Kohler Wellworth Tank not Level

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sanrico

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Hello again everyone,

I'm finally at the last stages of installing the toilet in our new bathroom and have run into yet another problem that has me scratching my head.

I'm installing a Kohler Wellworth toilet. The base is perfectly level. However, when I started installing the tank, I can't help but notice it's very much off-level. Enough to where I can see it. I placed a level on top and sure enough, it's way off.

I finger tightened the bolts (it installs with only two bolts - right and left) and then lightly tightened with a wrench. I went even on both sides. But it's still way off. I loosened one side to even out the level and the bolts are at completely different levels of tightness.

Is it appropriate for me to stick a shim in there somewhere? Is this toilet a lemon? Thanks!
 

JohnjH2o1

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Are you sure it's a Kohler they have three bolts on there tanks. You may have the wrong tank.

John
 

sanrico

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Are you sure it's a Kohler they have three bolts on there tanks. You may have the wrong tank.

John

Yessir, I am sure. It was a sealed box. Here are some pictures.

The Kohler logo:


The bottom of the tank that shows the two bolts. They don't go through the tank itself. They are affixed to a bracket mounted to the tank. I've never seen this before. It says to tighten the bolts until the tabs touch the base:


And a picture of my level, showing just how off the tank is! This couldn't be the design, could it be?
 

JohnjH2o1

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That's there new stile. Kohler had a better idea!! All I can suggest is loosen up on the left bolt tighten the right then just snug the right.

John
 

sanrico

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I must have gotten a lemon. The tank is so off-level that loosening one bolt to level it would compromise the integrity of the gasket quite badly. I just got off the phone with Kohler Customer Service (wait time: 12 minutes), who told me "we don't know without looking at it." I told them about the pictures on this forum, but they weren't willing to look. They person did ask, "You posted this on the internet??"

Looks like I gotta pull up the toilet from the wax ring (looking forward to that mess), box it all up and take it back to Home Depot for an exchange. Thanks, Kohler!
 

Cacher_Chick

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It could be that the seal is not made properly or you might not be getting everything perfectly centered.
I would look for the cause of the problem and try to fix it first.
While possible, it is not very likely that the tank or base are at fault.
 

sanrico

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Well, I went back to Home Depot and bought another toilet. Same model. I took the tank from the 2nd toilet and put it on my base and presto...perfectly level.

I am guessing that the bracket on the first toilet was bent somehow in shipping. The bracket is a great idea since the bolts no longer go through the tank itself and there are less places to leak. But a good bump could certainly mess it up.

So Home Depot gets their non-level toilet back tomorrow. Thanks all!
 
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