No water in the toilet bowl after the flush

Karen Knabe
by Karen Knabe
When I flush the toilet, not much water returns to the bowl after the flush, looks like only an inch or two at the bottom of the bowl. There is sufficient water in the tank. This doesn't happen to the other toilets in our home.
  10 answers
  • Carole Carole on Dec 18, 2014
    Is there a blockage in the toilet pipes? Maybe too much loo paper in the pipes or something. I would try clearing the pipes if you have ascertained that the water level in the cistern is normal and that the ballcock that controls that water level is not broken or come adrift. Did you take the lid off the cistern/tank to check this?
  • We have a toilet that does this too and hubby says its because the flapper thing in the tank comes down too quickly. If you hold down the handle a little longer when you flush (which keeps the flapper up), and you find that then you get more water in the bowl, that might be the problem. If someone else knows how to adjust those flappers that would be great because my hubby says he's adjusted it all he can and can't make it come down any slower.
  • Karen Knabe Karen Knabe on Dec 19, 2014
    Thanks Bev, will try that immediately, It's a fairly new home, and we had plumbers out recently and forgot to ask about that problem. This seemed like a good place to ask. Lines were checked and we were told the were fine. Had septic cleaned this summer also. We bought the home about 3 years ago, and it has always been this way. Thanks again.
  • Paulette Montoya Paulette Montoya on Dec 19, 2014
    Make sure all the mechanisms inside the tank are working properly it might just be the ballcock thingy that needs to be adjusted up or down.
  • Adrianne C Adrianne C on Dec 19, 2014
    Sounds like the flapper needs to be adjusted. It needs a little play in the cord, enough to keep it open long enough to fill the bowl. It could also need adjusting either the ballcock or the fluidmaster, which ever you have installed in the tank.
  • Steve Coupe Steve Coupe on Dec 19, 2014
    @Karen Knabe Inside the tank, there should be a small hose that clips to the top of the tube sticking up in the center of the tank. As the tank is filling, water should be streaming out of the small hose and into the tube. That tube leads directly to the bowl and that is how the bowl is filled. This diagram shows the refill tube: https://www.plumbingsupply.com/images/ur-toilet-parts-4421-4434.gif
  • Carole Carole on Dec 19, 2014
    We just installed 2 new toilets in our home, the one upstairs fills fine, but the one downstairs does the same as yours. They are water saving units. My husband tried adjusting the flapper ando that didn't work. So we just hold down the handle until the bowl starts refilling. You might need to put a sign over the toilet. ;)
  • Jamoschini Jamoschini on Dec 21, 2014
    This just happened to my toilet. Look in the tank and see if the water is trickling out of your toilet element. If so, go to your local hardware store and replace that element. Mine is called a Fluid Master 400-model Antisiphon. It is the element that has a little hose that would be trickling water when it should be a steady stream of water.
  • Cindy Butler Dorthy Cindy Butler Dorthy on Dec 21, 2014
    Hubbie says look inside the tank and there is a a tube that connects to the fill valve and if it is broken or disconnected it will not fill the bowl properly
  • Karen Knabe Karen Knabe on Dec 22, 2014
    Thank you all, it's fixed and working fine. Replace the parts as suggested