Floating toilet leaking from bottom

[formula400]

Right. So a strange one here.
Our ground floor toilet it’s leaking, it’s tiny but it’s leaking, it’s not constant but it’s leaking, it’s floating (hanging on the wall) it’s a new build so in who Evers infinite wisdom there are no access panels for access. The tiles either side on the floor where it’s joined are slight cracked. I am assuming it’s just fitted badly.

Had an emergency plumber come today and say he can’t do anything as they can’t start ripping off tiles or cutting holes.
£109 for nothing.

Now my question is what the f**k do I do?


Thanks

[Count Steer]

I was watching a YouTube video on how to fit one and if you can find it it'll give you some idea, unless they've done a really cack-handed job. You should be able to a) take the chrome panel off and have a squizz and isolate the water supply and b) remove the bog and sort out the waste joints if that's the issue. Emergency plumbers tend to be the bottom end of the plumbing league.

Where's the water appearing? Could be the tank is overflowing if it's intermittent. Dodgy siphon maybe, with no external overflow. (That's my prediction).

PS It looks like they put the shelf on, then fitted the cupboards (been there ). If the shelf does slide out you might have access to the tank/siphon. You may be in 'cupboard dismantling' territory.

[formula400]

I’ve seen the videos where they remove the silver covers and fiddle around. But I’ve not idea how that can get to the cause of the leak (this is well past my understanding)

Also how does the pan connect to the wall??? I can’t see the screws to think about removing it

It seems to be leaking from the bottom here

[Silly Car]

Which bunch of cowboys tiled around the pan instead of behind it?



4 mins in shows how wall hung are installed so hopefully will give you a clue how to uninstall.

The good news is, you should be able to remove the pan to see where the leak is coming from without too much hassle but you’ll be losing a few tiles along the way* and there is no guarantee you won’t need to remove the tiles / plasterboard from that section of wall to resolve it. Just make sure the tiles go back on the wall before the bog.

* you may be able to minimise this by scoring through the silicon with a sharp Stanley blade before looking to loosen any fixings.

[Count Steer]

The cracking on those tiles suggest that the bowl has moved (if they weren't broken when it was fitted) which may have unsettled the waste pipe. As Sillycar says, you can remove the bowl (logically they put it on last so there's got to be a way of getting it back off again).

TBH if you're not happy with plumbing I'd get a proper plumber/bathroom fitter in and get them to do it/tile/refit it all properly. I'd ask the neighbours if they can recommend one - there may have been a bit of demand!

[Mussels]

If it's a new build can't you get the builder back in?

[Cousin Jack]

If it's a new build can't you get the builder back in?

If you do you'll probably get the cowboy who caused the problem.

[formula400]

The cracking on those tiles suggest that the bowl has moved (if they weren't broken when it was fitted) which may have unsettled the waste pipe. As Sillycar says, you can remove the bowl (logically they put it on last so there's got to be a way of getting it back off again).

TBH if you're not happy with plumbing I'd get a proper plumber/bathroom fitter in and get them to do it/tile/refit it all properly. I'd ask the neighbours if they can recommend one - there may have been a bit of demand!

So if I grip the bowl from the bottom and can very gently lift it up and down a small amount.
We are 6 houses and all moved in within a few months of each other, we are the first to have this issue.

[formula400]

If it's a new build can't you get the builder back in?

I am 8 months in with a claim with the new build warranty. We (all 6 houses) have a few small issues being dealt with.
These house are great apart from a few cowboy problems.

[Count Steer]

The cracking on those tiles suggest that the bowl has moved (if they weren't broken when it was fitted) which may have unsettled the waste pipe. As Sillycar says, you can remove the bowl (logically they put it on last so there's got to be a way of getting it back off again).

TBH if you're not happy with plumbing I'd get a proper plumber/bathroom fitter in and get them to do it/tile/refit it all properly. I'd ask the neighbours if they can recommend one - there may have been a bit of demand!

So if I grip the bowl from the bottom and can very gently lift it up and down a small amount.
We are 6 houses and all moved in within a few months of each other, we are the first to have this issue.

