Toilet has a hard time flushing. It will keep “running”, “flapper” won’t seal. Clear water will over flow onto the floor. When you do flush the thing, water will just swirl around and not go down. If you stand there and hold the lever down long enough, it will go down and then just bubble along. Any ideas?
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That sounds like 2 separate issues.
I've replaced many a flapper valve. They do wear out.
Did the poor flush issue just start? There may be an obstruction in the bowl, but it wouldn't be related to the flapper valve not sealing.
How old is this fixture?
At least seven years. Been like this about 2 months now. Tried draino once, seemed to help for awhile." Although I have the right to remain stupid, I try not to abuse that right"
Draino won't work for sh!t in a toilet (literally and figuratively). Get thee to a decent hardware store and purchase a "toilet auger" (or "closet auger") -- it's something that looks like a fishing pole on steroids, or maybe Indiana Jones's bullwhip with a bad hangover. Run it down there a couple of times and you should clear the clog.
As I stood before the gates I realized that I never want to be as certain about anything as were the people who built this place. --Rabbi Sheila Peltz, on her visit to Auschwitz
Edited 9/27/2009 6:54 pm by DanH
You have multiple problems. Even if the toilet runs continuously, it should not overflow. (Or are you saying that water is leaking out of the tank and onto the floor, without an overflow and no obvious leak from under the bowl?)
"Running" is simply a failure of the flush valve to reset. But of course, figuring out WHY the flush valve doesn't reset is the trick.
Open the tank and examine. Is the flush valve remaining up/open, or does it fall back and simply not seal the exit properly? Sometimes the problem is obvious -- eg, a knot in the chain between flush lever and valve. Sometimes you have to study things and figure out how it works.
Re the failure of the bowl to clear (if that's what's happening), that's just a everyday clog. May be a comb or child's toy caught in the gooseneck, or could be just the stuff that's supposed to be in there has gotten hung up somehow.
are you on septic?
Yep. The over flow onto the floor is from the bowl itself, not the tank. Almost always clear water. Water from city is well water, with a lot of sand, chews up flappers like crazy. Weird tank, handle is on the side of the tank and is a push in sort of thing. Old house, ONE vent for this side of the ( now) duplex. Can hear the drains "bubble" in the kitchen sink. And I'm the renter here, landlord is only interested in the rent." Although I have the right to remain stupid, I try not to abuse that right"
Sounds like you need a pump out. Then a rooto rooter. Been there done that.Them bubbles are telling you one thing, the leak is cause the tank is full and you are now the low spot. Yes s!it can run up hill, if contained in a good DVW system. But pay day is still friday.Fill your toilet tank with vinegar let it sit and that will loosen up the crud. Don't forget to scratch the crud off were the flapper sits you can get a real big leak from build up.
As others have noted, it sounds like you have multiple issues.
That side-push flush mechanism sounds too damned familiar. Is this one of those brand-name knock-off 'Victorian' style toilets with a fluted base and bow-front tanks? Made in Uruguay, IIRC. If so, it has a very tight trap bend and is prone to clogging even with normal waste. Say two out of five flushes with solid waste in the bowl won't go down without using a plunger or flushing multiple times.
So for a start, plunge it, snake it out, or run a fibre-optic mini-cam probe down the trap to see what the heck is in there.
If the trap is clear, your septic tank is either full, or the line to it blocked.
The flapper as has been mentioned can be replaced but before you go there make sure there is no accumulation of hard-water deposits on the flapper seat that are preventing a good seal.
The overflowing is yet a third problem; toilet tanks are not supposed to contain enough water to overflow the bowl on one flush. If you're reflushing before the bowl has drained past the blockage to its normal 'trap' height, that could be the cause. If the tank is not the original one that came with the toilet, it may be too big for the bowl.
If the bowl is overflowing but nothing else in the house is backing up, it's probably not the septic tank, although it might be a blocked DWV line from another unit in the building causing a toilet (or dishwasher, or washing machine) above you to back-drain through the vent stack. The bubbling in nearby sink traps when you flush indicates insufficient venting, or a partially blocked vent stack.
Dinosaur
How now, Mighty Sauron, that thou art not broughtlow by this? For thine evil pales before that whichfoolish men call Justice....
And I'm the renter here, landlord is only interested in the rent.
Which is tough sledding.
I was never able to wait until l/l could bother to send somebode for something like that. Not when a replacement flapper was maybe $2-3 at the big box stores.
Growing up with plumbers in the family, I generally would get the "toilet repair kit" flush valve assembly and a sparesupply line while I was at the store, too. That's because it can be amazing what ought to be replaced once you close the shut-off and empty the tank. Equally amazing what happens after you disturb the last "handy" bit of work, too.
But, having had the float arm come loose in my hand; or the float collapse (or be full of water); or to find the supply "epoxied" to the filler valve with plumber's putty after it had been cross-threaded . . .
Now, since this is a conversion, there are a only eleventy-dozen other "old house' issue that might be there, too. Slow drain fomr unpumped septic tank can be very hard to get absentee l/l to deal with. Now, being that this is duplex, sometimes if the neighbor's clean-out plug were to go missing, and they are not on record as complaining about the plumbing . . . Occupational hazard of my occupation not being around (sorry Bubba)
Closet auger. Most rental agreements say that the tenant is responsible for clogged waste pipes.
The flapper - a separate issue - is the responsible of the land lord. The combination of a malfunctioning toilet and a clogged drain can be a really bad thing.
Edited 9/27/2009 8:10 pm ET by Matt