How to Fix a Wobbly Toilet | Ask This Old House
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- čas přidán 13. 01. 2018
- Ask This Old House plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey helps a homeowner diagnose and repair a wobbly toilet.
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Time: 2 hours
Cost: $50
Skill Level: Moderate
Tools:
Level [amzn.to/2ZLPXpd]
Open ended adjustable wrench [amzn.to/2LIZ159]
Putty knife [amzn.to/2NR56zf]
Mini hacksaw [amzn.to/2NVsmfE]
Shopping List:
Latex gloves [amzn.to/2N8sDvM]
Sponge [amzn.to/2N83O3o]
Bucket [amzn.to/2Lo4LCy]
Drop cloth [amzn.to/2A99IbK]
Wax ring [amzn.to/2N8442m]
Toilet shims [amzn.to/30aDyaD]
Closet bolt kit [amzn.to/2LJkElY] (bolts, nuts, washers, cap base, cap)
Steps:
1. Shut the water off to the toilet. Flush the toilet until the bowl is empty. Use a sponge and a bucket to suck out the remaining water. Disconnect the water line from the toilet.
2. Remove the bolt cap covers, nuts, and washers from the closet bolts on both sides.
3. Carefully remove the toilet and place it on the drop cloth.
4. Check the wax ring for deformities. This could be the cause of the wobbly toilet. The wax ring will need to be replaced in either case, so remove the old one with a putty knife.
5. Since the toilet is already off, it’s always best practice to check the condition of the toilet flange and repair as necessary.
6. Check the floor for level. If it’s out of level, it may be necessary to shim the toilet.
7. Put new closet bolts on the toilet flange and replace the wax ring.
8. Put the toilet back on the closet bolts.
9. Put shims underneath the toilet until it is level.
10. Add the cap base, the washer, and the nut to the closet bolts on both sides of the toilet. Alternate tightening each nut on both sides until the toilet is securely connected.
11. Cut the excess off the closet bolts using the hacksaw. Cover the bolts with the caps.
12. Reconnect the water line and turn the water back on.
Resources:
Everything Richard used for this project, including the wrenches, closet bolts and caps, and toilet shims, can be found at home centers.
Instead of using a traditional wax seal, Richard used a flexible rubber gasket [amzn.to/2NUMFtu] manufactured by SaniSeal (saniseal.com ).
About Ask This Old House TV:
Homeowners have a virtual truckload of questions for us on smaller projects, and we're ready to answer. Ask This Old House solves the steady stream of home improvement problems faced by our viewers-and we make house calls! Ask This Old House features some familiar faces from This Old House, including Kevin O'Connor, general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, and landscape contractor Roger Cook.
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How to Fix a Wobbly Toilet | Ask This Old House
/ thisoldhouse - Jak na to + styl
Yo my man just told the home owner to go get his tools outta his truck. 😎
Haha that's one way to get respect from your customers, eh? Also was surprised to see him using a foam ring plus, who uses a level on a toilet?
not only that, he told him to RUN down to the truck
Like a boss 😎
Hell yeah !!!😎
You don’t?
A true professional always gets the homeowner to go grab his tools from the truck.
😂😂
in the top 10 youtube channels of all time--love this show and no unneeded drama!
Words you never want to hear from a plumber. I don't think I've ever seen a floor this far out.
I don't envy anyone doing a 'mind over fecal matter' job. you have my utmost respect.
A very good demonstration on how to get rid of a wobbly toilet on a solid floor, but in this case the floor must be repaired first. If you watch the video, when you wobble the toilet the floor moves with the toilet. Repair the floor and give the toilet a solid base, then use shims if you need them.
Captain obvious over here
You can't do that and cash in on a video in 2 minutes. The floor is already rotten or worse has termites eating their way thru the floor joist
Yaaaaaaa Richard! I've been using that Sani Seal green foam wax ring alternative for 4 years now. Glad to see you finally adopted it also. I love it because we can re-use that green foam, sometimes we have to move the toilet a few times during construction to get things done, but put it back same day so people can use it. With wax rings you have to scrape up the mess and put a new one down each time you replace the toilet.
I read on CZcams that if the green outside gets punctured, the foam becomes waterlogged and disintegrates.
I saw a Old House episode we're thing through a template or pattern on some plywood. Do you remember that one? DaveH
Nice one, helped our family out for sure. Thank you
Thank you very much for the very helpful tutorial. I am surprised the fix is far more simpler than I thought it would be.
