Does your toilet refuse to stop running? Weird gurgling noise emitting from your toilet bowl? From water leaks to odd noises, toilets can do all sorts of bizarre things.
Thankfully, with a little troubleshooting, there are numerous toilet issues you can solve on your own. Here, the experts at Halverson Brothers Inc will go over some of the most common 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 something you should fix because it's in all probability also costing you money on your water bill.
A frequent cause of a running toilet is something incorrect with the overflow tube. Located in the tank in the back of your toilet, an overflow tube allows extra water to drain from the tank into your toilet bowl so the water level in your tank won't get too high and spill over the top of the tank. Occasionally, the trouble is that the plastic tube connecting your fill valve to your overflow tube is detached. If that’s the situation, you can reach into the tank and reattach them. It also might be your toilet is running because the overflow tube is isn't tall enough for the water level and needs to be replaced by one that is taller height.
Another reason for a toilet to run could be the flapper--which serves as a plug in the bottom of your tank—is malfunctioning and no longer forms the tight seal required to hold water in the tank. This causes water to leak out the bottom of your tank into your toilet bowl.
Occasionally a running toilet is caused by something awry with your toilet float, which is a floating device that maintains 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 extra water will spill into your overflow tube and down into your toilet bowl.
2. Why Does My Toilet Keep Gurgling?
A gurgling toilet is commonly caused by a partial blockage in your toilet, drain lines, mainline or a blockage in your sewage vent. If the reason for the noise is a clog in your toilet, you can attempt to correct this by using a plunger or drain snake to remove the clog. If this rectify the issue, you can look at where your sewage vent exits your home to make sure it is not blocked by debris that would block 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 call a professional such an expert from Halverson Brothers Inc to evaluate the problem. As the experienced plumber in Menomonie and western Wisconsin, Halverson Brothers Inc will check to see if the sound is due to a blockage in one of the drain lines transporting toilet water out of your home or the mainline that carries waste water away from your home to the municipal water system.
4. Why Won't My Toilet Flush?
If it's difficult to flush your toilet, there’s a good chance the problem lies the chain, flapper or the handle. That’s because there’s a chain inside a toilet tank that is hooked to the back side of the handle. The other end of the chain is connected to the flapper, which acts as a plug in the bottom of your toilet tank.
The quickest way to get to the bottom of why your toilet is challenging to flush is to lift up the lid, look inside the tank and investigate.
Here’s how the process is supposed 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 stuck on something inside the tank, which keeps the chain from lifting up the flapper to let out the water. Or, the chain is too long or gets disconnected from either the handle or the flapper. If this happens, release the caught chain or reach in and change 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. What Is Causing My Toilet To Leak?
A leaky toilet can be a costly problem, potentially leading to water damage in and around your bathroom. Usually, a leaky toilet is caused by a cracked supply line or a crack in the toilet tank. If your toilet tank is overflowing, it could be a failure in the toilet float.
Cracked gaskets around the connections on the underside of the tank also can permit water to leak out of the toilet, as can a weakened toilet flange or wax ring at the base of the toilet where it sits on the floor. Often, these issues are best fixed by a professional plumber.
6. Why Is There No Water in My Toilet?
A toilet that isn't filling with water in many cases indicates a problem with the fill valve, which is what fills your toilet tank with water. If the tube is damaged or is blocked by rust, sediment or mineral buildup, it may not be allowing water into the tank.
Another likely 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 set height. It may be that the float/float assembly needs adjustment so that the water is allowed to reach the appropriate level. Or, solving the problem of a toilet not filling with water may require adjusting or exchanging the fill valve.
