Have you ever heard the slow dripping of your toilet and thought, “Not a big deal.” Well, it is. Did you know one leaky toilet can fill up a swimming pool in one year? Imagine how much money in water bills is going down the toilet – pun intended. Fixing a leaky toilet yourself can save lots of money. All you need to do is to follow a basic set of instructions.
1. Verify the Leak – Insert a food coloring tablet into the main tank. If the colored liquid drains into the bowl, that might be the leak.
2. Identify the Problem – Recognize why the leaking occur. Some times, you might just need to adjust the chain connected to the flap and be done with it.
3. Collect Your Tools – If the trouble requires something bigger than a simple chain adjustment, you will need to get your tools together. Usually, you will need a pair of channel locks. Any set of large pliers or crescent wrench should also work.
4. Turn off the valve -Don’t forget this before you start fixing!
5. Drain the Tank – Evacuate the reservoir by flushing the toilet as you normally would.
6. Replace Ball and Cock – Loosen all the bolts connecting the ball and cock mechanism to the plumbing fixture.
7. Replace Other Parts – You can install the new lever, chain, and flap.
8. Turn Water Back on – Now that you have everything installed, just fill the tank in order to check for proper operation.
9. Verify Proper Operation – At this point, you should give your commode a test-flush. Watch the tank and bowl through an entire cycle in order to make sure everything fills and empties to the sewer as it should and to verify that there are no leaks.
10. Clean Up
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