I tried this product with listing floor, and LOVE IT!
"Yeah I changed the wax ring" ... "hmm wow look at this. some idiot ran the nut and mangled this washer. I think thats our culprit" ...
Lmaooo😂😂
This was very interesting to watch because when my late father and I installed a toilet in my bathroom many years ago. The floor was so uneven that we had to build
a wooden base for the toilet to sit on and it has worked out great ever since.
Riding high, eh
@@johnnynbk Haha, yes! My dad used to say that it was like "sitting on the throne!"😀
@@jeffthewhiff niiiice
@@johnnynbkHow God intended it
As Richard said at the end of the video it was a quick fix so they would have a toilet available quickly. Personally I sure didn't like the large spacing on right side.
Can fill it with plaster of Paris and water
I love this guys ,good memories, excellent video,thanks for sharing
It's not tested until someone drops a duece through it. Any other experts would have to concur or just laugh like hell 😂🤣
Thanks for the clear, easy to understand video.
1:31 *Floor Flexes like Godzilla is trying to punch through from the bottom*... "I think the bolt is your culprit"
I was thinking the same thing
WOW!! Absolutely fabulous video! This is a saved to home projects video! Thank you so much!❤️🙌🏻☕️
Good video! I'd like to add that I really wish they would only use stainless steel for the toilet flange screws or bolts! Every time I've had to lift or replace a toilet the bolts have been rusted. I usually have to cut them because they are so corroded the nuts won't turn.
I had to fix this a few years back at a rental... @4:18, those plastic shims didn't work as the gaps were too much. The toilet was extremely wobbly... Several plumbers tried to fix it and charged big bucks, but eventually, I had to create an custom SINGLE large SHIM/off-set to match the entire shape of the base, as the floor was so non-leveled on all ends, but that fixed/leveled it, and it never wobbled since then... Nice video...
@6:15, I generally place something on the other side to protect the toilet just so I don't mar it with the mini-saw when cutting the bolt... Just saying in-case of those thousand-dollar pricey toilets lol.
@@TheKingofHowTos_TKHT gotta have control 😀
This is great 👍. .!!
Thank you gentlemen..
mank this is exactly what I am looking for! thank you!
you can also have a rocking toilet problem if the closet flange sticks up too high. my flange is one that goes down into the drain pipe and grabs on from the inside. because previous owners took out the original floor it left enough cast iron pipe sticking up so that the flange was 3/4" above the floor and no matter how hard you tightened the bolts the toiled base would not contact the floor and be stable. I shimmed around the base but eventually the shims all migrated under the base and lost contact.
So bought a 1/2"x2'x4' piece of white pvc board and cut out the exact shape of the toilet base with an 8" circle cut out to fit over the flange. I put a few screws into the pvc to keep it from shifting and bolted the toilet back on top of it. Now all edges of the toilet are supported and it doesnt rock.
TIP---- When you bolt down the toilet use heavier flange bolts and stainless steel nuts, and several rubber washers with stainless steel fender washers on top of the rubber. this spreads out the force and cushions the washers from applying concentrated force to the base which can easily crack it. if you dont go too big on the washers all will be hidden under the decorative closet bolt caps
Wish u had video of that
This is exactly what I need to do. Where did you find the PVC board?
Great video. Apply tile grout in the gap and it will never rock and yet easy to remove when replacing the bowl. Caulk will provide a seal but little support for the bowl; especially on an uneven floor.
THANK YOU! Excellent, I will
Nice. Helped me fix the problem in 20 minutes.
This old house is a great show i learner alot thanks tom richard kevin ..yu guys are great id. Live r o meet yu fellas....
Very informative, ty for posting this video
This is great! Big help!!
I often find on foundations with crawl spaces or basements that a plumber has cut a floor joist to get the 4 inch drainpipe up through a floor then sisters a 2x6 or 2x8 on the opposite side of the floor joist . Over time the patched joist starts to loosen in the gap and flex at the point it was cut allowing the floor to sink. If the sistered joist isnt sitting on a stem wall on both sides or at the least doesnt extend the length of the floor on both sides of the toilet and isnt secured with 3/8ths carriage bolts ,washers and nuts the length of the board the floor will flex under the toilet over time.
Yep, instead of placing a 1/2" of shims, there should have been a floor joist/foundation inspection.
super helpful! Thanks
Thank you so much. You are awesome!
