Pete147
New Member
Hi all, I need help from the experts. My master bathroom is above my living room ceiling and twice in the past 3 months, after flushing the toilet in the master bath, shortly thereafter water could be seen coming out of of the ceiling below. Sorry this is a long story but I think all of the details below will be helpful.
When this first happened a few months ago, after flushing the toilet, a loud bang occurred down at the base of the toilet. The second time the leaky ceiling occurred was earlier this week and it too occurred after flushing the master bath toilet. This time, the water to my house was shut off since I was having irrigation installed, after the water was turned back on, I used the master bath toilet and 15 minutes later I noticed water coming out of the livingroom ceiling. There was air in the water lines and have no idea if this contributed to anything.
Here are some facts. My home is only 6 months old and all of the piping is PEX.
I called a plumber and he first tried changing the toilet ring. The original plumber used one of those green oversized Sani Seal rings, but the one that came over yesterday removed that ring and used a traditional wax ring. When the plumber came over, the dripping from the ceiling stopped. He flushed the toilet after replacing the ring and 10 minutes later there was more water dripping from the ceiling.
I called him back and he returned and this time suggested I get a brand new Toto toilet, so I picked one up and we replaced the toilet today. We flushed the new toilet and more water dripped out of the ceiling a short time later.
I then lifted the toilet up and took a look at the wax ring and it didn't seem to be properly sealing things so I replaced it with another Sani Seal ring that I picked up at Home Depot. One thing I noticed is that the original plumber used an offset flange however the rubber gasket that the toilet sits on top of it appears to be made for a traditional flange that goes straight down the drain. Could the issue be that I need to find an offset gasket to match the offset flange since to the left the gasket there is a pocket that is formed? I've attached a picture of this. I'm wondering if once in a while pressure builds up in the offset flange and water get pushed up through the ring and out down to the ceiling.
My original plumber does not believe there's a crack in the drain pipe or a leak in the water line since the leaky ceiling wouldn't only have happened a couple times in a few months if it was either of those but rather constantly.
So I am completely out of ideas and have no idea what the issue is but I can't pinpoint or stop the issue. Could it be that I need an offset gasket so that it fits the offset flange or do I likely have a leak or crack somewhere else. I have two more of the exact same toilets in my other bathrooms and they have never leaked, the difference is they don't have an offset flange beneath them but rather a straight, traditional one.
Please help. I'm about to lose my mind! Thanks.
When this first happened a few months ago, after flushing the toilet, a loud bang occurred down at the base of the toilet. The second time the leaky ceiling occurred was earlier this week and it too occurred after flushing the master bath toilet. This time, the water to my house was shut off since I was having irrigation installed, after the water was turned back on, I used the master bath toilet and 15 minutes later I noticed water coming out of the livingroom ceiling. There was air in the water lines and have no idea if this contributed to anything.
Here are some facts. My home is only 6 months old and all of the piping is PEX.
I called a plumber and he first tried changing the toilet ring. The original plumber used one of those green oversized Sani Seal rings, but the one that came over yesterday removed that ring and used a traditional wax ring. When the plumber came over, the dripping from the ceiling stopped. He flushed the toilet after replacing the ring and 10 minutes later there was more water dripping from the ceiling.
I called him back and he returned and this time suggested I get a brand new Toto toilet, so I picked one up and we replaced the toilet today. We flushed the new toilet and more water dripped out of the ceiling a short time later.
I then lifted the toilet up and took a look at the wax ring and it didn't seem to be properly sealing things so I replaced it with another Sani Seal ring that I picked up at Home Depot. One thing I noticed is that the original plumber used an offset flange however the rubber gasket that the toilet sits on top of it appears to be made for a traditional flange that goes straight down the drain. Could the issue be that I need to find an offset gasket to match the offset flange since to the left the gasket there is a pocket that is formed? I've attached a picture of this. I'm wondering if once in a while pressure builds up in the offset flange and water get pushed up through the ring and out down to the ceiling.
My original plumber does not believe there's a crack in the drain pipe or a leak in the water line since the leaky ceiling wouldn't only have happened a couple times in a few months if it was either of those but rather constantly.
So I am completely out of ideas and have no idea what the issue is but I can't pinpoint or stop the issue. Could it be that I need an offset gasket so that it fits the offset flange or do I likely have a leak or crack somewhere else. I have two more of the exact same toilets in my other bathrooms and they have never leaked, the difference is they don't have an offset flange beneath them but rather a straight, traditional one.
Please help. I'm about to lose my mind! Thanks.