Does your toilet keep running? Strange gurgling noise emitting from your toilet bowl? From water leakages to odd noises, toilets can do all sorts of bizarre things.
Fortunately, with a little troubleshooting, there are lots of toilet dilemmas you can solve by yourself. Here, the experts at B & G HVAC will go over some of the most prevalent toilet problems, what they mean and whether it’s a plumbing issue you can fix yourself—or, if it is better to call in an expert.
1. Why Is My Toilet Running?
If your toilet keeps running all the time, it is something you should correct because it's most likely also costing you money on your water bill.
A common cause of a running toilet is something incorrect with the overflow tube. Positioned in the tank in the back of your toilet, an overflow tube removes extra water from the tank into your toilet bowl so the water level in your tank doesn't get too high and spill over the top of the tank. At times, the trouble is that the plastic tube connecting your fill valve to your overflow tube has become detached. If that’s the case, you can reach into the tank and reattach them. It also might be your toilet is running due to the fact the overflow tube is isn't tall enough for the water level and needs to be replaced by one that is the correct height.
Another thing that could cause a toilet to run could be the flapper--which functions as a plug in the bottom of your tank—has malfunctioned and no longer forms the tight seal required to hold water in the tank. This enables water to seep through or around the damaged flapper and escape out the bottom of your tank into your toilet bowl.
Sometimes 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 achieves this by shutting off your fill valve when the water level raises the float to the appropriate height. If your float is set too high, this will allow the water level to rise too high, and the extra water will go in your overflow tube and down into your toilet bowl.
2. Why Is My Toilet Bubbling?
A gurgling toilet is often caused by a partial obstruction in your toilet, drain lines, mainline or an obstruction 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 doesn’t work, you can examine where your sewage vent exits your home to make sure 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 call a professional such an expert from B & G HVAC to evaluate the problem. As the go-to plumber in Marshalltown, B & G HVAC will find out if the issue was caused by a blockage in one of the drain lines transporting toilet water out of your home or the mainline that removes waste water away from your home to the municipal water system.
4. Why Is It Hard to Flush My Toilet?
If your toilet is hard to flush, it's likely the problem lies the chain, flapper or the handle. That’s because there’s a chain inside the 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 best way to figure out why your toilet is difficult to flush is to remove the lid, peek inside the tank and investigate.
Here’s how the process is supposed to work anytime you flush a toilet: you push down the handle, which pulls up the chain, then the chain pulls the flapper up and that allows the water to flow out of your tank and into your toilet bowl.
Sometimes a toilet doesn't flush because the chain is stuck 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, release the caught chain or reach in and change it to the appropriate length.
Occasionally flappers can get stuck when they get old or become worn out. Or, there may be something awry with the handle.
5. Why Is There a Leak in My Toilet?
A dripping toilet can be a costly scenario, potentially causing water damage in and around your bathroom. Many times, 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 malfunction 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 broken toilet flange or wax ring at the base of the toilet where it connects to 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 won't fill with water in many cases indicates a problem with the fill valve, which is the valve that lets water into your toilet tank. If the tube has failed or is blocked by rust, sediment or mineral buildup, it may not be allowing water into the tank.
Another common cause for your toilet not filling with water is something amiss with the float, which is a device that prompts the fill valve to stop letting water into the tank when the water has risen to the correct level. The fill valve performs this function when the water level lifts the float to a set height. It might be that the float/float assembly needs adjustment so that the water can attain the correct level. Or, correcting a toilet not filling with water may require adjusting or exchanging the fill valve.