At 0:28, I thought Richard was actually "picking" out something to help him with the repairs, Haha!
Thank you …. For your instructions….
Sit the toilet on a bed of plaster of paris and the shims to level. Then a nice bead of caulk around the base - Looks good and solves the problem. Works every time!
Welcome to my Saturday afternoon.
1:23 Eric O has entered the chat: THERES YOUR PROBLEM LADY!
Betting game: which will shatter first, the shimmed toilet, or the sagging floor?
Ticonderoga Dixon right, can't shim in two spots and think a 300 lb man can sit on it. Maybe long door shims
Water resistant ply full size of bowl bottom until level. My fat ass would split that bowl in first use.
Ding ding ding the toilet
Yeah, this is a bad fix, need to pull up the floor, and replace it so it's level.
Toilet
Great job!
Thanks for the tips
Nice work.
This old house plumbing guy finally uses rubber gloves. 🎉🎈
Actually the type of rubber gloves Richard uses in this video is Latex Rubber
Hahahahaha
Yeah but then he gathers the remaining toilet water from inside the dirty bowl with a sponge, wrings it out into a bucket and promptly places it onto the counter top. 🤮
@@RichardTurlington toilet water is clean so long as you dont leave a deposit right before you work on it. clean it regularly and youre fine
@@mikel3520 Would you drink it? No? Then it's not clean. Interesting you'd be ok with bacteria from inside your toilet being placed on your counter. 🤮
1:56 when you take your cat to the vet
Those foam rings are a big issue now.. if you use any cleaner for the toilet or bleach it will dissolve the foam ring and cause a VERY smelly issue over time.. It doesnt happen overnight but people who remove their toilets a year later due to a musty smell find a ruined subfloor..
That's why in Europe we use rubber rings.
Bleach, Acid or something else rubber has no problems with it.
Stella smith Scary! Id replace them all with good old wax rings!
+MsUltrafox
in the US, we have more than one way to seal the toilet. The standard way is using a wax ring. Now we have newer inventions like the green sponge, there are rubber type membranes and also like a flange that sticks to the bottom of the toilet, and it gets pressed into the sewer hole/ pipe. I have seen the european style toilets where it gets implemented into a wall pipe. It seems easier to do and less likely to fail due to poor installation.
this might explain the damp floor below my toilet, (will be fixing it soon, i had the same gasket and i dont remember seeing water till after i used bleach cleaner in the toilet)
Interesting observation. I had not thought about it. I know the bleach tablets for the toilet tank attack the plastic flush valves over time!
Always use a contractor bag on the floor to pull the toilet up and set it down onto so you don't get any water all over the floor or wax all over the flooring
I feel like the floor being that off leveled is a bigger issue than the toilet being wobbly....
ONE THING to make the job a little easier:
Remove the toilet lid before lifting it. Removing that top heavy weight makes it a bit easier to manage that way.
Wow this is a master plumber
I like to use a toiletmaster lift jack to move toilets because I have a bad back and it makes it much easier. I added locking wheels to mine.
I used the toiletmaster bolts that have caps that thread on but they have popped off and they allow the toilet to pivot on the flange (so I can't recommend them).
I will have to look for those lock washers. Those would have come in handy when we were trying to install my friend's toilet and the bolts kept tipping.
I would NEVER use those foam gaskets. They delaminate and then the foam inside gets saturated and its disgusting. I do use a silicone "better than wax" seal though. I haven't had any problems with it thus far. I have used those shims but because my floor is not stable (it was a replacement piece that wasn't tacked in well so it doesn't have enough support-- and its OSB so it is not as strong as plywood) the toilet still rocks a bit. I did not realize the shims stacked like that though. That will come in handy.
They sell extra all toilet bolt caps if you don't want to cut or break away the long bolts.
Lift with ur arms and ur lower back.. take ur legs completely out of the equation .. always amazing work!
Excellent video
I remember setting toilets on a bed of plaster of Paris to compensate for any floor distortions. A bed of plaster evenly distributes the load around the toilet rather than just at two points (level wedges) you can easily trim off any squeeze out that may occur
This is so very true. Great advice. :) (Shelly)
@@DrainMedic yw :)
Huh. You might have just solved my concrete floor problem. Thanks!
I had those toilets at my school, they always clogged, but they have been replaced since.
I'd call this "fix" half-assed, but that'd be too generous!
