Do you see water on the floor around the toilet? Don’t put your head in the sand. Left unaddressed, your toilet will continue leaking a little bit with each flush, allowing unsanitary water to pool on the bathroom floor and potentially causing expensive mold damage and rot in the subfloor.
A toilet oozing water at the base often signifies a damaged wax ring. This part is designed to make a tight seal between the toilet base and the drainpipe. When it breaks, water may escape every time you flush. Fortunately, it’s simple to locate the source of the leak and pinpoint the problem. If you decide the wax ring needs to be replaced, we recommend reaching out to a plumber for professional toilet repair.
Test Your Leaky Toilet
Occasionally, a nearby leak can make the toilet appear to be leaking at the base. Follow these steps to find out exactly where the water is escaping from.
Check for Condensation
The “leak” around your toilet could not be a leak at all. Instead, water vapor could be condensing on the bowl or tank and running down onto the floor. To check for this, wipe up any standing water with a paper towel and flush the toilet. Look thoroughly —if no more water pools around the base, condensation is the likely problem. Running the exhaust fan when you shower is an easy way to solve this problem.
Examine the Toilet Tank
Look closely around the outside of the tank for any moisture. To rule out condensation, wipe up any droplets with a towel. Then, look again, checking for loose bolts or cracked porcelain leaking water onto the floor. Tighten any loose bolts you see. If the tank is broken, you’ll need to replace your toilet.
Inspect the Water Hose
Check the cold-water supply line on the backside of the toilet. A loose connection, damaged hose or malfunctioning shut-off valve sometimes can cause a leak. If tightening the fittings doesn’t resolve the issue, you may need a plumber to replace the water supply hose.
Tighten the Tee Bolts
If these troubleshooting tips don’t solve the problem, your toilet is most likely leaking at the base like you suspected. Before reaching out to a plumber, try tightening the tee bolts that secure the toilet to the floor. You may need to remove the decorative plastic caps with a putty knife or flathead screwdriver to get to the bolt at the bottom of. Be careful not to screw the bolt too tight, as this could crack the porcelain. If the bolts spin freely, you could need to buy new ones.
Look for Signs of a Worn-Out Wax Ring
If bolting the toilet tighter to the floor doesn’t fix the problem, a failing wax ring could be the culprit after all. Besides water soaking the floor around the toilet, you may smell a sewage stink, indicating a broken sewer line seal. And if the toilet moves from side to side, this may mean it’s sitting on a broken flange, the component that connects the flush system to the plumbing line. A rocking toilet might also be a sign of a soft subfloor resulting from the leak, which needs immediate attention to prevent the problem from getting worse.
Hire a Plumber to Replace the Wax Ring
If you discover that a faulty wax ring is indeed the problem, fixing it involves removing the toilet, replacing the ring and reinstalling the toilet. While it’s possible to complete the repair without a plumbing license, DIY toilet removal is not recommended. Here’s why you should leave the issue to a experienced plumber:
- Porcelain is a surprisingly delicate material. If you bang the toilet on the floor or hit it too hard with a plumbing tool, it could crack, forcing you to pay for a toilet replacement along with everything else.
- Lifting and lowering the large plumbing fixture is a two-person chore. Even then, poor lifting techniques could leave you with an injured back.
- Checking for water-damaged subflooring requires a experienced eye. And if any damage has happened, it should be addressed before reinstalling the toilet, something a plumber can help coordinate.
- If you detect that the entire flange at the bottom of the toilet is damaged, it will need to be replaced. This is even harder than swapping out the wax ring.
- Removing the toilet, making the required change and reinstalling it can take a few hours, if not longer. You probably have better things you’d rather be doing, giving you yet another reason to leave the repair to a plumber.
Schedule Toilet Repair with an Expert Plumber
At Komfort Air Service Experts, repairing toilet leaks is one of our specialties. Whether you complete the troubleshooting tips outlined above before calling, or you want us to handle everything from start to finish, we’ve got you covered. Every job is backed by our 100% satisfaction guarantee,* so sit back, relax, and let us complete the repair. To schedule reliable toilet repair in your neighborhood, please contact Komfort Air Service Experts today!
*Not applicable to the Advantage Program. See your signed Advantage Program Agreement for full details and exclusions. 100% Satisfaction Guarantee is subject to certain restrictions and limitations as set forth in the applicable Terms and Conditions.