Toilet Repair in Lynnwood, WA: Rocking Toilets, Base Leaks and Broken Flanges Fixed Right
Done Right Plumbing repairs and replaces toilets across Lynnwood, from Alderwood and Cedar Valley to Meadowdale and the City Center. Our shop is in Lynnwood, so most calls are only minutes away. When a toilet rocks or leaks at the base, we pull it, repair the flange underneath when it needs it, and reset it on a new seal.
Real Work in Lynnwood
In April, Nick and Jeremy repaired a toilet in the accessible restroom of an office suite near Alderwood Mall. The flange the toilet bolts to needed repair before the toilet could be secured properly, so they pulled the toilet and, rather than break out the old flange, screwed a steel repair ring down over it. New brass closet bolts went through the ring, and a fresh wax seal went on top. Then they set the toilet back down on the new seal, tightened it to the floor, connected a new supply line and checked everything for leaks. They were on site for less than half an hour, and the repair carries our one-year warranty against leaks. Last November, not far away, Samuel and Joseph T. pulled and reset a toilet in another business restroom near Alderwood, putting it back down on a new wax seal so it sealed properly to the floor again.
What We Do on a Lynnwood Toilet
Rocking toilets and broken flanges
A toilet that rocks has usually lost its grip on the flange, the ring that holds it to the floor and joins it to the drain, and every rock squeezes the wax seal a little thinner until it starts to leak. We pull the toilet, look at the flange and repair it with a repair ring or replace it, depending on what we find.
Leaks at the base
Water around the base after a flush usually means the wax seal has failed. Caulking around the base only hides the water, so the real cure is a pull and reset on a new seal, after we have checked the flange and the floor around it.
Running toilets and slow refills
A toilet that runs on its own or takes too long to refill usually has a worn flapper or fill valve, and both are quick replacements with parts made for the toilet you have. If a new fill valve wears out early, the water pressure may be too high, which our water pressure page explains.
Clogs that keep coming back
One clog is a plunger job. A toilet that clogs every week usually has something lodged in the trap or the flange, or a drain problem further down the line. We pull the toilet to clear it from below when we need to, and if the trouble is in the main line, we put a camera down it before we quote a fix.
Replacing a toilet
When a toilet is cracked, past saving or simply worn out, we replace it, either with the Toto Drake we recommend or with a toilet you have already bought. A replacement gets new bolts, a new seal and a new supply line, and the old toilet leaves with us. Our toilet repair and replacement page covers the models in more detail.
The shutoff and supply line
The small valve on the wall behind the toilet is often as old as the house and may not close when you need it to. When we work on a toilet we check it, and we replace a stiff or weeping valve, or a tired supply line, while the water is already off.
What Makes a Lynnwood Toilet Repair Different
Crawlspace houses show the leak underneath first
Many of the ramblers in Alderwood, Cedar Valley and Meadowdale sit over a crawlspace, so a toilet that has been leaking slowly at the seal often shows it from below before it shows in the bathroom: a dark ring on the subfloor around the drain, damp insulation, or wood that gives when you press it. On a base-leak call in a house like that, we look from underneath as well as from the bathroom.
Offices, condos and the City Center
Lynnwood is more than ramblers. Around Alderwood Mall, the City Center and the 196th Street SW corridor there are offices, condos and townhomes, and a toilet in a shared restroom gets far more use in a day than one at home. When a flange works loose in a business restroom, it needs fixing quickly, as it did in the office suite above.
A repair needs no permit, and a side sewer needs its own
The City of Lynnwood does not require a permit to clear a stoppage, fix a leak, or pull and reset a toilet, as long as no valve, pipe or fixture is replaced or moved. If the trouble turns out to be in the side sewer under the yard, that is a different job with a different permit: the city requires a Development Engineering permit to repair a side sewer.
Our Process
1. Find where the water is coming from
A leak at the base, a sweating tank and a dripping supply line can all leave water in the same place, so we dry everything off and watch a few flushes before we touch a bolt.
2. Pull the toilet and look at the flange
With the toilet off the floor we can see the flange, the bolts and the subfloor, and we tell you what we find before we go any further.
3. Repair or replace what failed
A cracked or loose flange gets a repair ring or a new flange, and corroded bolts are replaced.
4. Reset it on a new seal and supply line
The toilet goes back down level and tight on a fresh seal, with a new supply line to the valve.
5. Test it and check below
We flush it repeatedly, check every connection, and in a crawlspace house we look at the drain from underneath before we leave.
FAQs About Toilet Repair in Lynnwood
Do I need a permit to fix or replace a toilet in Lynnwood?
Not to fix one. Lynnwood exempts clearing a stoppage, repairing a leak and pulling and resetting a toilet from permits, as long as no valve, pipe or fixture is replaced or moved. Installing a new toilet is a fixture installation, and for a single-family home the city issues that plumbing permit online, usually within a day.
The application goes through Lynnwood Permit Online, and on our replacement jobs we take care of it.
Can a broken toilet flange be repaired without tearing up the floor?
Usually, yes. When the flange is cracked or its bolt slots have broken but the pipe beneath is sound, a steel repair ring screws down over it and gives the closet bolts something solid to hold. That is how Nick and Jeremy fixed the office toilet near Alderwood Mall. The floor comes up only when the subfloor has rotted.
How can I tell if a toilet leak has reached my crawlspace?
Go under the house with a flashlight and look up at the floor beneath the toilet. A dark stain or ring on the subfloor around the drain, damp or sagging insulation, a musty smell or wood that gives when pressed all mean water has been getting past the seal. Catching it there saves the subfloor and the bathroom floor.
Does a toilet that backs up when the washer drains mean my side sewer is failing?
Often, yes. When water from one fixture comes up in another, the blockage is past the point where their drains join, usually in the main line or the side sewer under the yard. We camera the line to find it, and in Lynnwood a side sewer repair needs a Development Engineering permit from the city, separate from a plumbing permit.
How long does a toilet flange repair take?
When the subfloor is sound, a pull and reset with a flange repair is usually one short visit, and the office repair near Alderwood Mall took Nick and Jeremy under half an hour on site. It takes longer when the bolts are seized, the old flange has to be cut out, or the subfloor around it has gone soft.
Why does my toilet keep running after I replaced the flapper?
Because the flapper is only one of three common causes. Water can also run into the overflow tube when the fill valve is set too high or is wearing out, or it can leak past a pitted flush valve seat under the new flapper. Very high water pressure wears fill valves out early, so we check that too.
Serving Lynnwood From Our Own Shop
Our shop is on 204th Street SW in Lynnwood, so a toilet call here is usually a short drive rather than a trip across the county, and a same-day visit is often possible. We work every part of the city, from the Alderwood Mall area and the City Center to Cedar Valley, Meadowdale and the blocks along 196th Street SW, in houses, condos, rentals and businesses alike.
Why Lynnwood Homeowners Choose Done Right
We find the source of a leak before we pull anything apart, we show you what the flange and the floor look like once the toilet is up, and we fix what failed rather than selling a new toilet you do not need. When a toilet really is done, we tell you why, and we replace it with one that will last.
Licensed, Bonded & Insured
WA Contractor License #DONERRP852N5
Done Right Plumbing is licensed, bonded and insured in Washington State and family-owned since 2011, with twelve technicians on staff.
Call for a Lynnwood Toilet Repair
A toilet that rocks, water around the base, a tank that never stops running, or a new toilet waiting to go in? Call for a free estimate, or request a callback and we will reach you at a time that works.