There are times when you have to take your losses and set fire to the house and walk away. When the insurance adjuster shows up, tell him the plumber was smoking on the sh*tter and burned the whole place down! 👍🚬👍👌
Yes, the plumber was sweating pipes next to 150 year old dried out wood and said " It'll be fine, stop worrying".
At least he's started wearing gloves,saw one sponging the toilet, removing the wax ring, no gloves. Living dangerously LoL.
patrick cowan it isn't dangerous just unhygienic
Your the man!!! GREAT VIDEO 💪 JUST WHAT I NEEDED. ..THANK YOU
that was a great tip...but he should've put the shims sideways running the side of the bowl...(following the edge) so you can put calking and the shims don't stick out...lol
Yo babies. I'm laying here naked in my warm bed and watching Richard fix a toilet 🚽. Love it.! ❤️
Thank you! I happened to have some rubber shims, those will have to do
First rule plumbers don’t put their hands near their face, he picks his nose and goes at it😂
I don’t ever use shims. It’s just a bandaid. Fix the floor in this case. In most all other cases of a toilet that wobbles, the flange is too high.
My left leg can't reach the floor anymore as it's 1/2" taller now... 😂
I prefer double washer and nut toilet bolts. One set of washer and nut against toilet flange, other set to secure toilet.
Next time someone pulls that toilet, there is a good chance that the bolts will just spin thanks to that "lock washer".
Probably should of, at least, tried to caulk/hide those shims.
Credentials,
Kentucky Licensed Journeymen Plumber.
good stufffff,, again,,
I have to this at my house!
People in comments are always "experts". I guarantee they told the homeowner the floor needed fixing and had other problems. But the owner said no. And just wanted a quick fix for the toilet.
They literally brought up the stuff people are griping about in the last minute of the video when Kevin was talking. Some people just like to complain.
No actually its the guy in the video if you watch his other videos he always makes the home owner do the hard part of the work like lifting the toilet or cutting tile or getting under the sink to scrape seals. Than he does the easy part. He's lazy, and here he's showing the lazy fix
+eksine Well, it's a do-it-yourself segment of a home improvement show, so of course they'll have the homeowner do as much of the work as they can--anything that doesn't include a new skill or new knowledge, and most grunt work naturally falls into that category. Now, if you had hired someone to do the job for you, then you'd have a valid point, but this is completely different.
@@rbrtck no you don't understand this is the only guy out of all the guys on the show that makes the homeowner do the hard part of the work .all the other guys do the hard work and explain it and only make a homeowner do the easy stuff this plumber is just super lazy
+eksine Perhaps you know this particular show better than I do, then, but I think my general reasoning still stands. If I were on the show, I'd have the homeowners do as much of the work as I think they could handle, too, not out of laziness but because it's good for viewers to see laymen like themselves actually do the work; it's not the same as hiring a professional to do the work for you at all.
That said, I recall seeing the gardening guy (is his name Roger Cook or something like that?) make the homeowners do nearly all of the hard labor themselves on many occasions. He'll start it and sometimes do some of it for them (or all of it on small jobs), but for example if they need to dig several holes for posts for a fence repair or gate installation, then he'll tell/show them what to do, get them started, go away, and come back when they're done for the next step. I've seen the other guys do the whole job, yes, but I always chalked this up to time (i.e. they're way faster than the homeowner would be) and/or the fact that the only way to show how certain types of work are done would simultaneously mean that the job is finished. On the other hand, lifting toilets and digging holes are things that anyone can do. I haven't watched this show in years, though, so maybe things have changed. Regardless of what usually happens on it, I still contend that the homeowners should do as much as they feasibly can on DIY segments.
By the way, I just rewatched this video, and all I saw the homeowner being asked to do was to run out to the truck to get the tools and supplies. The guy on the show who you called lazy actually did the whole job--a bunch of things like lifting the toilet (both times), cleaning the old wax gasket off the flange, and sawing off the excess length of the closet bolt, that I think the homeowner should have done for himself to encourage viewers. Fixing the floor was beyond the intended scope of this segment, although it was brought up as it should have been. I guess this particular homeowner wasn't willing to go that far (since the show probably wasn't going to pay for it) and didn't mind putting up with the look of those high shims.
Take those lock washers and Kobe them to the nearest trash can. Use a washer and nut to hold the closet bolts tight to the collar. Then another washer and nut for the toilet. In other words you're double nutting the toilet. Then you can take that green gasket and throw that away too. They're nothing but a headache. Like everyone else said, this is a job for Silva.
