Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Plumber's Butt Head

It was Monday night when my Scottish Wife came downstairs after doing a wonderful job of cleaning the bathroom.

"The toilet handle is broken."

Tuesday, after dinner, I went to the hardware store to buy a replacement handle. While I was there I got a wax seal for the bottom of the toilet, because I was pretty sure it was the cause for a leak that has been there for some time. The wax ring was cheap, and for some unknown reason I was DIY inspired!



The problem being whenever the toilet was flushed, a small amount of water dripped so we could hear it downstairs. Because of this, we have a missing ceiling tile in the kitchen that makes the room look bad. The water had already ruined one tile, no need to put in another that would only get water damage.

The replacement handle was an easy fix.



Trying to get the bolts off the toilet was a pain in the ass because the previous occupant of the house decided to caulk/seal/glue the toilet directly to the linoleum. Some of the tile tore up while lifting the toilet. I was covered in sweat because of the heat, became a bit frustrated and grumpy. No one got hurt though. Cussing was kept to a minimum

After I got the seal on, the toilet leaked even worse than before. Bad enough that a professional had to be called in. No real damage was done, no blood was spilled, and no water was shooting up from a pipe with no hope of shutting the flow. I called Roto-Rooter, they do not charge extra for showing up in the evening.

The plumber came, we cursed the previous occupants for doing a number of things wrong to the piping, some of it not up to code. He did all he could, including replacing a pipe and valve, which had corroded and worn out. He got the leak down to a very minimal amount, especially in comparison to before I got to it. The tooth was already damaged, I exposed the infected nerve during cleaning. Josh from Roto-Rooter did his job well with what he was given.



The toilet is leaking very little now, which is good, so it may be possible to replace the tile in the kitchen and find someone who is willing to seal up some plastic to iron piping. It is in the best interest of everyone that I no longer lift up a toilet to fix what is underneath,

3 comments:

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BrownSugar said...

I love how you find complimentary pics of SL for every post. I thank you.

P.S.: I've screwed up a wax seal or two in my day. It happens. . .

Someone Said said...

Sophia keeps it fresh :)

No more lifting the toilet for me. There's a crack in the flange that needs sealed with silicon, it's not going to be me doing it.