A few months ago, right around the time I decided to start this blog, I was jiggling the handle of my downstairs toilet to get it to stop running. I had the top of the tank off, so I was looking at it, and watched as the plastic flush lever snapped.
Crap! I immediately thought. What now?
First, I tried my go-to fix, duct tape. But that didn’t hold the pieces securely enough for the lever to continue working. So then, it was on to my next handy tool, the Internet. I found this great how-to with photos on hammerzone.com (http://www.hammerzone.com/archives/bath/fixt_repair/toilet/flush_lever/broken.htm). I’ll use their pictures to illustrate here, because I didn’t think to take any of my own at the time.
Plastic flush lever is snapped - Uh oh!
Before touching anything, I called my dad to make sure he thought it was a job I should tackle by myself. The skill level was considered “basic” so I thought I could handle it, and he agreed. So then it was off to Lowes for a new handle. The handle on there had been a basic plastic one, which depressed me anyway, so I ended up with a lovely shiny one – I had wanted to get one that was brushed nickel, but since the other metal in my bathroom is all high shine, that’s what I had to stick with.
Then, it was time to get started. The handle is attached to the toilet with a plastic nut, which is a left-hand thread, so it’s backwards to normal nuts. So instead of the usual “righty-tighty, lefty-loosey,” it’s the other way around to loosen it. I removed the plastic nut first (make sure to see Hammer Zone’s note on metal threads if you have an older toilet), and pulled out the broken toilet handle.
Be careful not to tighten the nut instead of loosening it
Mine was also square
Next, it was time to install the new flush lever.
Mine was similar to this, but came with an angled metal lever instead of a straight one.
It took some time to angle the flush lever through the hole from the previous handle and fit the square piece correctly. Take your time with this, because it’s worth a little patience.
Mine was angled, so it took a little longer
Before doing anything else, you have to put the left-hand thread nut back on the handle to hold it in place. Just finger tighten it, because you can break the plastic if you overtighten.
Handle is installed - next, attaching it to the flush mechanism!
In Hammer Zone’s instructions, he has some trouble with the flush lever interfering with the the ball float, but I didn’t have that problem. I also didn’t need to drain the tank to complete the next part. I took the chain off of the old plastic lever and threw that away.
It's easier to work deeper in the toilet tank for this part, so you're not constantly running the water
Then, I hooked the chain into one of the holes in the flush lever. I tried to make sure there wouldn’t be too much slack in the chain and that it would pull the flapper straight up.
It can take a few tries to get this just right
If there’s slack in the chain, you can remove the hook and move it further down the chain to reduce the slack.
Too much slack can keep the flapper from closing properly
You can then hook the end of the extra chain back onto the hook to keep it out of the way
Checking the chain length may not seem that important, but Hammer Zone says, “When the chain has too much slack, it will often lay underneath the flapper valve as the flapper falls back into place. When this happens the water will continue to flow into the bowl forever, or until someone “flicks” the handle.” Also, with respect to this step, they tell us:
“Chain Length and Position May Be Important:
It’s best to attach the chain so it pulls the flapper straight up, if possible. If the chain tends to pull the flapper sideways, the flexible runner may break eventually.
If the chain is hooked to the end-most hole in the lever, the lever might hit the tank lid before the chain is able to lift up the flapper.
When I repair the lever or flapper valve, I always do a few test flushes to make sure the linkage is working properly and the chain is not interfering with the closing of the flapper.”
Once I’d checked everything, it was time to test out the new handle. I flushed the toilet a few times to make sure it was working correctly, and it was. Job complete!
Thanks Hammer Zone for helping me install my new toilet handle!
