Leaky toilets are one of the most common sources of water leaks in the home. A toilet with a small leak can waste more than 20,000 gallons of water per year and according to EPA estimates, a toilet that leaks so much that it runs constantly can waste as much at 200 gallons per day – that’s 73,000 gallons of water per year right down the drain!
A leaky faucet or shower head is easy to identify since you can see the water dripping, but how can you tell if your toilet is leaking? The most obvious sign of a leaking toilet is the sound of the toilet running. If your toilet runs constantly, you definitely have a leak. If your toilet runs after flushing it and you have to jiggle the handle to make it stop, that’s another sign of a leak.
“Ghost flushing”, or a toilet that runs briefly even when nobody flushed it is a sign of a slow leak. To be confirm a leaky toilet, carefully remove the lid from the tank and put a few drops of food coloring in the tank. If the water in the bowl changes color, you know you have a leak.
Toilet leaks are usually due to a leaky flapper valve or a bad fill valve. The flapper valve is the big rubber stopper in the bottom of the tank. When you move the handle, the flapper valve opens and the toilet flushes. Replacement flapper valves are available at your local home improvement store and are not difficult to install.
A defective fill valve can also cause a toilet leak. A fill valve that does not shut off properly will allow water to constantly fill the tank and trickle into the commode through the overflow pipe. A fill valve is a little more complicated to install than a flapper valve, but still within the capability of many homeowners.
If you are not comfortable handling your own bathroom repairs, your local plumber will be able to fix your toilet leaks.
