# toilet trouble **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 22, 2010, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilet-trouble/525974 "2010-01-22T06:30:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BigBertha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@BigBertha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigBertha)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2010, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilet-trouble/525974/1 "2010-01-22T06:30:33Z")
What does it mean if you see water around the bottom of the toilet? We may have some sort of leak and theres no way we can afford to fix it, but just wondering. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2010, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilet-trouble/525974/2 "2010-01-22T06:33:25Z")
Sounds like you might need to [replace the wax seal](http://home.howstuffworks.com/home-improvement/repair/question504.htm). ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2010, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilet-trouble/525974/3 "2010-01-22T06:57:35Z")
First make sure you know where the source of the leak is. Just because the water is around the bottom doesn’t mean it can’t be running down the bowl from the tank. You might have something as simple as a loose wingnut clamping the tank to the bowl. Basically tighten up everything and see if that helps. If you can definitely tell that it’s seeping from the bottom, then you probably need a new seal. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2010, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilet-trouble/525974/4 "2010-01-22T08:32:38Z")
If your shower/tub is in the same room, it could be condensation (this has happened to our toilet). We have also noticed that when somebody is less than diligent about the shower curtain, the water tends to puddle right in front of the toilet, making it look like it came from the toilet. Or it could be you need a new wax seal. In some cases, if the subfloor is uneven due to previous leaks, you can get your plumber (or whoever does it) to put on two wax seals, one on top of the other–which is a lot cheaper than fixing the subfloor. ---
**Author:** ![BigBertha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@BigBertha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigBertha)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2010, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilet-trouble/525974/5 "2010-01-22T08:40:53Z")
I’ve been watching, and theres no new wetness for 2 hours now. I called a plumber and if he can fix it with a promise of payment, I can get this. ---
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2010, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilet-trouble/525974/6 "2010-01-22T17:53:32Z")
Are you just watching the toilet, or are you flushing and watching? If there’s a leak somewhere it might only show up when you flush. ---
**Author:** ![BigBertha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@BigBertha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigBertha)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2010, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilet-trouble/525974/7 "2010-01-22T18:22:20Z")
Has been dry since last night. Nothing after I flush. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2010, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilet-trouble/525974/8 "2010-01-22T19:08:54Z")
I should add that the relatively cheap fix of two wax seals is not permanent, if the subfloor is warped. With mine, nothing happened when you flushed. Or for awhile after that. Once you walked out of the room, the water would ooze out. When it was a condensation problem, that was kind of sneaky, too. The clean person would be messing around in the bathroom and suddenly set part of a clean foot into a puddle, yuck! Nobody wanted to think about where that water came from. (Yes, I have had all kinds of plumbing problems.)