The shims and the gasket will last longer than you think
When I set a toilet, i trace the outline of the toilet base on the floor. I remove the toilet and mix a batch of plaater if Paris and place it within the lines in rhe floor. Then I set the toilet onto the closet flag ams rock the toilet until its leve amd wait for the plaster to harden. This makes a nice solid base for the toilet on any floor even if is not level.
Those shims wont give the toilet good even support
my dad uses that exact tactic too
That gab is Insane
Howard glatt from chicago i love yur show. I leadernd a lot fro yu guys .thanks
Wouldn’t anyone be worried why it happened to the floor?
I would talk to a structural engineer right away :)
I picture someone sitting down doing their business, then the floor creaks loudly and that one board gives way.
It's probably a 100+ year old house it is what it is...
It’s just a unlevel floor board it’s not dangerous and won’t get any worse
Shims . Ghetto ... fix it right
Note to homeowner... clean the vanity countertop. He set the sponge he used to soak the toilet water on it! Haha!!!!
4:44 Holy Cow time to fix the foundation on that house!
Steven Segal reminds me of the 105 year old house I grew up in, and my brothers "New" 120 year old house. Quite normal to find in the average home.
This video is just a quick fix for the toilet wobble. To do it right you need to pull up the sub floor and replace it and make it level. Through those dam shims away.
He said that at the end.
Wouldnt it be funny if the owners turned to that guy and said what about the sub floor old man! 😂
I used a wet / dry vac to remove the bit of water left in the bowl
What about plaster of paris? That would've been hard as a rock for general stability purpose.
I'm glad he has gloves on.
I was taught to bed it in plaster if the floor is that uneven
I like how he said the customer to get his tools
Lazy worker
6:50 Tony Soprano, "The Plumber". That's code for ' my job's done here'
I will be adding blocking under a toilet flange to fix my wobbly toilet. The original builders cut the hole in the sub-floor so big 4/6 flange screws weren't even completely surrounded by wood.
Good for Rich. He finally discovered that gloves exist.
Hand me one of those cookies. Thanks.
I wouldn't have utilized plastic shims. Instead, I would have used plaster...
Mix up a batch of plaster and quickly set your tolit on top of it...
Once the plaster hardened, the tolit would remain forever level...
The plaster could have been cleaned up nicely around the gaps, making for a nice look all around the tolit base.....
These comment sections never fail to make my day.
Good job! But, did you need to shield around the toilet?
4:33 - "I don't think I've ever seen a floor this far out". The program is called This Old House, no? Come to my home built in 1895 and I'll show you some floors with peaks and valleys.
Hard time to sleep tonight> seen the shimsssss!
Richard is thinking "I should have been a gardener so I wouldn't have my face in a toilet"
Until he gets paid!
THE GROUT! PUT THE GROUT!
wait, so Rich does own gloves? Didn't need him for the 100 year old toilet fix lol
Caulk please. Provide some stability to those shims and cover up those gaping holes
Hey Rich use a small wet dry vac to get the water out of the toilet instead of a sponge or a rag
I didn't care for the shims but he is right I is a much larger repair, but I would of felt more comfortable seeing a shim around the bolt area as well
Time 4:50 -- levelled the toilet by use of shims. BUT that does NOT stabilise the wonky floor. It will and can still wobble. That floor need the attention of a builder. The structure underneath has probably rotted.
I have the same problem, but my BR has a new level tiled floor, either I need a thinner wax ring or this is just common when the flange sits higher than the floor.
I disagree with the statement it is only cosmetic with caulking. Yes, it is cosmetic and also secures shims from moving and it gives support in all the voids. where the china is not touching the floor. I am a professional handyman and have fixed many toilets that were shimed and in time the shims moved and the toiled started to rock again. caulking stops any movements by my experience.
Thank you! I think this is exactly what we need to know; 6 people, 1 sliding toilet, (the silicone between the tile floor and the toilet has turned slimy and useless in five years since we installed it)
This leads me to believe I don’t need to put silicone between the floor and the toilet, but I can put it around the base if I choose, correct?
I would have thought using that thickness of shims it would not have sealed fully.
whenever i install a toilet - im the first one to take a dump
Scumbag lol
U nasty
I usually bless mine too
@Chuy Delgado I think he poops first to mark his territory
Same, lol. I keep air freshener in my toolbag.