DH and a friend replaced all the parts in our two toilets today due to slow leaks (both toilets had seals/gaskets/washers sooooo old that it was amazing we didn't have slow leaks any sooner).
Toilet #1 is fine. Toilet #2 is leaking from the tank (in the big gasket, screw mount area - we cannot tell for sure, even though we have monitored it very closely). While our friend thought the leak was coming through one of the screw holes, DH and I have think it's the big gasket seal in the center of the toilet (that seals the hole from toilet to bowl). The screw holes were replaced with the double rubber seals on the inside and the washers on the outside (as I have read in FAQ do-it-yourself toilet repair). So....everything looks good there....
We considered the possibility that maybe this gasket was not large/puffy enough for the hole, but it seemed to work fine for its twin in the other bathroom. Perhaps this gasket is defective?
We tried mounting and re-mounting the tank and each time we got different results (always a leak, but of varying degrees - from a very, very slow sweat, to a fast, fast drip - and then everything in between). Our friend attempted tightening the screws/bolts some more, but that had no affect. He didn't want to screw them too fit for fear of the tank cracking.
I have two theories:
- The new gasket seal that goes from the outside of the tank to the bowl hole is not large or puffy enough - OR - is defective somehow (although it looks fine).
- The tank has a hairline crack that we cannot see. I think we've disproved this theory due to different results with each mounting of the tank, but - I really don't know.
DH says, "Let's just call a plumber and be done with it". I am hovering around our drained tank at the moment feeling like I've just been defeated by it! I wanna fix that sucker myself!
Any ideas of something we should try differently, or should we just do what DH says and pay for the expert to fix up or mess?
Thanks! Paula