How To Fix A Running Toilet Fill Valve: Troubleshoot 101

In every home, there is a toilet. It is a very essential plumbing product. Among others part of a toilet flushing system is very essential. But a running toilet is like a big nightmare. It could spread the water within your whole bathroom and even other rooms as well. Cleaning them will be another great level of hassle.

A running toilet wastes a lot of water and for this, it could raise your water bill quite high. In case your toilet is running then you need to inspect the toilet to find any issue. There can be several things due to your toilet running. Today we will discuss how to fix a running toilet fill valve in this article.

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10 Best Toilet Fill Valve Reviews

Toilet flapper

If your toilet is running then you should first inspect the flapper. Most of the running toilets issues happen due to toilet flapper. The toilet flapper is the rubber stopper. It is on with the tank and lifts when we flush the toilet to release the water into the bowl from the tank. The seal of the flapper should be tight but over time it deteriorates and it becomes loosen. You can test the flapper by pushing it down. If the toilet is running then there is a problem with the flapper and you should change it.

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Changing the toilet flapper:

First, shut the water source that is connected with the tank. There should be a valve under the tank, rotate it in anticlockwise motion to shut it off.
Flush the toilet to drain all water from the tank.
After flushing the toilet now you can remove the flapper. Inspect it carefully how it was attached before. Check that it’s worn or not. If it is worn, then you need to replace it. And if there is any sign of age or mineral deposits then dip it into vinegar for 30 minutes.
when replacing the flapper make sure that you have the identical flapper because several types of flapper are available. You need to be very careful in adjusting the chain length. If the chain is too long, then you have a water running problem. And if it is too short then you won’t get a powerful flash. So, adjust the length accordingly.

Checking water level:

Another problem with running toilets can be due to the high water level in the tank.

you should check the water level of the tank. Check that the water has risen over the overflow tube or not. If water has risen over the overflow tube, then the water goes in the overflow tubeand due to this, you can have a running toilet.
open the tank lid make sure that the tank is full when you open it. Inspect the water whether it is over the overflow tube or not. The overflow tube is in the middle of the tank.
if the water level has risen over the tube then you need to adjust the float to stop it from draining in the tube. To do so you will need a screwdriver, adjust the screw that is attached to the float arm by rotating it in anticlockwise motion. Do it until the water level comes beneath the over the tube.

After following these two processes if your running toilet doesn’t fix then the problem is in the fill valve. You need to change the toilet fill valve to stop it from running.

Toilet fill valve

The water flow in the bowl of a toilet is controlled by a fill valve. Generally, this fill valve is located on the left side of the toilet tank. It is connected with a tailpiece that goes to the bottom part of the tank. A tube is attached to this tailpiece and the tube connects it with the water supply valve. The fill valve is designed for new times and it is also called a ballcock which is named after a design that was standard at a time.

To initiate one complete flush, the fill valve needs to open and close many times. In every house, the flush uses a lot of time in a day. This continuous use of flush often causes the fill valve to wear out. And after that, we need to change the fill valve.

A fill valve works fine for at least five years. So, the fill valve you are using may be old enough. a running toilet means you need to change it now. Changing the fill valve is not a difficult task. You can do it by yourself if you want to. Due to wear out fill valve you may face these difficulties-

Water keeps running
screeching sound
Toilet won’t flush or flush completely
It takes a very long time to refill

By changing the fill valve, you can easily get rid of such type of problem

For changing the fill valve, you need some accessories. These are-

Sponge
bucket
New fill valve Fluidmaster 400CRP14 Universal Toilet Fill Valveis one of the finest toilet fill valves. It will last for a very long time. You can consider this one while buying a new one).

Channel-type pliers (two pairs) ( if you don’t have any channel-type pliers at home then you can buy KNIPEX Tools 87 01 250 10-Inch Cobra Pliers. This piles is very high is quality and also assure you of comfort use and design)

The process to change the fill valve

1. Turn the water off and empty the toilet tank:

Stop the water supply to the tank. Bottom the tank there should be a valve attached to the wall, this is the source where the water is coming into the tank. Rotate it in a counterclockwise motion to stop the water supply.

After stopping the water supply, flush the tank to make the tank empty. Now open the tank by uncovering it. There should be a little amount of water at the bottom of the tank. Use a sponge and wipe all the water out. Wiping out this water is necessary or else it will create a mess on the bathroom floor whilereplacing the fill valve.

2. Remove the toilet fill valve:

There is a tube on the bottom of the tank remove it to remove the fill valve. Removing the tube is easy and you can do it using a wrench or channel-type pliers.

The bottom flange of the fill valve is attached to the bottom of the tank with the help of some mounting nuts.make the nuts fitting loose and remove the nuts. Hold the fill valve rigidly while losing the fill valve to prevent it from rotating along.

3. Preparing A New Fill Valve:

A rubber washer should be in that kit. To prevent any sort of leaking slide it up from below the tailpiece. This job of the washer is to hold the part of the fill valve and also provide a seal for leakage prevention.

As the toilets come in many different sizes so the fill valve height needs to be adjusted according to the height of your flush tank. Increasing or decreasing the size of the fill valve is very simple; you just need to screw the stem piece. You may think about how to determine the right height that’s also very simple. The overflow tube should be shorter in size than the fill valve. Make the height of the fill valve a bit higher than the overflow tube and that’ll do.

4. Install the new toilet fill valve:

Now it’s time to install the fill valve that you prepared. Put the new fill valve on the place of the old one. Make sure that the water outlet nipple is facing towards the overflow tube or else it will not work and you need to do it again.

Hold the valve using one hand and use your other hand to thread the metal washer. Start mounting the nuts from the lower part of the tank. Tighten the nuts using Channel-type pliers. You also need to make sure that the valve body of the valve cannot get threaded when you mount the nut.

After doing that connect the tube (that supplies water to the tank) to the fill valve.

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5. Connect and Make Adjustments to the Fill Valve:

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At the top of the filling, the valve attaches one end of the rubber fill tube to its nipple. Attach the plastic adapter to the other end of the tube and now clip the plastic adapter to the top of the overflow tube. Now rotate the water supply valve to refill the tank. Observe the filing process and make sure it is filling properly. Inspect the water level and it should be below the overflow tube. If the water line is above the overflow tube, then you need to fix the valve again.

Have a look on the fitting again. Check for any sort of leakage. If there is any, tighten the nuts a bit more and it will be fixed.

final verdict:

Almost every house has to face a running toilet. if it happens on a weekend when you are not getting a plumber to fix the toilet then you need to fix it by yourself. A running toilet will make the water bill very high so you can’t keep it running. We have discussed how to fix a running toilet fill valve above. Following these steps, you can easily fix your toilet without the help of a plumber. Hopefully, you will find these articles useful when you are in need.