How tight should toilet flange bolts be?

Asked by: Patricia Wilson

Bolts Don’t Have to Be Extremely Tight In some cases, hand-tightening and a quarter-turn is all you need. It’s important to keep in mind that the toilet tank is not intended to take weight and strain. The tank-to-bowl bolts are merely there to ensure the rubber seal between the tank and bowl is snug and leakproof.

How tight do I tighten toilet flange bolts?

You'll want to make sure your bowl doesn't wiggle back and forth. You've got to be careful. Don't over tighten those bolts you don't want to break your porcelain.

How tight do toilet bolts need to be?

You’re trying to avoid bowl movement, so that it doesn’t shift or fall over, not to hold the floor up by the toilet bolts. As tight as you can go will probably snap the porcelain (with a good socket you can torque a nut onto a bolt quite a bit). Until you think it’s about to snap is just guessing. Snug.

How do you tighten a toilet flange?

4 use the socket wrench to tighten the bolts connecting the brass ring to the flange. And securing it to the floor tighten the bolts a little bit at a time to evenly force the rubber gasket downward.

Why is my toilet leaking from the bolts?

A toilet that leaks from its tank bolts is usually leaking because of damaged, misaligned or even cracked washers or bolts. You have to either tighten the bolts or replace them. Generally, two-piece toilets have a set of bolts that attach the tank to the bowl.

Why does my toilet rock when I sit on it?

Toilets usually rock because they are not resting flush against the floor. Underneath the toilet base is a round toilet flange that connects the toilet to the drain pipe. If the flange is a little higher than the surrounding flooring, the toilet becomes raised slightly in the center, allowing it to rock to either side.

Can you use plumbers putty on toilet tank bolts?

It’s not a good idea to use plumber’s putty on a toilet tank bolt. You might be tempted because the material is supposed to be a good sealant. But it isn’t built for this purpose. It won’t give you the kind of seal you need, and it can even impede the rubber gasket from sealing properly.

Is toilet tank supposed to wobble?

A small amount of toilet tank wobble is okay. If your toilet tank is leaking water onto the floor, it requires repair. If water is leaking into your toilet bowl from the tank (your toilet will run to refill the tank periodically), repair is necessary. If the tank wobbles a lot or is not secure, it should be repaired.

Should toilets be bolted to the floor?

The flange should be fastened to the floor. Dry fit the toilet to make sure it doesn’t rock. If it does rock, use shims to prevent rocking – just tightening the bolts probably will not stop the rocking but will risk cracking the toilet or breaking the flange.

Why is my toilet loose from the floor?

Probably the easiest fix, your loose toilet may simply be due to your loose toilet mounting bolts needing to be tightened. Simply remove the small plastic bolt caps at the base of your toilet (they will be on each side, and can be pried off with a small screwdriver).

Can you over tighten toilet tank bolts?

Can Toilet Tank Bolts Be Too Tight? Overtightened toilet tank bolts will crack the toilet tank or the bowl you are attaching it to. This is because toilets are made of porcelain, which is very hard but is prone to cracking. Porcelain won’t bend or flex, so an overtightened bolt will crack the ceramic.

Should you caulk around bottom of toilet?

Caulk prevents a fouling area. If mop water, bathtub water, or a less pleasant “bathroom liquid” gets underneath the toilet, there is no way to clean it up. Caulking around the base of the toilet will prevent this from happening.

How do I stop my toilet tank bolts from leaking?

So it's gonna go bolt metal washer washer. And then we're gonna put a washer against the tank. And then we could have put a hex nut on it to tighten it up so that it doesn't leak.

Why is my new toilet tank leaking?

The water drains to the bottom of the tank – This happens when the gasket that seals the flush valve into the tank is deteriorated and worn. Recommended Solution: Change flush valve. If a leak occurs at a flush valve gasket in new installation, the lock nut securing the flush valve to the underside maybe leaking.

Why does toilet leak between tank and bowl?

If the water appears to be leaking from between the tank and bowl, near the center, you may need a new tank-to-bowl sponge gasket, or new washers for the tank-to-bowl bolts. If water is leaking from the tank to bowl gasket it will tend to leak more often when the toilet is flushed.

Can I use flex seal in my toilet tank?

Not only can it prevent leaks but it can make your tub, shower and areas around your toilet look better. Luckily, we help make the job a little easier. Flex Shot is easy to use, with no caulk gun required.

How do you install toilet tank bolts?

So just to show you how the hardware setup here – so you get your order right basically way of our bolt going through all three layers we have rubber washers wherever we're touching porcelain.

How do I know if my toilet is leaking from underneath?

The main signs of a leaking toilet may include a damp area on the floor around the bottom of the toilet, a spongy feeling in the floor at the bottom of the toilet seat, signs of dampness on the ceiling in the room underneath your toilet, or the occasional smell of sewer gas and the flooring coming up in the area around …

How long does a toilet wax ring last?

The wax ring is exactly what it sounds like: a ring made of sticky wax that helps form a watertight seal between the bottom of the toilet and the sewer pipe. It requires no maintenance and can last 30 or more years, often as long as the toilet itself. But sometimes wax rings can dry out, crumble, and fail prematurely.

What is a silent toilet leak?

The test is simple; all you need to do is place a colored tablet into the toilet tank, wait for a period of 10 minutes, and then check to see if there is any color in the toilet bowl. If color shows up in the bowl, then a leak is present, and you need to contact a plumber.

Is a leaking toilet covered by insurance?

While a leaking toilet may be covered by your homeowners insurance policy, a flooded or backed-up sewage system is not covered, even though it may overload your plumbing system. Fortunately, most home insurance companies offer sewer or water backup coverage as an affordable rider that you can add to your policy.

Can a toilet leak under tile?

When new tile is installed, the average height of the flooring can be much higher than the existing flange. Tile installers have a habit of using two wax rings stacked on top of each other to seal the flange to the toilet, and these seals will eventually leak.

How much damage can a leaking toilet do?

A running toilet can quickly become a costly problem. The U. S. Geological Survey estimates a single leaking toilet can waste an extra 22 gallons of water every day, adding up to over 8,000 lost gallons of water in a year. Even a small leak can mean hundreds of wasted dollars and thousands of gallons of wasted water.