Loo Cistern overflow adjustment

Supernova

Hi all,

The water is flowing into the overflow pipe. I'm told the float should be an inch below it but I've tried adjusting the small cog wheel at the bottom of the pic in both directions and it's having no effect. Any ideas?

Many thanks!

Lorian

Leave the cog tight. It's the thread and the nut above it in your picture to adjust it. 

The fill valve could be leaking causing it 

WIAWSNB

Hi Supernova.

How DIYish are you? Great!

Ok, do you know how to turn off the water supply to that cistern? Does it have an isolating valve on the supply pipe? If so, turn it off and flush to empty the cistern.

Get some Viakal or similar, and give all that a darn good spraying! Leave it for a good while, and use an old toothbrush to clean all that gunk away. Wipe it all up with a cloth.

Unscrew that large white knurled collar arrowed orange - rotate as shown with smaller arrow. The whole float arm with bits will come off. The white plastic 'pin' that the float arm presses on might fall away, so keep an eye on it. (You can unscrew the actual 'red' float first if it makes it easier.)

Underneath you'll find a rubber valve seal like this: 

It's a standard 32mm float valve diaphragm washer. Note which way around it is, and then prise it out. Fit a new one - Screwfix, Toolstation, any plumber's merchants. First also spray and clean everything you can see inside there. 

I have a tub of silicone grease, and always give such parts a decent smearing - it helps to prolong and seal it all. But not essential.

Refit the collar with float arm - make sure you hold the float arm rotated correctly - have a look and you'll see a wee part that engages when it's in the correct upright position. Open the isolating valve, and see if the shut-off water level is what you want. Make sure you allow the water to fully stop coming in first before deciding. 

If the water level is too low, then slacken the green nut, and unscrew the plastic bolt it's on. That should allow the water level to rise. Once you have the desired level, then tighten the nut again.

Supernova

Lorian said:

Leave the cog tight. It's the thread and the nut above it in your picture to adjust it. 

The fill valve could be leaking causing it 

OK thanks. When I adjust the cog it's OK for a while but fills up eventually, so you could be right. Fiddly for me or a plumber's job? The loo is pretty old and doesn't flush big jobs very well tbh!

Supernova

WIAWSNB said:

Hi Supernova.

How DIYish are you? Great!

Ok, do you know how to turn off the water supply to that cistern? Does it have an isolating valve on the supply pipe? If so, turn it off and flush to empty the cistern.

Get some Viakal or similar, and give all that a darn good spraying! Leave it for a good while, and use an old toothbrush to clean all that gunk away. Wipe it all up with a cloth.

Unscrew that large white knurled collar arrowed orange - rotate as shown with smaller arrow. The whole float arm with bits will come off. The white plastic 'pin' that the float arm presses on might fall away, so keep an eye on it. (You can unscrew the actual 'red' float first if it makes it easier.)

Underneath you'll find a rubber valve seal like this: 

It's a standard 32mm float valve diaphragm washer. Note which way around it is, and then prise it out. Fit a new one - Screwfix, Toolstation, any plumber's merchants. First also spray and clean everything you can see inside there. 

I have a tub of silicone grease, and always give such parts a decent smearing - it helps to prolong and seal it all. But not essential.

Refit the collar with float arm - make sure you hold the float arm rotated correctly - have a look and you'll see a wee part that engages when it's in the correct upright position. Open the isolating valve, and see if the shut-off water level is what you want. Make sure you allow the water to fully stop coming in first before deciding. 

If the water level is too low, then slacken the green nut, and unscrew the plastic bolt it's on. That should allow the water level to rise. Once you have the desired level, then tighten the nut again.

Thanks WIAWSNB, I shall investigate doing that! ☺

FreeBear

Supernova said:

Lorian said:

Leave the cog tight. It's the thread and the nut above it in your picture to adjust it. 

The fill valve could be leaking causing it 

OK thanks. When I adjust the cog it's OK for a while but fills up eventually, so you could be right. Fiddly for me or a plumber's job? The loo is pretty old and doesn't flush big jobs very well tbh!

Had the same flushing issue with the old close coupled toilet here. Replaced it with a low level pan & cistern so the water had a bit of speed. As part of the job, I also fitted a new fill valve and siphon - The siphon overflows through the pan should water level get too high. With both being adjustable, the system can be tuned to dump sufficient water in to the pan. Being a dual flush, you get to save water for the No.1s.