Installing a Toilet

You'll install a new toilet in two steps - first the bowl, then the tank. The most difficult part of the installation will be putting the bowl in place. It's heavy, and you'll have to place it so the floor bolts are directly lined up with the holes in the toilet base. When working with heavy porcelain items such as toilets, avoid banging them into anything. Porcelain is tough - up to a point. If it cracks, it can't be used.

Tools:

Ratchet wrench and sockets

Adjustable wrenches

Screwdriver

Materials:

Toilet

Toilet Seat

At Your Local Store:

Wax ring, sleeve, floor bolts and mounting nuts

Follow These Steps

Steps 1 - 10 of 13

Step One

Set the mounting bolts.

If you're reusing the old flange, replace the 31⁄2-inch flange bolts. Purchase two 31⁄2-inch-long closet bolts at your local Home Depot. If you're replacing the flange, it must be screwed into a wooden floor. Use self-tapping concrete screws for concrete. Closet bolts often tip over when you're trying to place the toilet. Put an extra nut on each bolt, and tighten it against the flange to hold the bolts in place.

Step Two

Place the wax ring on the toilet.

The "no-seep" wax ring size will vary with the size of the flange. Be sure to purchase the proper size. A 3-inch neck will fit a 3-inch closet elbow, and a 4-inch neck will fit a 4-inch closet elbow. If the closet elbow is 4 inches and the neck is 3 inches in diameter, purchase a 4×3 reducer. If the flange is positioned below floor level, buy a double-thick ring.

Step Three

Set the toilet bowl.

Straddle the toilet bowl and lift, using your legs - not your back. Toilets are heavy, so get some help. Set the toilet over the anchor bolts and sit on the toilet, rocking it back and forth to seat the wax ring. Slip a washer over the closet bolt.

Step Four

Tighten the nuts.

Tighten the nuts against the washer by hand. With a wrench, tighten each nut a half-turn. Alternate tightening each side a half-turn until the toilet fits snugly. Tightening either side too much will cause the toilet to crack. If the toilet rocks or isn't level, shim it with plastic toilet shims, and cut the ends off, so they won't be seen.

Step Five

Cut the flange bolt to size.

Use a minihacksaw to cut the flange bolt so only 1⁄4 to 1⁄2 inch extends above the bolt. This will allow the cap to fit snugly. Most bolts have snap-offs every 1⁄2 inch or so, but you should still cut through so you don't bend the bolt.

Step Six

Install the bolt cap.

Some types of caps will snap over the bolt. Others have to be filled with plumber's putty and seated over the anchor bolt.

Step Seven

Set the tank anchor bolts.

Place the tank anchor bolts in the holes of the tank to help guide the tank onto the bowl. Note: Most tank bolts come with a rubber washer, a metal washer, and a nut. The rubber washer goes on the inside of the tank, and the metal washer goes next to the nut on the underside of the bowl.

Step Eight

Place the tank on the bowl.

Lift the tank and place it over the bowl. You may need some help with this. Guide the tank bolts into the corresponding holes on the toilet bowl.

Step Nine

Tighten the tank bolts.

Hold an adjustable wrench over the tank bolt nut while you tighten the bolt with a screwdriver. Don't overtighten; you can crack either the tank or the bowl.

Step Ten

Install the shutoff valve.

Set the valve over the compression ring and draw the nut to it. Tighten the nut until hand-tight. Use two adjustable wrenches to tighten until snug - one to hold back the valve and the other to tighten the compression nut.

Steps 1 - 10 of 13

Follow These Steps

Steps 11 - 13 of 13

Step Eleven

Always replace the supply tube to help prevent leaks.

Screw flex tube in place. If you're putting in chrome tube, hold it in place with the extra pipe extending past the shutoff. Mark the pipe for cutting. Leave enough pipe so it will fit inside the shutoff valve outlet. Cut with a tubing cutter.

Step Twelve

Connect the supply pipe to the tank.

Seat the end of the pipe against the tank. Draw up the tank nut, and hand-tighten until snug. Slide the compression nut over the other end, then place the compression ring over the end. Seat the end in the outlet of the shutoff valve.

Step Thirteen

Tighten the compression nut.

Use an adjustable wrench to carefully tighten the compression nut. Don't overtighten. Turn on the water supply and check for leaks along the supply line, visually and by feel. Flush the toilet and check for leaks around the base of the tank. If there is a leak, tighten the connections a half-turn.

Steps 11 - 13 of 13