Rocking toilet?

Question

Have a toilet that rocks back and forth. I have tried to tighten the bolts but it doesn't do any good.

Answer 1

Okay, ideally, a toilet bowl should be level. That means side-to-side & front-to-back. To make your bowl level and not rock, well loosen the nut on each side of the toilet, shut off and disconnect the water supply to the toilet & put a 2' level across the bowl. Place those hard plastic shims/wedges between the bowl and the floor where they need to be to level the bowl, then move the level front-to-back and shim as needed to level. Then re-check the level side-to-side and adjust as needed, and then re-check the front-to-back again and adjust as needed. You might have to go back and forth in each direction a few times to get the placement and depth of shim insertion right, as an adjustment in one spot will affect another. When you get it right, the bowl will not rock front-to-back or side-to-side -- and that's with the bolts still loose!!! Okay, so with a sharp pencil (I prefer a .5mm mechanical pencil) mark the position of each shim on the bowl and/or floor & mark across the shim where it contacts the bottom of the bowl. Pull out each shim, cut across it at the previously marked location and replace the cut-to-length shim where you removed it from. Alright, at this point you'll need to remove the remaining water from the tank & bowl. Remove those previously loosened nuts and proceed to pull the toilet. First, you might need to cut with a utility knife the caulk around the perimeter of the bowl where it meets the floor. Once to toilet's pulled, scrape off all the old wax and caulk/grout from both the bottom of the bowl & the floor & flange (the thing the bolts are sticking through.) Thoroughly clean both the perimeter of the bowl's base and it's footprint on the floor - you're going to be caulking this later and to do a proper job, you want this area clean & it's much easier to do this now! If those bolts are corroded, or if you can't restart the nuts, or if they otherwise just plain don't look right then go ahead and replace 'em. You'll need a new wax ring too. If the top of the flange is above or at least level with the top of the floor, then a regular thickness wax ring should do. If it's below the top of the floor, then you'll be needin' an extra thick wax ring or less preferably, you can double up a couple of regular thickness rings. If your toilet didn't already have them, or they're otherwise damaged, you'll need two snap-on plastic bolt caps & their accompanying disc that the cap snaps onto. So with your bolts installed and your shims/wedges in their previously marked locations, put your wax on the flange and gently lower the toilet straight down over the bolts. Put your plastic discs on (noting which side goes up) then your metal washers & finally your nuts. Make sure your shims/wedges are where they're supposed to be, and if not adjust as necessary -- once again, your bowl should not rock. Gently alternate side-to-side and tighten your nuts - just enough to hold the bowl in position - if you go too far the bowl could crack! Re-connect your water supply, check it for leaks, and if it's alright, flush the toilet a few times and check for leaks as best as you can around the base of the bowl. If it's all good, get yourself some "Polyseamseal" Tub & Tile" caulk and go ahead and caulk the bowl-to-floor interface. Voila! You got 'er done!

Oh, by the way, if your floor's rotted, squishy or otherwise unstable - then all bets are off!!! That's a whole different kettle of fish, can of worms or whatever other euphemism for "you've got another problem"!!!

Answer 2

So many answers are *almost* correct -- sensible man's is closest... Toilets often need to be shimmed when set on tile, or a natural stone surface. Often the high point of the floor is not at the toilet flange, some plastic flanges buckle or warp, or any number of other causes can make a toilet need a shim. It could be the porcelain on the bottom of the toilet is imperfect also. It does not mean the tile was installed improperly by the original poster. A nylon washer, plastic "toilet shim" or any other non-wooden or absorbent material will work as a shim. Level the toilet (eyeballing is usually close enough) and place/cut the shims as needed. Use a silicone caulk to fill the gap and/or help hold the shim in place. If you do caulk (it is optional, I usually do not do it, but some like it for appearance) remember to LEAVE A GAP in the caulk, typically at the rear of the toilet, so that water leaks will be visible if they occur in the future. Never grout or completely seal underneath a toilet or the water from leakage or condensation will be trapped and cause the floor to rot, in the case of wooden sub-floors. Home Depot or Lowe's now carry "composite" shims made of a recycled plastic/sawdust combination, that snap cut easily. These replace the old-fashioned cedar or pine shims and would make an ideal shim for a toilet, as the shims are about 2-inches wide and provide a flat surface. Pennies or small coins and such would be slippery and provide too small a surface for a stable long-term shim. This would fall under the category of "jerry-rigging"...

Answer 3

It could be that the bolts are not seating correctly in the flange, or that the flange is shot. Disconnect everything and remove the toilet. Check the flange, the metal ring around the opening for damage or rust. If it appears to be fine, check the floor for level. If it's an older home, the floor may have settled and is no longer flush with the flange seating, essentially causing the flat bottom to be sitting on the peak of a slight hill. It could also be that either the mounting bolts are too long and you're hitting the bottom of the threading if they are not fully threaded, or they're buggered up and need replaced. Install a new wax ring seal before reinstalling the toilet.

We once lived in an apartment with the same problem. Nearly got bucked off every time we used the darn thing!

Answer 4

It sounds like your toilet flange is cracked. Many wanna be plumbers try to caulk the toilet down to get away with this but it only lasts a few months.
Repair flanges are inexpensive at any hardware store. All you need is a drill to go thru the cast iron flange, two new bolts and a new wax ring.

Answer 5

you need to put shims under it but dont tighten the bolts to tight or you'll crack the toilet. Unless the bolts came loose of the flange in that case turn the water off , remove the supply line, suck the water out of the toilet with a shopvac, take off the toilet put the bolts back into place with a new wax ring

Answer 6

They make plastic shim wedges that you can put under the toilet and they make a grout and/or caulk that you can put under the toilet that sets up/hardens. I prefer the grout method because it also keeps water and trash from getting under the toilet.

Answer 7

Remove your toilet and put 2 waxed rings instead of one, if you've done nothing to your existing floor and prior was fine I'd say either the ring has disintegrated or your flange is broke

Answer 8

Change its music preference. It will stop rocking

Answer 9

how do you remove caps at bottom of toilet

Answer 10

shim under the toilet with something that makes it flush to the floor and if sticking out in plain view cut to bases circumference