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Author:
aboelter (OH)
Ok so here is my question. I would like to know if it is common for a toilet tank to crack and flood an entire bedroom and closet causing so much water damage that the ceiling downstairs has to be replaced? I rent an apartment that is 3 years old and it has Gerber toilets. I woke up to my entire apartment flooding and there is a huge crack along the lower left corner. Once all the water was drained out I could see multiple hairline cracks inside of the tank, and this very large crack on the outside. My landlord is trying to blame me saying that the toilet is only 3 years old 'and these things don't just happen by themselves.' i beg to differ! What are your experiences?
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Author:
royboy (SC)
I've seen cracks in toilet tanks of ANY age. Is it common? No, but it does happen.
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Author:
packy (MA)
although a remote possibility, it would be difficult for you to create hairline cracks in the toilet tank.
pouring hot, hot water into a toilet can harm it.
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Author:
mjb1962853 (NY)
Quality and quality control isn't what it used to be. Tank cracking like that is not common, but can happen. Maybe installer tightened bolts just a little too much. Small cracks formed and grew, finally one larger one and pop! Landlord should have INSURANCE for this kind of problem. If he doesn't, that's his problem and he needs to take care of it. You are not to blame unless you actually took a hammer to it!
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Author:
e-plumber (NY)
Yes it could cause a major flood because when the tank cracks and loses water, the fill valve inside of the toilet continues to run trying to 'replenish' the lost water. I've seen hair line cracks or splits in toilets that haven't leaked for years but to be honest, I've never seen a toilet which just let loose by itself when nobody was using it or trying to repair it.
e-plumber
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Author:
aboelter (OH)
thats pretty much what i have been hearing. i did use it before i went to sleep out in a different room, i was thinking it may have happened after i flushed it and new water came into it? you would think i would have heard it crack or something...i have no idea
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Author:
hj (AZ)
I agree with you, although three years is somewhat short. If it had been an older American Standard Cadet, it would have been a somewhat common thing for it to happen. YES, they do crack spontaneously, and while there can be several different reasons for it, the actual cause MIGHT be able to be determined by seeing where and how the crack occured, but even that would be iffy.
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Author:
redwood (CT)
Pretty much it's the landlord's problem and not yours!
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Author:
hj (AZ)
I have, many times. In fact one customer told me she was walking down the hallway, heard a "click", and then the water started running out of the bathroom. I have also seen MANY that failed in the middle of the night when there was no one using them.
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Author:
Ed the Tech (Non-US)
I am searching this subject because I had one toilet tank crack last year and another on last night. I hope that we caught this last one before too much dammage was done. Five in the morning we awoke to the sound of water running and dashed to clean it up.
Both tanks were 20 year old Crane toilets. I was the last one to strip them down and replace all the parts and put them back together. They cracked through the left had mounting hole up to the left top where the crack was about 3/4 inch wide. I had checked the mounting bolts after the first one cracked and they were finger tight on that one as well as the other two we have in the house. I am going to change the third one as well when I get this latest one replaced.
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Author:
eehamm (OR)
It absolutely happens. I had just gotten out of the shower last night and was in my bedroom getting dressed. I heard a "POP!" and ran into the bathroom to see that the tank had split and was dumping all the water onto the floor. Luckily I was there to turn off the water and clean things up before any damage to the rest of the house occured. I had not used the toilet in a couple of hours and even so, I have been the only one using it for the last year (130lb female). It is super old and my guess is that it had some weakness already that just gave way. Either way, it was completely spontaneous and I am a witness that this type of thing absolutely can happen. It is something for me to think about now, as I own another older house that I rent out that has a very old toilet. I will be proactively be replacing that one as well,....
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