That's me. I have a toilet that makes a "Shhhhh" sound every ten or fifteen minutes after it's been flushed. The only way I can get it to stop is to flush it several more times. Do I need a plumber? Thanks for any input. Pat
Probably, the flapper valve at the bottom of the tank is leaking water because it is worn, and doesn't seal properly any more. The sound you hear is the fill valve opening to let more water into the tank to replace what's leaking past the flapper valve. Flushing the toilet opens the flapper valve; if you do this a few times, chances are that sooner or later it will seat a little better and not leak, which is why you're able to stop the noise that way.
Flapper valves are available at any hardware store for about five dollars, and usually can be replaced in five minutes without tools. Most of them even have instructions on the package. It's not rocket science. Just remember to turn the water off to the toilet before you begin.
"Patscga" wrote
Well, it's trying to tell you something. Be a little quieter when you are using it and it will probably stop...
Most of them even have
Rather than cramping yourself into an uncomfortable position to reach a shut off valve down behind the toilet, and possibly running into a jammed up valve or maybe starting its stem seal leaking by operating it, it's usually much easier to just hold the float valve up with a bent wire coat hanger or similar. That'll "turn off the water" just fine, and you won't have to bend down once to do the whole job.
HTH,
Jeff (An old man who asks, "Why run when you can walk; why stand when you can sit?")
You are wasting water as you have a leak. You need to have your tank checked for the leak and the problem repaired as it is costing you money.
Pj
it might be that the float isn't always shutting off the valve completely, and replacing the valve cartidge (depending on the brand) may do the trick. to test the theory, after hearing the water run, open the tank and jostle the float to help make the valve seat. If it doesn't run again, the valve is bad. If the water does run, the flapper valve (at the bottom of the tank) is bad.
I suspect that the "flush it several more times" holds the key. There may be something at the flapper valve face, including a possible too-long chain. When the flush handle is not being pressed, the chain from the lever arm to the rubber flapper in the tank should not sag much, or a link from it could lay down on the spot the flapper is trying to cover. Go to Home Depot, find a plumbing sales attendant, and ask for a training session in Toiletology.
So Bill, if it doesn't shut off completely, why does it take 10 to 15 minutes before she hears the "Shhhh" sound?
And, from the way she described it it sure sounds like it will repeat every ten or 15 minutes until she gets up and flushes it several times until she gets lucky and it the flap valve happens to settle in "the right place"
It's the flap valve Bill...
Jeff
On 12/4/2004 8:00 AM US(ET), Patscga took fingers to keys, and typed the following:
That is probably the fill valve opening because water is leaking past the flapper and causing the float to drop slightly, which opens the fill valve to let more water into the tank. Since the float only dropped a small distance, the fill valve does not open fully. You usually hear the same type of noise when the water almost reaches the preset level and the float starts to close the fill valve. When you flush, the float drops quickly, opening the valve fully, but when the water leaks out of the tank slowly, the floats drops slowly, and the valve only opens a small amount causing the 'shhhhhing' noise as the water squeezes past the valve. When you flush one or more times after that, the flapper may find a better spot to seal the opening, so no water leaks out. Now that you know what is causing it, you can live with it, or try changing the flapper.
Pat,
For more info on toilets then you could possibly want, see this link:
John
Okay, I replaced the flapper and it doesn't "Shhhh" anymore. Now I hear water running in the tank for about 30 minutes after a flush.
"Flapper valves are available at any hardware store for about five dollars, and
usually can be replaced in five minutes without tools. Most of them even have instructions on the package. It's not rocket science. Just remember to turn the water off to the toilet before you begin."
Pat
When you turned the water back on, did you open the valve all the way? sounds like you have a trickle fill.
Try redirecting the little hose squirting down the tube in the tank to go directly into the tank and look in the bowl. Is there water movement? if so, you might not have a proper seal. (replace hose when finished, this is what puts water in the bowl)
good luck!
I had this problem before. All flapper valves are not the same. The ones I am talking about are the common old fashioned type of flappers. Take the old one and compare the distance between the hinge and the center of the plug. If this dimension is off the valve will not seat and you'll here water running continually. I had to go to a plumbing store and buy a more expensive brand that had the right dimension in order to make a proper seal.
oops.......... hear
So here's what I did. There's a white tube that brings water up from the bottom and bends over into another larger tube. I fixed the small tube so that it doesn't bend over so far and it stopped leaking. Pat
On 12/8/2004 5:57 PM US(ET), Patscga took fingers to keys, and typed the following:
The rule is that the end of the small tube (bowl refill tube) should be as high as possible in the larger tube (overflow pipe). There should be a squeezed "S" shape clip that is hooked into the refill tube end and then the other end is hooked onto the top of the overflow pipe. This keeps the end of the refill tube at the correct height inside the overflow pipe. If the "S" clip is missing (they tend to jump into the overflow pipe to escape whenever the refill tube is removed), sticking the refill tube in any lower than the high water mark in the tank will cause a siphoning effect.
It only stopped running after I took it out of the clip and set it directly into the larger pipe.
Pat
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