Hairline crack in toilet bowl

springdove

Hi


I have noticed a hairline crack in the toilet bowl well above water level. The issue is that every time I flush, I have 5 - 6 drops of water leaking from the crack.


The plumber I called in claims the only thing to do is replace the toilet bowl with a new one. While this may be the ideal long term solution, it is also the costly solution, considering there is also tiling to remove and replace.


Can anyone suggest a DIY solution?


Thanks

welshwonder

You will struggle to repair the crack, but to make it water tight you could cover it with clear resin the type you use for fibreglass modelling.

The crack will only get worse however, I am not sure what possible toilet configuration you could have to require tiling to be removed to remove just the bowl. Is it a close coupled toilet you have tiled right up to rather than behind?

springdove

I've uploaded a pic here: http://tinypic.com/r/rubcw8/8




However, the second plumber who came along has said only the cistern/bowl needs to be replaced without touching the tiles. Cost is c. £160 including labour. Feels a bit high, I might try the sealant route to begin with. Any suggestions on which one is best for this sort of a job?

phill99

welshwonder wrote: »

You will struggle to repair the crack, but to make it water tight you could cover it with clear resin the type you use for fibreglass modelling.

The crack will only get worse however, I am not sure what possible toilet configuration you could have to require tiling to be removed to remove just the bowl. Is it a close coupled toilet you have tiled right up to rather than behind?

If the tiles have been laid after the pan has been fitted, the footprint of the new pan wont be the same as the existing pan, so some new tiling will be required.

OP. Thre is no alternative but to teplace the toilet.

phill99

Having looked at your pic, the second plumber is right and his price is on the money too!

JP08

Not a permanent fix but in the interim you could try something like this stuff.
http://www.captaintolley.com/#anchor

Haven't tried this but to be very similar to a now defunct product by Comma called Seek 'n' Sealant (or something like that) which I do still have a can of - if it is the same / similar stuff then it is brilliant, creeps into small cracks / crevices like water by capiliary action like water would.

I used the Comma stuff to seal frost damage cracks in the sandstone window sill on the last house before painting over - it being silicone based meant it drove the water out first. Also sealed the slightly perished window rubber on a 1960 Humber very nicely

gingernut352000

A new close coupled toilet must be circa £70 minimum for a reasonable quality one so another £90 for labour isn't excessive plus cracks get worse you could sit on it an the whole thing collapse so I would change for a new one

paddyrg

In the meantime, would a bit of milliput keep things together?

zaax

No its for modeling. The bowl will go at the worst time - in the middle of the night / bank holiday. Get it fixed next week, and try not to put any weight on it.

andyhop

It can be cosmetically repaired. Search for local repairers or use a national like magic man

A repair will still cost £120ish to retail