How to Fix a Flapper on a Toilet

Step-by-Step Guide

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   Step 1: Lift the top off the tank of the toilet carefully and set it somewhere where it won’t get broken.

   You should see a white plastic tube called an overflow tube in the tank.
   
   Attached to the tube will be the flapper guides, two arms that hold either side of the rubber flapper.
   
   This sits near the bottom of the overflow tube.
   
   Attached to the guide arms is the flapper, a round piece of rubber that is supposed to fit tightly in a hole in the bottom of the tank.
   
   Attached to the top of the flapper will be a chain or metal rod.
   
   The chain or rod is hooked to a bar at the top of the tank, which is generally attached to a mechanism on the overflow pipe near the top.
   
   There is another rod in the toilet that turns on and shuts off the flow of water into the tank.
   
   The level of water can be controlled by a float ball on a rod or by a mechanism that turns like a dial. , When you push down on the flush handle the bar at the top lifts, pulling the flapper out of the hole.
   
   The flapper floats for a moment but as the water drains out of the tank it should settle back into the hole, closing it off.
   
   After the flapper closes the hole the toilet fills with water to the top of the overflow tube, when it should stop. , Generally they hook into holes in the rod.
   
   Use the middle hole first.
   
   Try another if the flapper doesn’t seal right. ,, There are 2 ways.
   
   Move the hook on the chain to a different hole on the bar.
   
   Move the hook on the chain further down to shorten it.
   
   The chain should be fairly straight between the flapper and the bar when the flapper is properly seated in the hole. , Otherwise you can straighten the wire and bend it back a little shorter. ,,, There should be a turn off valve below the tank.
   
   In some cases you may need to go into a basement beneath the toilet to find the valve. ,,, You may need to turn it off and try again. , This is a simple job.
   
   Just follow the package directions.
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   Step 2: Look inside the toilet tank.

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   Step 3: Flush the toilet as you watch what happens inside.

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   Step 4: Replace the chain or wire on the lift bar if the flapper doesn’t lift off the hole and you can see they are unattached.

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   Step 5: Untangle any kinks in a flapper chain if it isn’t fitting back into hole after a flush.

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   Step 6: Adjust the length of the flapper chain so that it doesn’t flop into the hole with the flapper

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   Step 7: preventing it from sealing.

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   Step 8: If it's a wire

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   Step 9: move the wire connected to a flapper to a different hole in the bar to see if that corrects the problem.

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    Step 10: Flush the toilet again to see if the problem is solved.

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    Step 11: Adjust the float adjustment screw if the flapper does fit into the hole but water rises over the overflow tube and continues to trickle over it.

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    Step 12: Turn off the water to the toilet if none of the above fixes the problem.

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    Step 13: Flush the toilet to empty the tank after the water is off.

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    Step 14: Lift the flapper and clean the edge of the hole and just inside it

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    Step 15: first with a cloth

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    Step 16: then lightly with a scouring pad.

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    Step 17: Turn the water back on and flush the toilet to observe your work.

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    Step 18: If the flapper ball continues to let water leak after adjustment

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    Step 19: you will probably need to replace it.

Detailed Guide

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