Constantly Running Toilet Turned Out To Be One Scaled Up Rubber Washer Inside The Siphon And The Original Siphon Is So Old They Do Not Even Make It Anymore

A toilet that never stops running can drive you up the wall, and the bill for a plumber to come out can sting even more. According to a plumber who posts as mmplumber, the cause is often a single worn rubber washer inside the siphon, a part that costs very little and swaps out in minutes.

Plumber pointing at a toilet siphon, next to a white toilet bowl with cistern

He filmed himself at a customer’s house where the family could hear the toilet running constantly. Water was dripping steadily in the bottom of the bowl, and there were stains at the back. His video walks through that repair and several other simple jobs he says homeowners can handle without calling anyone.

Fixing the Running Toilet

His first step is to figure out which part is failing. The main culprits are the fill valve or the siphon. He lifts the cistern lid carefully, without smashing it, and checks whether the toilet is overflowing. If it is, the fill valve is not shutting off properly. If it is not overflowing but is still leaking by slightly, the washer inside the siphon is the likely problem.

Next, he isolates the water. On this customer’s toilet there was an unusual wheel-head valve that he says he had not seen in many years. If yours does not have one, look for an isolation valve on the pipe at the bottom, and failing that, turn off the mains. Then flush so the tank empties and you can see what you are doing.

With the siphon out, the washer at the bottom was badly scaled up. You can either clean the washer or replace it, and since he carries spares, he put on a new one. The siphon then clicks back into place. He warns to be careful of the cradle, and if it starts to move, do not touch it, because you may need to take the whole system off to do the job.

To check his work, he turned the water back on and did a tissue test. He placed tissue where the water had been escaping and watched for drips. A few drips after a flush are normal, but the leak should not be constant, and a little rippling in the bowl is a sign something is still dripping. His result was good. He adds that this model of siphon is no longer made, so changing the washer is the better option, but if you cannot find the right washer for your toilet, it is sometimes easier to buy the whole siphon, which also clicks in and out.

Swapping a Bar Shower

Next he shows a bar shower, which he calls the most commonly installed type because it is cheap and easy to install and work on. You just need two pipes coming out of the wall. Reasons to replace one include no water coming out because of blocked filters behind it, a constant drip, stiff control knobs, or poor mixing that leaves you short of hot water.

The job, in theory, is to shut the water off, undo two nuts, take the old unit off, fit the new one and tighten up. He goes downstairs to turn off the water, opens some taps upstairs to let things drain, then removes the old shower. Before turning the water back on, make sure every tap is closed. Then check for leaks, and do not forget the washers on the hose, or you will get what he calls a nice little spray fountain.

A Cold Radiator and a Stuck Pin

If one radiator in the house stays cold while the rest are hot, he says the valve is often the culprit. After the heating is shut off for summer, the pin inside many old valves gets stuck, and nine times out of ten that is why there is no flow in the fall.

The fix starts with removing the thermostat head to reveal the pin. Some heads need a flat screwdriver, but most simply unscrew or pop off. With the pin pushed all the way in, he gives it a few gentle taps with a hammer until it pops out. Some people pull the pin with grips, but he advises against it because there is a washer inside and pulling too hard can bring out the whole pin, leaving you with a jet of water. He says he has never had a problem with the hammer method, though he does not claim there is zero risk. If a valve keeps sticking, he recommends replacing it, and since that can mean draining the system and altering pipework, he suggests calling a plumber for that.

Boiler Pressure and Bleeding Radiators

When the heating will not come on, check the boiler for an error code. The most common one is low pressure, and the gauge on his customer’s boiler read zero. The pressure needs to be at least 1 to 1.5 bar for the boiler to start.

To top it up, find the filling loop, which on his combi boiler sits underneath. It has a valve on the cold water and one on the heating. He opens the heating valve fully and then eases the cold water valve open slightly to control the flow while he watches the gauge. At about 1 to 1.5, he closes both valves. If you hear air, bleed the radiators.

A radiator that is cold at the top and hot at the bottom just needs bleeding. He holds a tissue under the bleed vent and turns the screw a quarter turn with an air vent key, no more, until he hears air. When water comes out, the radiator is full. On a pressurized system, top the pressure up again afterward. His thermal imaging camera showed the radiator going from blue at the top to warm all over.

Replacing an Outside Tap

His final job is an outdoor tap. He swaps the old one for a lever style with a butterfly handle. The routine is the same as for most plumbing work: shut the water off first, open the tap to make sure nothing comes out, disconnect the old one, attach the new one, turn the water back on and test it.

The lesson from the video is that most of these jobs follow the same pattern. Know where your water shut-off is, drain the line, change the part, then test carefully. For anything involving drained heating systems or pipework changes, he is happy to say it is time to bring in a pro.

Willow and Hearth