Leaking disc from american standard 4049 tank

Users who are viewing this thread

mountain-top mike

New Member
Messages
12
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Location
Lake Arrowhead California
I have a strange one here, at least to me. My Am. ST. 2 piece toilet started leaking a few months ago from worn out black flapper disc. I replaced with red aftermarket disc and still leaked. I bought factory Am.ST. black disc and same thing, although tank drained slower. I then removed the actuating arm from its ears and installed black flapper on seat without the arm attached. Leak slowed, but still leaked into bowl. I then did the same with the aftermarket red disc on seat without actuating arm. Leak stopped. I checked it for two days and the water stayed at the fill line. I then put the red flapper back on the arm and reattached it to the valve and leak started again. I put in a different arm in there thinking there was a problem with it and no difference. There are 5 toilets in the house with the same flush valve and never had this problem with them. I need to find the problem here without just replacing the valve and giving up. It's funny that the arms are very buoyant. I've worked on Standard, American Standard products for over 40 years both vintage and modern styles and have been able to solve their problems, but this one is challenging! Any help would be appreciated.
 

WJcandee

Wise One
Messages
3,182
Reaction score
170
Points
63
Location
New York, NY
I'm not a fan of the tilt-flush. Unnecessarily-complex. There are at least five models of it, some with snap-on and some with screw-on disks. Some of the valves on which the tilt-unit sits have little hooks, some do not. Sometimes, you can Kluge a standard flapper on there, either by hooking it to the wings if you have it, and sometimes by sliding the old-style Korky flapper over the overflow riser and down (all the way!) so that it sits properly. But getting it to sit right can be a challenge. Me, I would just take the tank off and install this: http://www.korky.com/?p=Product&i=251 Once you have done that, all you ever need to do is replace a $5 flapper. However, that might be more work than you want to do.
 

David M. Neal

New Member
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Location
Hamilton, Ohio
I have a strange one here, at least to me. My Am. ST. 2 piece toilet started leaking a few months ago from worn out black flapper disc. I replaced with red aftermarket disc and still leaked. I bought factory Am.ST. black disc and same thing, although tank drained slower. I then removed the actuating arm from its ears and installed black flapper on seat without the arm attached. Leak slowed, but still leaked into bowl. I then did the same with the aftermarket red disc on seat without actuating arm. Leak stopped. I checked it for two days and the water stayed at the fill line. I then put the red flapper back on the arm and reattached it to the valve and leak started again. I put in a different arm in there thinking there was a problem with it and no difference. There are 5 toilets in the house with the same flush valve and never had this problem with them. I need to find the problem here without just replacing the valve and giving up. It's funny that the arms are very buoyant. I've worked on Standard, American Standard products for over 40 years both vintage and modern styles and have been able to solve their problems, but this one is challenging! Any help would be appreciated.
 

David M. Neal

New Member
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Location
Hamilton, Ohio
I have the exact same problem. What did you end up doing to solve this problem? I have tried different brands of the flapper disk. I have the model that just pops on not the screw on type. I have model 4049 tank.
 

Plumbs Away

Active Member
Messages
234
Reaction score
25
Points
28
Location
Tennessee
Those old American Standard Cadets with the 4049 tank are my absolute favorite vintage toilet. But they are water GUZZLERS. I have found that retrofitting them with a standard flapper compromises the flush performance. They need the entire 5 gallons to flush completely and properly. The tilt valve stays open long enough to allow complete tank drainage, whereas the flapper closes more quickly, releasing less water from the tank. Over the years, there were different styles of the tilt valve. I've seen designations of #4, #5 and #6, though I'm not sure of the difference. Your best solution, without removing the tank and the entire flush valve, is probably to get the entire tilt valve assembly. What I'm referring to is only the black part (sometimes white) that the disc attaches to and fastens onto the ears at the bottom of the overflow tube. That's where those numeric designations come in. I'd get one of each and return what doesn't fit. Also, check the slack in the chain to ensure that the disc is seating fully. Finally, check the round open part at the bottom of the valve (where the disk seats) for irregularities and/or deterioration. At the end of the day, it might be less of a headache all around to replace the entire flush valve (American Standard Part #47089-0700). While the tank's off, you might want to use AS's Part #47060-07, which includes the correct tank-to-bowl flush valve gasket, new brass tank bolts, and the U-shape tank-to-bowl gasket that these toilets came out of the factory with.
 
Last edited:

Gary Swart

In the Trades
Messages
8,101
Reaction score
84
Points
48
Location
Yakima, WA
When you guys figure out how to make this piece of junk work, maybe you could help me with fixing my Yugo.
 
Messages
705
Reaction score
48
Points
28
Location
Montreal, Canada
David M. Neal, can you provide a pic of the inside of your tank?

The problem might be the pivot of the flapper. You can't really adjust where it pivots, it's up to the mercy of the entire flapper assembly. It's like trying to align Ikea cabinet doors.

Your tank may or may not allow the install of a stopper ball instead. This was the story of my 1950's Eljer (4 gpf), which the previous owner filled with incorrect aftermarket repair parts, including a flapper that was always leaking. A dead drop stopper ball solved that.

If you still have the original brass fill valve in that, the rubber diaphragm that let's water into the tank may be toast. No matter how much pressure the float arm tries to press on it, water makes thru. You believe your tank is leaking, but really it is constantly refilling.
FH05JAU_TOIFIX_02.jpg

Toilet_Parts_149_DJFes.jpg
Korky_tank_ball.JPG
 

Gary Swart

In the Trades
Messages
8,101
Reaction score
84
Points
48
Location
Yakima, WA
LOL. Hey, I have a '79 F150 that I have had 3 offers of $5000 and several others asking if I wanted to sell, but no $$ offer. Not interested in selling as it would cost more than that to replace.
 
Top
Hey, wait a minute.

This is awkward, but...

It looks like you're using an ad blocker. We get it, but (1) terrylove.com can't live without ads, and (2) ad blockers can cause issues with videos and comments. If you'd like to support the site, please allow ads.

If any particular ad is your REASON for blocking ads, please let us know. We might be able to do something about it. Thanks.
I've Disabled AdBlock    No Thanks