Fixed a leaky toilet flapper that took me 3 trips to Home Depot

Started as a simple 10 minute job on a Wednesday night. Three hours later I was elbow deep in the tank with a flashlight, and the part I bought didn't even fit my American Standard model from 2012. Finally got it sealed with a Fluidmaster 400H and a bit of plumber's tape. Anyone else have a simple home repair turn into an all evening ordeal?

2 comments

2 Comments

rosep871mo ago

Oh man, I read somewhere that most toilet flappers are universal but that's total BS. I had the same thing with a 2011 Kohler. The rubber seal on the new one was just slightly too thick and wouldn't seat right. Ended up sanding the edge down a little with some fine grit paper. Took me two trips and a lot of cuss words. Plumber's tape is a lifesaver though, I keep a roll in my truck now.

patp791mo ago

Wait wait wait, you sanded down your toilet flapper? Like with actual sandpaper? That's completely insane and I honestly can't believe it worked. I mean I've wrestled with those things for hours before and thought about taking a knife to them but never actually did it. Did you just use your fingers to hold it or did you have a setup? Man that's some serious MacGyver stuff right there. I gotta hand it to you though, sometimes you just gotta do what works even if it's sketchy as hell.