Yeah. Probably needs taking off, the joint lubed and remounted properly - unless the frame isn't secure. Be good to tile it properly so it sits flush to a solid surface. As mentioned, those cracked tiles suggest it's flexed on the mount a bit. There's quite a bit of force/leverage involved, particularly if you have a weighty visitor so they need to be rock solid.

[formula400]

Yeah see that’s what I thought.
I mean that’s not my scene.
I have to get a guy in. At least hopefully it will be done properly.
Issue is the top floor is the same but it’s tiny. But guessing it will need to done.

[formula400]

Fun times by lewis wilson, on Flickr

[Silly Car]

Yeah see that’s what I thought.
I mean that’s not my scene.
I have to get a guy in. At least hopefully it will be done properly.
Issue is the top floor is the same but it’s tiny. But guessing it will need to done.

I understand that, if you are getting someone in, May as well get them to do both at the same time, which should be cheaper overall as there would be less “dead” time but you’ll be without 2 toilets for a short period…

I’d definitely suggest you get a bathroom fitter in rather than an emergency plumber, who I’ve never found to be any good and who do their damn hardest to break into the next chargeable hour before achieving anything!

Facebook marketplace / local residents groups may yield a reasonable person / company for the job.

[Mussels]

Yes, get a guy who can do it all. My plumber will do small amounts of tiling or DIY as part of a job so they can be found, they may split it into a couple of sessions but can make sure you aren't left without a working bog.
Much better than having them out of action for a week while a plumber preps for a tiler and then comes back afterwards, none of those jobs should be difficult.

[Count Steer]

Get a person in to do downstairs, watch what they do to get the bog off. (It's not horribly complicated but some tools required, in particular the Allen key thing that tightens it onto the supports).


Then do upstairs yourself as long as tiling isn't needed.

[Screwdriver]

I have a similar job coming up with one of my neighbours. The previous (+1) owner was a builder and a bit of an arse. He has tiled in the entire wet room shower system. There is no access to the plumbing unless you rip off the tiles. In his case it was to get the job done quickly to sell the house.

The upshot being, to fix a minor issue with the bath/shower diverter, the whole wall has to come off. The annoying thing about that is, you don't know what you'll find or what parts you need until the shower room looks more like a building site.

[Silly Car]

I have a similar job coming up with one of my neighbours. The previous (+1) owner was a builder and a bit of an arse. He has tiled in the entire wet room shower system. There is no access to the plumbing unless you rip off the tiles. In his case it was to get the job done quickly to sell the house.

The upshot being, to fix a minor issue with the bath/shower diverter, the whole wall has to come off. The annoying thing about that is, you don't know what you'll find or what parts you need until the shower room looks more like a building site.

Never a truer set of words ever spoken / written!

In my last house, we spent more time & money below the floor / behind the walls than on the entire suite & tiles. Tiling the floor and walls was a breeze compared to replacing all of the previous pipe work (hot, cold, CH and foul) due to poor placement / previous installation.

In this house, downstairs cloakroom needed a wall ripping down and new floor, all plumbing was ripped out and replaced (leaks hidden behind wall and floor / we took opportunity to move boiler and hot water tank), bathroom wasn’t as bad (all plumbing issues had been solved when sorting cloakroom below) apart from having to bolt new timbers to a couple of joints where someone had “notched” out for pipe work… 3” x 3” cut out for 2 x 22mm pipes :ffs: thankfully joists are minimum of 9” x 3” and have been in the building for 160 years so as hard as a whore’s heart but still…

[Noggin]

This thread isn't filling me with joy! I want to put a 'floating' loo in my place!!

[Mussels]

This thread isn't filling me with joy! I want to put a 'floating' loo in my place!!

It's not the floating that's the problem, it's sealing all the plumbing away making a simple repair a major task.

[Demannu]

This thread isn't filling me with joy! I want to put a 'floating' loo in my place!!

Got one here, it's got a fairly serious frame, but apart from that, not a days problem. (Cue a cracked/leaking pan in the coming months)