Sorry for the flip post title. Obviously, not haunted, but it damn near seems like it is.
The issue:
For the past month and a half, literally every 11 minutes, my toilet makes a noise as if it were re-filling the bowl. It only lasts a few seconds (4-6), which makes me think there’s some sort-of slow leak, but there’s no sign of anything of the sort. I live in an apartment, and I’ve called building maintenance over twice. Both times, the maintenance person has marked it as ‘fixed’… And it is not.
The odd caveats:
-I’m a really heavy guy. Don’t know if that’s somehow done something to the toilet.
-Had a situation in which, about two weeks ago, my toilet backed up and overflowed really badly. After dealing with the problem with a plunger for about a half hour… The 11-minute noise ceased. For about 4-5 days. Then it started up again. That’s the bit that stymies me.
So, I’m looking for advice. Not only on what might be wrong and how to fix it, but why it’s every 11 minutes, and, worst comes to worst, what I can tell my maintenance guy beyond ‘Hey, wait here for 12 minutes after you ‘fix’ it, okay?’ - because that makes me sound like a loony, and I know they want to get their jobs done and get moving as quickly as possible.
I’ve had that before.
It was one of two problems in my case.
- The fill level was set too high and water ran out of the overflow tube just enough to kick off the fill valve for a time. This is less common than item 2.
2.The flapper valve (big thing that covers the tank exit hole) has a slow leak. The water slowly leaks around the flapper and you can’t hear it. But after a while the leak will drain the tank just enough that your float will drop and your fill valve starts to refill the tank. THAT is the noise you hear.
#2 - buy and install a new flapper valve.
or for
#1 adjust the fill level so that it is below the overflow tube
Shame on the building maintenance guy … BubbaDog’s #2 is automatic with the OP’s complaint … replacing the flapper is more of a periodic maintenance item, rather than a repair task … flappers wear out and need to be replaced on a regular basis … and they’re dirt cheap at the hardware store (usually) …
Kudo’s for the OP … it’s not your water bill so why do you care? … I’m guessing because you’re an honest person … the kind landlords love … keep reporting the problem, someday the person who does pay the water bill will see to it’s repair …
ETA: Are you absolutely sure no one’s been chopped up and flushed down your toilet … perhaps a lingering spirit in the float mechanism?
By far, the most likely cause is a leaky flapper. Put some food coloring in the upper tank, wait a while, and see if the color ends up in the bowl. If it does, then it’s a bad flapper.
I’m guessing all the plunger action jiggled something so the leak was blocked for a while.
Nothing really new to add, but +1 on the flapper leaking.
Whenever mine starts that I just replace the entire mechanism in the tank. The washers degrade at about the same rate, so for $20 I can get the entire kit at HD and then it is good to go for another few years.
There might also be some debris causing the flapper to not seal completely or it might be slightly misaligned. Do the food color test mentioned by filmore and if that proves the leak, call maintenance and do it again right before they get there so they can see the problem for themselves.
For an easy (and temporary) fix to a flapper leak, use a soapy wash cloth to wipe the edges of the flapper and the seal it rests on. Sometimes a little bit of grime can build up there and prevent the flapper from sealing properly. If that doesn’t work, you can try smearing a small amount of Vaseline on the seal edges to make them slightly more sticky. If you use too much, you’ll get the grime problem again.
You know what that problem is called? Ghost flushing. Really.
My toilet had that problem for a while. I’m trying to remember how I fixed it, but I think it has to do with the refill tube.
Results of a Google Search.
Or the valve seat might be damaged enough to not get a good seal.
The last flapper repair kit I got included not only the valve but a nice, smooth stainless steel ring, thin stock bent into a U shape, and a small tube of RTV. The idea was that you would empty out the bowl and let the bottom dry, fill the groove in the circumference of the new seat with RTV and squish it down over the original valve seat, let it sit for four hours to let the RTV coagulate, and finally, install the new flapper. Worked like a charm.