One of the most common ways the average toilet leaks is through a damaged flange or a break in the wax ring seal. You may wonder, how can I tell if my toilet has a broken or crooked flange or wax seal? Luckily the Plumbers at Prometheus Home Services LLC can provide you key indications that you can look out for to diagnose a damaged flange or wax ring.
“Rock The Boat”:
When you sit on your toilet, if you can feel a slight rocking back and forth of the stand, that is one of the clearest indicators of a damaged wax ring seal or flange, since the entire goal of those parts is to secure your toilet to the floor.
Puddling:
Having small puddles appear at the bottom of the base of your toilet is a sign of a leak since no water should be able to escape through the seal.
Lifted Tile:
Another sign of leaking is when your tiles or linoleum begin to raise or crack. This is a sign of water damage in your flooring.
Bad Smells:
One last way to identify a leak in your toilet is odor. When your wax ring seal is cracked, odorous gasses from your plumbing can be released into the air.
Can I Repair This Myself?
Yes, depending on the reason for the leak! To repair a broken flange or wax ring all you need to do is first, turn off your water supply to the toilet, then disconnect the toilet. Once you do that, you just need to clean out the damaged flange and wax ring and any unwanted grime in there that could prevent the parts from operating as they should. Lastly, you can reconnect your toilet and turn the water supply back on.
On the other hand if that seems like too much of a hassle or the cause is something else, you can always contact a professional, like our experts at Prometheus Home Services, to assist you! Remember, you should replace your wax seal and flange every 7-8 years max. Hopefully these tips helped or might help you in the future identify your toilet leak.