Frequently Asked Questions about Toilet Cisterns

That is a resounding yes. When you run into cistern troubles, sometimes the best choice is to replace it.

Parts inside the cistern, such as the flush valve or float, do break down over time. They can be easily replaced, however as more progressive wear and tear occurs the best choice will be a cistern replacement.

Mr Emergency recommends consulting a professional plumber for this as you need a cistern which pairs with the toilet bowl for flush capacity. A cistern which is too small will not provide enough water to wash away solids.

Depending on your toilet’s age, it may even be best to replace the entire toilet suite with a more water efficient model.

There are a few different reasons why your cistern may be leaking. Worn out rubber seals could be to blame, or perhaps internal cistern parts.

There may be a blockage stopping the flush valve from sealing properly, allowing water to continuously trickle into the bowl. Or the valve itself could be damaged.

Your ball float may be at an incorrect level. Too low and the cistern fills up too soon, or too high and the cistern fills too much and could overflow.

If you’re ever unsure about where a leak is coming from – say it’s dripping from the connector pipe between the cistern and toilet bowl – just place some food colouring into the cistern. Soon you’ll find out and can make progress in contacting a plumber for long term solutions.

Truthfully, you could expect to get through much of your lifetime with one toilet, or about 50 years. However, it’s not necessarily the wisest choice.

Water saving technology means your toilet cistern from 50 years ago wastes far more water than it should. It’s also likely you’ve had to call in a professional plumber for regular repairs.

On average, modern toilets use around 5 litres of water per flush. Meanwhile, old toilets use closer to 11 litres. And with modern flushes become even more stringent, your water efficiency could improve considerably with an upgrade every 15-20 years.