We Repair Toilets and Install New Ones
4.9 ★
500+ Google reviews
Tommy Bynum repairs and replaces toilets in Gastonia and Gaston County homes: toilets that run, leak at the base or tank, flush weakly or rock on the floor. Call (704) 825-4463 and tell us what it’s doing. We’ve been in Gastonia homes since 1979, and toilet repair is the same phone number and the same company that handles your heating and air.
- Serving Gastonia since 1979
- Licensed plumbing contractor (L.12997)
- 500+ Five-Star Google Reviews
What Toilet Repairs and Installations Do We Handle?
Tommy Bynum repairs the working parts of a household toilet and replaces toilets that aren’t worth fixing. Inside the tank, that means flappers, fill valves, flush valves and handles. Under the toilet, it’s the wax ring and flange that seal it to the drain, plus the supply line and shutoff valve on the wall. For a new toilet, we take out the old one, check the flange and floor, and set the new one level on a new seal. A single clog that a plunger won’t clear is a drain cleaning call.
Why Is My Toilet Running, Leaking or Not Flushing?
A running toilet is usually the flapper or the fill valve, water at the base is usually the wax ring, and a weak flush is usually low water in the tank or an early low-flow toilet. If water is on the floor or the bowl is about to overflow, close the shutoff valve on the wall behind the toilet by turning it clockwise, then call (704) 825-4463. We take emergency calls 24/7. A running or wobbly toilet can be booked, but don’t leave it for long.
| What you notice | What usually causes it |
|---|---|
| Runs constantly, or refills on its own between flushes | A flapper that no longer seals, or a fill valve that won't shut off. The EPA says most toilet leaks come from worn flappers |
| Water on the floor around the base after flushing | A failed wax ring, sometimes a cracked flange. Each flush puts water into the subfloor |
| Water dripping under the tank | The seal or bolts between tank and bowl, the supply line, or the shutoff valve |
| Rocks when you sit on it | Loose floor bolts or a damaged flange. The rocking breaks the wax seal, so a wobble becomes a leak |
| Weak flush, or it takes two | Low water in the tank, or a flapper closing too early |
| Clogs again and again | The toilet itself, often a 1990s low-flow model, or a partial blockage further down the drain |
Should You Repair or Replace an Old Toilet?
Repair it if the porcelain is sound and the problem is a part. Replace it if the tank or bowl is cracked, if it keeps clogging after repairs, or if it was made before 1994 and uses far more water than a new one. That last point fits a lot of Gastonia houses: the median home in the city was built in 1979, 15 years before the federal 1.6-gallon limit, so an original or early replacement toilet may still be in use.
Most toilet problems are a part, not the toilet
Flappers, fill valves, wax rings and supply lines all wear out, and replacing one costs far less than a new toilet. A toilet that works well between those repairs is worth keeping.
Toilets made before 1994 use far more water
Older toilets use 3.5 gallons per flush or more, according to the EPA, and some as much as 6. The federal limit since 1994 is 1.6, and a WaterSense labeled toilet uses 1.28 or less. EPA estimates that replacing old toilets with WaterSense models saves the average family nearly 13,000 gallons a year.
A 1990s toilet that keeps clogging
The first low-flow toilets met the new limit but sometimes needed a second flush, as the EPA notes. Toilets built to today’s standards clear the bowl better on less water. If a toilet from that era clogs again and again and the drain line is clear, replacing the toilet fixes what more plunging won’t.
How a Toilet Repair or Replacement Works
Every toilet call follows the same order, and you get the price before any work starts. We find the part that failed and tell you whether a repair will hold.
The four steps
01. You describe what the toilet is doing. We tell you what to shut off, whether it can wait, and when we can be there.
02. We find the cause. We confirm which part failed before we quote.
03. You get the price before work starts. If the toilet is worth fixing, you get the repair price. If it isn’t, you get the repair and replacement prices side by side.
04. We fix or install it and test it. A new toilet goes in level on a new wax ring. Every job ends with test flushes and a check for leaks at the base and supply line.
Toilet Repair and Installation Across Gaston County
We repair and install toilets in Gastonia, Belmont and Kings Mountain, and across Gaston County from our shop at 2232 Plastics Drive in Gastonia. Call (704) 825-4463 and we’ll tell you when we can be there.
Toilet Repair Questions From Gastonia Homeowners
A repair call starts with the same $95 diagnostic as any plumbing repair, and it’s waived when you approve the repair. Most toilet repairs are one part and a short visit. A replacement depends mostly on the toilet you choose and on what’s under the old one, since a damaged flange or soft subfloor adds work.
Usually the flapper at the bottom of the tank isn’t sealing, or the fill valve isn’t shutting off. To test the flapper, the EPA suggests putting a few drops of food coloring in the tank. If color shows up in the bowl after 10 minutes without a flush, the tank is leaking into the bowl, usually at the flapper. Flush afterward so the dye doesn’t stain the tank. A worn flapper can leak thousands of gallons a year without a sound.
It can, but a toilet is the weakest case. The city’s leak adjustment policy requires the loss to be at least 3,000 gallons above your 12-month average, and it excludes water lost through carelessness or lack of due diligence, since finding and stopping a leak promptly is the customer’s job. Toilet water also goes into the sewer, so the sewer credit is 50%, not the 100% given for leaks in walls or underground. If you apply, it’s within 60 days of the bill, with the plumber’s bill attached. The cheaper fix is repairing a running toilet as soon as you notice it.
The porcelain rarely wears out, but a crack in the tank or bowl means replacement rather than repair. Otherwise, toilets usually get replaced for repeated clogs, water use or a remodel. The parts inside the tank wear out much sooner, which is why the EPA says to replace the flapper at least every five years.
Many homeowners replace their own. What goes wrong is what you can’t see once it’s set: a flange that’s cracked or sits below the floor, or a wax ring that didn’t seal and leaks into the subfloor for months before it shows. Before you buy, measure from the wall to the center of the floor bolts. Most toilets are made for 12 inches, and a toilet made for a different distance will not fit.
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