I have 4 toilets in our house and everyone of them has grey water and bits of black rubber in the tank. I figured out it's the rubber washers were disintegrating so my husband replaced them all and we were ok for a while and now it's doing to again Is there something wrong with our water? We have a water softener. They are doing the same thing and driving me nuts!

Is this normal? Any advice would be appreciated!

If you are on city water it's the chlorine.
You will need to filter your water.
But those tank to bowl rubber washers should last many years before breaking down.

STOP putting 'cleaning' tablets in the tanks

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"Measure Twice & Cut Once" - Retired U.A. Local 1 & 638

chlorine is usually the cause of rubber deteriorating. BUt, i would think that the flappers would deteriorate before the rubber washers ??
(flapper being the rubber thing that lifts up when you depress the flush lever)

Some Flappers have silicone in them and withstand chlorine better

srloren



Edited 1 times.

is there any other kind of washer we can use?

i suppose teflon washers would do the job.
from the iternet..."
Teflon or PTFE washers are flat discs with a centrally located hole. They have superior antifriction properties, as well as excellent chemical and corrosion resistance. These washers are ideal for low-temperature applications. ... Flat washers are thin and flat, and have a centrally located hole."

install them this way to get a good watertight seal.
in this order from inside the tank..
insert a washer onto the round top brass bolt.
slide this thru the hole in the tank.
put another teflon washer on the bottom of the tank.
then put a metal washer.
then use a brass or stainless steel nut to tighten everything together.
then put the tank in place and place another metal washer and nut to hold the tank in place.
so you are sandwiching the teflon washers with an extra washer and nut before you mount the tank and fasten it in place.

sorry packy

but

from inside the tank 'looking down'

bolt (tank bolt with the large flat head)

washer (rubber or 'pliable' teflon or 'orange' chemical resistant rubber) between bolt head and tank

------------------ tank bottom

flat metallic washer

nut (tighten to bottom of tank so the bolts and 'rubber' washers are secured and 'sealed' to tank)

------------------ toilet

metallic washer

nut


there are only TWO rubber washers required for the purpose of sealing the water inside the tank

the two at the BOTTOM (optional) are to insure proper tightening w/o overdoing it


a la:


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"Measure Twice & Cut Once" - Retired U.A. Local 1 & 638



Edited 2 times.

@ packy

there are 'some' bowl/tank combos where the 'extra' washer UNDER the tank will 'stand-off' the nut enough for it to make contact with the bowl

result = crrrrraaaaack

(don't ask me how i know, but, i know TWICE)



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"Measure Twice & Cut Once" - Retired U.A. Local 1 & 638

i've never had the pleasure of cracking something in that way..

it may not crack UNTIL the user leans back and 'torques' the tank against the nut using the front 'lip' as a fulcrum

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"Measure Twice & Cut Once" - Retired U.A. Local 1 & 638

For a little clarity and to show where the bottom of the tank is in your picture; [postimg.cc]

YUP...

YUP ...


(omg _ again)

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"Measure Twice & Cut Once" - Retired U.A. Local 1 & 638

If the user is "leaning back" maybe one of these would be a better choice



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Not a plumber by trade but a fierce DIYer