I had a new toilet installed recently. All is good except for one thing: when you flush it, you have to hold the handle down for maybe a second to get a full flush. If you do a quick flush-and-release of the handle, you get only a partial flush.
I assume the flapper is closing too quickly? And there must be an adjustment that can be made to change this?
Again, it’s minor. But if you don’t do the very slightly extended hold-down, you have to wait for the tank to fill again, then re-flush. Not an ideal situation when a guest uses the facilities.
Open the tank and observe the process. You most likely need to change the length of the chain that connects to the flapper. Pop it off its existing link and pop a different link on to the connection and you’re good.
I’ve seen this a lot. When you do a “hit and run”, the flapper pulls up just a little bit, then the flow of the water sucks it closed. (the flapper usually has “oval” holes where they hook to the pipe that allow them to remain in an upright, open position till the water forces them closed again, but they must open pretty far for them to “catch” in the open position)
You can try to adjust the chain so it is at it tightest, so when you hit the handle, the flapper lifts as far as it can. This can lead to other problems, like the flapper not always sealing completely, but may prevent “half-ass flushes”.
There are some flappers that have an adjustment for this - they have a sleeve that turns and blocks some vent holes in the middle, thick part of the flapper, that can let it catch more air to stay up longer, or catch more water to push it down faster.
I don’t think it’s by design. I don’t remember any mention of that feature on the box it came in.
The flapper is unlike any I’ve seen before. It is large, maybe 4 inches across, and the chain connects at the center of the circle, lifting it straight up.
I’m going crazy trying to think of what a flapper is called in non-toilet situations. It’s a type of valve. Is “flap” (heart-flaps in anatomy, e.g.) the correct general term for this in engineering? That sounds way too simple…
It doesn’t. It’s for the user to decide. If you have solids, you hold down the button longer. Other dual-flush toilets might have two buttons or a lever that’s pulled up for liquids and down for solids (which is what we have at work).
It’s definitely the flapper. It’s designed that way. Flappers are cheap and easy to replace. I’d suggest a more traditional one if you wish to resolve the issue.
Mine has a regular lever on the side. I give it a quick press down about half way and release for #1 and hold it down until the bowl empties for solids.
Since this is about toilet flappers, I’ll just ask my question here.
I bought a new fill valve for my toilet and the kit came with a new flapper so I installed that. It worked fine for awhile and then it started to get so it would only close about half-way and I had to push it down the rest of the way. A couple of times now, I’ve popped the two ‘ears’ off the fill valve and put them back on and it worked fine for a while but went back to the above. It’s getting pretty annoying. Any idea what I can do to make it work correctly all the time?
Flappers are cheap. Buy a new one, but buy a Korky brand, not a Fluidmaster. While the latter sounds very manly and professional, and even looks muscular, they don’t always work very well. Korky flappers are sturdy and simple, which is what you want in a toilet part.
Yes, many new toilets have the #1/#2 feature - hold for full flush.
Older toilets, the flapper had a float built in - once it was raised for long enough to be surrounded by water, the flotation of the flap held it up until the tank was drained - then it fell down and sealed closed, allowing the tank to fill.
Newer “low volume” toilets allow you to push once for small flush (“If it’s yellow, let it mellow”) and hold for full flush (“if it’s brown, flush it down…”). basically, the float is instead halfway up the chain to the handle. water pressure holds the flapper shut. When you flush, the float holds the flap up, until the tank is, say, half empty. Then the level is low enough that the flap closes with the float at the surface of the tank water level (because in this case, the flap itself does not float). If you hold the lever, you keep the chain taut and the flap open until your hand gets tired or you are done flushing. Then the flap closes because, gravity. Tank fills to max.
(In all cases, another float also determines water level - either float on a long lever, or concentric float around filler tube. )
Apparently some jurisdictions (California?) wanted to reduce the water consumption, and tried to set upper limits on flush volumes. However, a mere 1 gallon flush with a poorly designed toilet guaranteed that a #2 would take 4 or 5 flushes, thus negating any conservation. The 1-2 design makes a lot more sense. (Some European toilets have the double button on top of the tank for the same purpose.)
