How to fix a toilet installation: popular breakdowns and ways to fix them

A wall-hung toilet, like its compact brother, can also break or start leaking.This situation is not at all a sign of impending expensive repair work with the collapse of the walls in the bathroom - repairing the installation for the toilet can cost a little money. Moreover, you can always try to eliminate the problem yourself.

We suggest that you familiarize yourself with the methods available to independent craftsmen for troubleshooting a wall-hung toilet. We list the main causes of breakdowns and the “symptoms” indicating their occurrence. Attention was paid to both the plumbing fixtures themselves, installed on the support frame, and the fittings of the flush cistern.

We supplemented the detailed diagnostics and scrupulously outlined methods for restoring the functionality of plumbing fixtures with visual illustrations and video tutorials.

List of traditional breakdowns

A broken toilet can throw even the most calm and good-natured person out of balance. This is not a faucet, which you can do without for a couple of days using a shower head. It will not be possible to live comfortably without a toilet, so the issue of repairs must be resolved promptly.

Think about what's expensive wall-hung toilet with installation It can last forever without problems, it's not worth it. Each toilet, like any other product, has its own service life. For some systems it can reach 10-12 years or more.

The service life of your plumbing fixtures can be found in the manufacturer's instructions in the warranty section.If you carefully study this document, you will see that some components have a shorter service life.

Thus, the filter and gaskets must be replaced much earlier.

It is advisable to always have a set of spare parts for repairing fittings on hand. If necessary, it will help speed up the replacement of broken parts

Built-in plumbing with an installation system consists of the following parts:

• frame or frame;
• cistern;
• units for inlet and outlet of working fluid;
• toilet/bidet/urinal.

Breakdown is possible in every part of the installation. To eliminate the cause of the malfunction, you must first find it. This task seems impossible without major renovations. But it seems so only at first glance.

When looking at the wall-hung toilet, a feeling of lightness is created. It’s not immediately clear how it stays on the wall and why it doesn’t fall - no one suspects about the rough metal frame

Frame or support frame It is made of durable metals and is coated with an anti-corrosion layer on top. This part is durable - all other elements of the system will be attached to it. It can withstand up to 600-800 kg of load.

This characteristic will differ for each manufacturer.It is important to pay attention to the maximum permissible load before purchasing. your favorite model. Sometimes, wanting to save money, they buy a cheap fake, where this figure is only 100 kg.

You can't save money by buying a cheap frame. A good installation is made of high-quality alloy, which is not afraid of either loads or corrosion. This is the key to long service life

Such a frame can easily bend or crack from overload - about 70-80 kg the weight of an adult + a water tank + the weight of the toilet itself. And if a large relative weighing more than 100 kg visits the bathroom, it’s scary to imagine what will happen. Therefore, you should not buy fakes - this is an unaffordable luxury.

If the integrity of the tank was damaged during installation, it must be replaced. It is not correct to fill the damage with sealant, hoping that it will last a long time

All manufacturers make the installation cistern from plastic. It is flat or triangular, and inside it stands plumbing fittings to ensure automatic filling and flushing.

What can happen to the tank:

• The plastic container may break if installation errors occur. If this was a DIY installation and the installer made mistakes due to inexperience, the tank may become warped and crack over time.
• If the installation was carried out by a crooked craftsman and he was accidentally hit during installation, then after a short time a leak may occur at the place of the chip and will need to be replaced with a new container.
• The fittings installed inside the tank consist of plastic parts, rubber and silicone sealing gaskets. Often problems arise due to wear of one of the components.

The inlet and outlet units may leak.The coarse filter, installed before water enters the drain tank, becomes clogged over time. And at the junctions of all pipes, the tightness may be compromised - elastic rubber gaskets fail over time, turning into hard plastic parts.

If this happens and the rubber gaskets have become inelastic, then they need to be replaced by using a spare one from the repair kit or by purchasing one that is suitable in diameter

Problems can also arise with the toilet - from a simple chip to a violation of the system for draining the working fluid into the sewer riser.

