It is important to maintain your household toilet, including the toilet flush valve.  You may not be aware, but a leaky toilet flush valve can waste thousands of gallons of water annually.  This is why it makes perfect sense to do regular checks of all of your toilet’s working parts, including the toilet flush valve.

Your toilet has two main valves which are contained in your toilet’s tank.  One is your toilet flush valve; the other is the refill valve or ballcock.  If your toilet flush valve fails to return to its original position, then water will leak from your toilet tank into the bowl, which will then need to be replenished.  This common problem with your toilet flush valve causes a continuous flow of water which can really be a big waste of water.  If you have a leaky toilet flush valve, this can translate into a lot of money over time if you are on city water.

Most common toilet tank problems can be traced to a faulty toilet flush valve.  You can then decide whether you are going to repair the existing toilet flush valve, replace the toilet flush valve or install and newer toilet flush valve.  It all depends on your confidence level, experience and how well you can follow simple instructions.  Replacing a leaky toilet flush valve does not have to be difficult.

Toilet Flush Valve Repair

There really is nothing more annoying than a toilet that constantly runs and if you replace the toilet flush valve, it will most likely solve the problem.  Examine your toilet to determine if there are leaks.  Leaks in your toilet’s tank can cause your toilet to refill often and waste water.  Sometimes the leaks are not even related to the operation of your toilet flush valve, but you need to determine the cause of the problem before you proceed or try to replace a toilet flush valve.

Flapper balls control the flow of water to your toilet flush valve.  Float balls are more common on older style toilets.  Sometimes if your toilet flush valve is not closing properly, this can be related to the chain being disconnected from the handle lever.  There may be a damaged gasket under your toilet flush valve.  If the wrong type of flapper is installed, this can affect your toilet flush valve operation.

The toilet flush valve covers the large hole in the bottom of your toilet tank.  The main thing to remember if you are replacing a toilet flush valve is to turn off the water and drain the toilet tank.  This will allow you unimpeded access to the toilet flush valve and prevent the operation of the toilet flush valve from plugging the hole and refilling the tank.

The simplest way to check your toilet flush valve is to turn off the water supply to the toilet.  Next, you will mark the water level and leave the toilet for about 20 minutes.  If your toilet flush valve is leaking, the water level will have fallen below the level you marked.