How to fix a Toilet -Toilet Handle Replacement.

In this How To Fix a Toilet video, Bob shows you his method of cutting off the fused lock nut from a toilet tank handle/lever.
Older style handles were made with cheap composite metals which would fuse to the tank lever threads making them impossible to remove.
A word of caution! Toilet handles were made with opposite wound threads meaning that the old saying "righty tighty / lefty loosey" does not apply! Force the issue and you could end up with a cracked toilet tank.
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Regards & Happy Plumbing,
Bob

[@naomi9664]

Thank you! This is the first tip they forget to mention when removing old toilet levers! Helped me out so much!

[@cashtonb5705]

YOURE THE BEST BOB THANK YOU

[@janicecrawley6278]

Yipee! It WORKED! THANKS!!

[@twizzlet4352]

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!!

[@BobsPlumbingVideos]

You are so welcome! Thanks for the visit!

[@colintimian4770]

Left handed thread? I feel so silly. I have been using PB blaster for 3 days. After watching a minute of your video, I leaped out of my chair and had the handle off in 45 seconds. THANK YOU, THANK YOU. I will put my cut off wheel back in the toolbox.

[@BobsPlumbingVideos]

Great job!

[@daveleary5830]

Of course, with my fantastic luck, my handle fixture WAS tighty righty. It had a frozen nut from a fixture from the 80's, if that's a factor in the thread direction. Thanks though. I applied penetrating oil on it for a full day, put the vice grips to both sides, and I saw the threads moving out from the nut and that was enough to break the rust and I backed it off ice and easy, right to the trash bin. Thanks again!

[@joesephleon2003]

Thank you, thank you, thank you! this nut was frozen at my rental, and i was turning it the wrong way, thankfully i didn't crack the tank.

[@twizzlet4352]

Thank you!!!!!!

[@BobsPlumbingVideos]

You're welcome!

[@esthergutierrez5666]

Thank you for this video. It helped me remove the plastic from the toilet handle.

[@BobsPlumbingVideos]

Glad it helped!

[@darnelllewis5984]

Great video

[@walterm7318]

Great video Bob

[@BobsPlumbingVideos]

Thank You, Walter and thanks for watching.

[@yuribialopez8316]

Thankyou so much 😊 👍

[@corrinastarr14]

Need to go get myself a little saw!

[@AutoMatters]

Thank you VERY much for saying that the plastic nut that holds the toilet handle on must be turned to the RIGHT to loosen. After struggling with inadvertently tightening the four-wings (for hand-tightening) wing nut with slipjoint pliers, and breaking off two of its four wings (but somehow not cracking the toilet tank, despite having turned the plastic wing nut at least 1/4 turn TIGHTER), I watched your video and then somehow managed to turn it back the to the RIGHT, and then continue to LOOSEN and remove it. Now I will buy a new toilet handle, since it's wing nut is almost destroyed. By the way, I had been trying to remove the handle so that I could then spray the friction points with non-drip WD40, because the handle was not rotating back to its home position after flushing - so the water kept running. How should I have fixed that?

[@BobsPlumbingVideos]

Excellent, thanks for checking out the video!

[@bobbiejoparsons9409]

YaaaYYY! This is so awesome. Thank you

[@BobsPlumbingVideos]

Our secret! Don't tell anyone, regards. Bob

[@SunFlowersCutie]

Thank you! Mine was stuck so tight, as if though someone gorilla glued it. 🤦‍♀️

[@cathe0113]

Need help with replacing a toilet handle on an old Richmond toliet. I have a universal handle or lever that has the plastic nut. The metal bar corroded. I bought the same model on amazon. It now has a metal nut that makes the handle too tight to flush. I tried bending the rod that lifts up and down to face more inward . The toilet sides of the tank are not flat. It's not round. The 2 sides stick out more than the inner tank part. It's really old. I don't know which lever or handle will actually fit.

[@BobsPlumbingVideos]

send me some pictures. [e-mail]

[@katherinehobbs1488]

I'm going to try it ...now I have buy a saw...can I use a knife

[@janegarrabrant4706]

Is this correct? With reverse thread, you tighten by turning counter-clockwise, and loosen by turning clockwise. Fluidmaster instructions verbatim: “REMOVE LEVER unscrew tank lever nut by twisting counter-clockwise, remove nut, and pull lever from tank” They even have a picture with an arrow showing which way to turn. “INSTALL LEVER Hand-tighten locknut clockwise” Am I crazy or are the Fluidmaster instructions WRONG?? I spent a lot of time following those instructions and finally had to hacksaw the plastic nut off. Not happy.

[@BobsPlumbingVideos]

Since I've been in the trade, toilet tank levers typically are tightened counterclockwise (left) and removed clockwise (right). It's possible Fluidmaster has there own proprietary way of doing it, but I speak from experience (cracking a toilet tank) while trying trying to remove an old tank lever. Thanks for commenting.

[@janegarrabrant4706]

@@BobsPlumbingVideos Thanks Bob. I emailed Fluidmaster about this. They responded that I was correct (that instructions are wrong) and they would alert the “Instructions Team”. Vindication! But still, it caused a lot of frustration and wasted time. 🤷‍♀️

[@tanyawersinger2693]

Bob I have a wolverine handle, and it fell apart, now I am stuck with the arm thingy and the front plate piece. How do I remove the thing, it's stuck fast. Help

[@BobsPlumbingVideos]

If it is in fact like the one in the video, that front chrome piece has two flats on either side. You should be able to place a channel lock pliers on it and in a clockwise direction loosen it. Be careful! Don't want to crack the tank!

[@tanyawersinger2693]

@@BobsPlumbingVideos thanks for the help. After watching I did manage to get it off. I held on to the threaded area in the the tank and manage to unscrew it from the outside of the tank. Miracle. I declare if I hadn't found your video I would still be at it. What is the next best handle to use on a toilet tank? I bought a cheap on at Ace Hardware, and it is cheap, Thanks.

[@darleneellis5038]

My toilet handler don't have a chain connected to it

[@BobsPlumbingVideos]

What does it have?

[@OCC_Plumbing_and_Restorations]

I've cracked a toilet while trying to remove an old handle and I know a few people who also did it.

[@BobsPlumbingVideos]

It's a common problem!