Fixing the problem yourself

To find the source of the problem, due to which the toilet is out of working order, you can resort to calling a plumber, calling a neighbor who helps everyone and charges inexpensively, or try to do everything yourself.

The first option is safe, but requires agreeing on the time of the work and will cost a decent amount of money. Of course, this is the most convenient and simple option - you don’t need to do anything, twist, change - you gave the money and accepted the job.

The option with a neighbor/acquaintance of friends is like a pig in a poke. Questionable quality of work can lead to even bigger problems and more serious breakdowns.

To detect the problem and fix the breakdown, you need to disassemble the installation system, getting to its insides through the inspection window

The third option involves self-study installation systemsinstalled in your bathroom and its repair. This is a simple activity that does not need to be rushed. It is important to take the manufacturer's instructions and read the relevant section carefully.If the instructions are lost, you can find them on online store websites or ask a plumbing store consultant.

All controversial issues that arise during the installation repair process can be viewed in thematic video clips. Models of fittings for built-in tanks from different manufacturers may differ from each other.

If you were able to disassemble the tank fittings according to the instructions, then you need to replace the broken parts using spare parts from the repair kit

Sometimes it is enough to disassemble the fittings of the drain tank, wash the components, replace worn parts, reassemble everything again, and the system works like a well-oiled mechanism - without failures.

Installation repair methods

Along with the purchase of a toilet installation, it is advisable to immediately buy a spare repair kit. It may be needed after 10-12 years or already after 3-4 years from the start of using the system. In order not to run around and look for spare parts, you should always have them in the pantry/on the tool shelf.

Finding the problem inside the cistern

The scope of repair work will depend on what exactly is broken. The most common problems encountered due to the fault of fittings:

1. The water continues to flow after the flush is completed. The reason may be the accidental entry of foreign objects into the drain tank - hair, cardboard, pieces of construction waste and other inclusions. The solution to the problem is to get the filling and draining mechanisms and fix the problem;
2. Water comes out of the tank slowly after pressing the flush button. The accordion for lifting the drain mechanism may break. The solution is to replace the drain mechanism;
3. Water does not fill into the tank - there may be problems with the float. It may come off the mount. The solution is to disassemble the system and replace the float;
4. The valve does not completely shut off the water - change the membrane or replace the gasket.

It turns out that in most cases you need to look inside the cistern without removing it from the wall. A home craftsman can do this with instructions for dismantling the fittings.

Access to the installation is provided through an inspection window. No need to break down the wall to change the gasket

Restoring the flush button

The flush button is mounted on a special frame and connected to the system using levers and cables. They are pneumatic and mechanical. It is important that the devices are reliable and of high quality for long service.

On sale you can see different models of buttons - backlit, with two and with one key. They differ in size, color, shape and material from which they are made. But some options may be universal - suitable for installations from various manufacturers.

Flush buttons, due to their universal characteristics, can be selected based on the overall design of the bathroom, taking into account the shape, material, and the most suitable color

If the flush button does not work well, you need to remove it and look in the inspection window of the installation. It is possible that the air hose supplied to the installation through the pneumatic button does not fit tightly. Or the button itself is broken.

The solution to the issue depends on the situation - adjusting the hose or buying a new button. Often in instructions for a specific model the manufacturer not only describes the installation process, but also indicates which buttons are suitable.

The flush button for installation is sold together with a decorative panel that successfully disguises the inspection window. In case of breakdown, it can be easily removed to gain access to the internal installation mechanism

Failure detection methods

When you need to find a breakdown inside an installation, it is not at all necessary to break the wall. You can reach the flush tank mechanism through the inspection window. Let's take a closer look at how to do this using the Geberit installation as an example.

First you need to remove the decorative cover with the flush button by pressing down and pulling it towards you. Then you have to remove the frame on which the key is attached.

