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Plumbing questions...

Marcos

Marcos

I love you Rocky & Sammie and Bee...thank you
Joined
Jul 29, 2006
Messages
1,763
Hello all. Hope Labor Day is going well. I have a few issues that I believe are coming from the toilet on the first floor of my home...I think. I have noticed small amounts of water dripping down the pipe that sits right under my toilet on the first floor (I can see this when I am in the basement). It is not constant and cannot be duplicated when running any water or flushing the toilet on the second floor of my home. Those drainage pipes enter my main stack below the level of this problem anyway so I don't think it is them. The first thing I suspected was maybe a bad wax ring under my first floor toilet. I have no water on the floor of the first floor bathroom and it is caulked around the base of the toilet so maybe if it is leaking it is just going down into the floor. I wanted to check this so I turned off the water to the first floor toilet, hoping that would stop the problem and at least confirm my diagnosis. Now what is weird is that after shutting off the water and flushing the toilet to empty it, the toilet still fills slowly over time. My guess is that the wax ring may be bad but that some other part on the toilet or valve is also bad which creates and propagates this problem as the toilet keeps refilling. Does this make any sense? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
 
I'm not a plumber by trade but I am pretty handy. If you've turned the shutoff valve off and the toilet still fills then the shutoff valve is leaking. This is pretty common. People that don't know any better tend to think tighter is better and damage the seat or it could just be old.

I believe you are saying that the first floor toilet waste pipe visible in the basement has water on it. If the base of the toilet is caulked but the wax ring is leaking then you wouldn't see water on the first floor bathroom but it would find its way down the waste pipe as it leaked under the toilet flange. If you can see the floor below the toilet from the basement check to see if it is wet or damp. If so then the wax ring is leaking. Depending on how old the plumbing is the toilet flange could be bad and need replacing. A good plumber should be able to accomplish this in less than an hour.

Just my slightly experienced opinion.

AVB said:
Are you sure it isn't just condensation?
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I didn't think about that but a definite possibility. If it's condensation then the floor shouldn't be damp or wet, just the pipe.
 
I'm the son and grandson of landlords and the Godson of a plumber. Don't fugg around, hire a plumber. I just had two toliets repaired with similar problems. It should take him less than an hour.

Doc.
 
Devil Doc said:
I'm the son and grandson of landlords and the Godson of a plumber. Don't fugg around, hire a plumber.

Doc.
Click to expand...


I second this statement. I am by no means handy at all and while I have attempted to be during my life, one statement has always been true....Hire a professional.

Good luck.
 
Hiring a plumber is your best bet by far. You also might check the glue around your waste pipe to see if it is leaking from any joints. Definitely something you want fixed so it doesn't do more damage such as water damage throughout your floor and carpet in the basement.
 
I definitely don"t think it's condensation, as the pipe will stay completely dry with no drips running down it until I test out the flush on the toilet. The shut off valve definitely looks old and if it still fills the toilet when turned off (at a very slow pace) that may be part of the problem. After closer inspection it also seems whoever lived here before me grouted around the base and did not caulk it. I am at least happy I was able to pinpoint where this is most likely probably coming from. How much does a new wax ring installed by a plumber cost? It's appears the part is not too expensive but not sure what the install may run. Thanks again for the responses.
 
Marcos said:
I definitely don"t think it's condensation, as the pipe will stay completely dry with no drips running down it until I test out the flush on the toilet. The shut off valve definitely looks old and if it still fills the toilet when turned off (at a very slow pace) that may be part of the problem. After closer inspection it also seems whoever lived here before me grouted around the base and did not caulk it. I am at least happy I was able to pinpoint where this is most likely probably coming from. How much does a new wax ring installed by a plumber cost? It's appears the part is not too expensive but not sure what the install may run. Thanks again for the responses.
Click to expand...

It sounds like the shutoff valve needs to be repaired then the wax ring replaced. They're separate issues. It's possible that the flange may need to be replaced too. If it's bad replacing the wax ring will only last for a little while.

A large plumbing company I sometimes use here in Little Rock charges $180 an hour but they are really fast. They've done this same type of job for me in half an hour. Another large company that I used once charged me about $300 to fix a leaky toilet tank over two visits. I could have replaced the toilet for less.

The best thing would be to talk to people you know in your area and get recommendations. Just because they're big doesn't mean they're good.
 
I just installed a new toilet for my parents this weekend. Not a difficult job but I am one of them there handymen.

I once talked to a union plumber who had issues with a toilet in his own house. He replaced his toilet and still had issues. He replaced all the plumbing in his house. Still issues. He finally realized his cheap new replacement Mexican toilet had a bad cast and the air vent (near the trap) was not cast properly and was plugged. LOL.

We he was still kicking himself and it had been a year.
 
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