskets around the connections on the underside of the tank also can allow water to leak out of the toilet, as can a broken toilet flange or wax ring at the base of the toilet where it sits on the floor. Most of these issues are best fixed by a certified plumber.
6. Why Is My Toilet Not Filling with Water?
A toilet that isn't filling with water often traces back to a problem with the fill valve, which is what fills your toilet tank with water. If the tube is broken or is clogged by rust, sediment or mineral buildup, it might not be allowing water into the tank.
Another typical cause for your toilet not filling with water is something amiss with the float, which is a device that triggers the fill valve to stop bringing water into the tank when the water has reached the correct level. The fill valve performs this function when the water level lifts the float to a preset height. It might be that the float/float assembly needs adjustment so that the water rises to the correct level. Or, repairing a toilet not filling with water might require adjusting or replacing the fill valve.