To do this, you need to unscrew the screws and pull out the plastic pusher clamps. Then, in a way that depends on the model and manufacturer of the plumbing fixtures, you will have to remove the partition by pressing its latches. This partition can be marked with a diagram for dismantling the drain tank fittings, which is used to clean the valves and check the gaskets.

An important step is to turn off the water supply to the cistern. Otherwise, your actions could cause a real catastrophe on a local scale - flooding not only your bathroom, but also your neighbors below.

Next, you need to dismantle the filling valve - you must first remove the rocker arm block, and during reassembly you will have to use two rocker arms to engage the flush valve and 2 fixation points.

Then it was the turn of the filling valve itself, to which a flexible water supply pipe is connected. They carefully take him out. This valve regulates the level of water filling in the tank - if you twist the plastic pin, you can raise the float higher or lower it, which ensures that the tank is filled to the specified volume.

The plastic pin responsible for adjusting the float level rotates easily. You can twist it with your fingers, without using keys or other special tools.

Now the next step is to remove the drain valve lock - to do this, move the wings in opposite directions, which removes the part from the cordon.

It is necessary to dismantle a rather long flush valve - this cannot be done without partial dismantling inside the tank. To do this, holding the inner part, you need to turn out the top part and lower the second rod to the side.

That's it - the valve is easily removed from the internal space of the flush tank built into the wall. It consists of two blocks - the upper one for the small drain, and the lower one for the large drain. There is a basket on the bottom of the valve, which can be easily removed if it is necessary to replace the sealing gasket.

All fastenings of the reinforcement parts to each other are very simple; they fold and disassemble like a construction set. The main thing is to do everything calmly and not to rush, so as not to accidentally break something

Now all the parts need to be carefully inspected, washed under running water, and their condition assessed for wear. Replace broken parts and gaskets. After eliminating the breakdowns or routinely cleaning all the fittings, you will have to reassemble all the components in exactly the reverse order.

If the condition of the mechanism is extremely poor, then you need to replace the entire mechanism with a new one, using new fittings for the drain tank.

The bathroom smells bad

You can often encounter a situation where everything is fine with the bathroom ventilation system, but there is a leak under the wall-hung toilet and there is a disgusting sewer smell in the room, and water may be leaking behind the tiles inside the structure.

Here the problem may be related to rule violations installation of a wall-hung toilet and with nodes for connecting the tank to the toilet and the toilet to the sewer.

The problem with unpleasant odor occurs due to the use of shorter pipes than required to achieve a normal sealing condition

The fact is that the basis of these troubles may be in mistakes made during installation. It is important that the pipe routing is done correctly before installing the installation. What matters here is the length of the supply pipe and the remaining sewer inlet.

In some installation models, the pipes are short. This must be taken into account so that later you do not have to invent dubious sealing schemes. The installation pipes are most often 90 mm in diameter. They are placed through an adapter into the sewer, which is usually 110 mm.

The leak should be eliminated without using corrugated pipes and foam. It is important to choose the right pipe of the required length to connect the installation to the water supply system to the toilet bowl and connection to the sewer system

When the toilet adapter or installation pipe connecting the system to the sewer is short, it would be correct to buy a longer pipe from another manufacturer. It will work great and everything will be sealed.

There is no need to skimp on the adapter - everything here must be sealed and leak free. For some, this length is sufficient, while for others, for example, the latest models from Grohe, the pipes are a bit short.

Conclusions and useful video on the topic

Video #1. It is possible to disassemble the installation without destroying the wall of the bathroom. How to do it yourself:

Video #2. The appearance of an unpleasant odor may be the result of an error when connecting the toilet through the installation pipe to the sewer. You can fix this problem:

Video #3. When water begins to appear under the wall-hung toilet, you need to find a breakdown of the installation:

Any breakdowns in the toilet installation can be repaired with your own hands. This is more effective than inviting a handyman, and cheaper than the services of a professional plumber. And familiarity with the installation system may be useful in the future, when the need for prompt repairs arises.

You can tell us about how you yourself repaired the support frame of a wall-hung toilet and share useful information in the block below. Please comment and ask questions.