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Toilet Tank Crack Leaking
High-quality toilet tanks can serve you well for decades, but sooner or later, they will indeed need replacing. Hairline cracks are often the first warning sign that a toilet tank has “overstayed its welcome”.
What Causes Toilet Tank Cracks?
Toilet tanks usually crack for one of three reasons — or a combination of factors. They can be summed up as:
- Age-related wear and tear. Nearly everything eventually wears out, and toilet tanks (durable as they are) are no exception.
- Extreme temperatures, and especially frost and sudden temperature fluctuations, are another common cause of cracks within a toilet tank.
- Finally, events that would best be described as “blunt force trauma” can absolutely lead to cracks. Repeatedly bumping into the toilet tank over the course of many years can weaken the tank’s structural integrity and eventually lead to cracks. Should an altogether heavier object such as a kitchen cabinet fall onto the toilet tank, much more obvious and severe cracks can result. The same holds true for careless contact between the toilet tank and appliances such as washing machines or water heaters, which you may have had installed in your bathroom.
How Do You Know if Your Toilet Tank Has Any Cracks?
The finest cracks, commonly referred to as hairline cracks, are hard to spot with the naked eye — even if you are actively looking for them. That does not mean such cracks cannot lead to damage, however.
Cracks in a toilet tank situated below water level inevitably cause leaks of varying severity. The result can be seen in the form of a puddle on the bathroom floor. Do you know that you have a leak, but are you not sure whether it is in the tank or elsewhere? If you have white or light tiling, there is a simple solution. Drop some liquid food coloring into the tank, and see whether that same color shows itself on the floor after a while.
Cracks that occur above the tank’s water level are much harder to detect. On the upside, if they are not causing any leaks, it is fairly safe to leave them in place until you are ready to have your toilet tank replaced.
Can You Fix Leaking Hairline Cracks in Your Toilet Tank?
Replacing your entire toilet tank is your ideal option. However, hairline cracks in your toilet tank can be fixed with plumber’s epoxy, at least temporarily. To do this, you will want to:
- Turn your water off, using the shut-off valve that regulates water flow to your toilet.
- Empty and dry the inside and outside of the tank.
- Prepare and apply plumber’s epoxy to the hairline crack as instructed by the manufacturer.
- Use a knife, or any other suitable tool, to ensure that the epoxy is applied to all areas of concern.
- Allow the epoxy to cure completely before turning the water back on.
- Turn the water back on and test that the leak has been remediated. If your tank is no longer leaking, you can safely restore the toilet to service. Because this is a short-term fix, strongly consider having your toilet tank replaced as soon as possible.
Small leaks can be extremely hard to detect, and do a surprising amount of damage while they are allowed to continue. If you are not sure where your bathroom leaking is coming from, making an appointment with a leak detection company — which can dispatch professionals to your home to carry out non-invasive leak detection — is your best option.
Are you not sure whether the leak is truly coming from your toilet tank? Have you replaced your toilet tank but the leak hasn’t stopped? Now’s the time to call in the leak detection professionals!