I am a single parent that has been in my house for 7 years. The toilet has been running on its own for about 6 weeks and my water bill is crazy. A friend told me today that it might be the flapper in the toilet but that is not it because I had to replace this about 3 years ago and it is in good condition. What does look bad is the ball thing a majig, it is rusty and looks ancient. Without having to hire a plumber what should I do or replace? Thank you!

The ball thingamajig is also called the float, floater (tee hee.) If your toilet is running constantly it's because it (the tank) doesn't get full or signal itself that it's full.

If you replace the float set-up, that will probably fix the problem. Ideally, you turn off water to the toilet, flush then to empty the tank. Then disconnect the "float apparatus" and take that to a hardware store. The people there should be able to help you find a replacement part.

I'm not a plumbing expert, just a woman who has gotten toilet troubles fixed.

And to be honest that flappy thing is replaced at times more often than every 3 years, one way to check, put some food color in the tank, if it shows up into the bowl, most likely it is the flappy thing,

But it would not hurt to replace the entie inside works, not very costly and you can normally do it yourself

I agree with Chuck, the flapper valve can be bad in several months or may work for years, do the color test will confirm that the flapper valve or its seat is the problem, if that is not the one then your problem may be the fill valve or it may need to be adjusted, please look at the Images and tell us which type is your fill valve, Thanks.

John

Afaroo and Chuck gave you good description of what to do...

Can you open up toilet tank, snap a picture and post it ?

If the water level is above the tube #7, then it could be that #1 has a hole or the valve at #11 is bad.

The chain adjustment can have an impact as well, the flapper should stay open for a bit while the toilet fluhes. If the chain is too tight, it can lift the flapper prematurely.

Hi shelded,

Here is some more info click on the link below and follow the instructions it will tell how to replace the flapper valve the fill valve and adjust the water level, Thanks.

John

Replace The Toilet Fill Valve, Flush Valve Or Flapper

Check the tank water level, it should be at the mark in the tank or 3/8 to 1/2" below the top of the over flow tube. Now look at the flapper, If it has wavy edges on the flat surface, replace it. The linkage between the flapper and the flush lever should have 1/4" play when the tank is filled. Also, check the small tube coming out of the top of the ballcock and make sure it's connect to and draining into the white overflow tube. Hope this helps, Tom