Do it yourself

Here we've compiled some of our favorite home repair tips.

Here's a great home improvement article about toilet repair. The flush toilet is the most important item in the plumbing system. Sanitation codes require most homes to have one. A non-working toilet is a health hazard.

Toilets are subject to three common problems:

• Wear

• Corrosion

• Clogging

The flush toilet has two major parts, a flush tank and a bowl. Moving parts in the flush tank are the first to wear out or corrode. Clogging usually occurs in the bowl.

Basically the toilet works because of two valves:

• A float valve

• A flush valve

The float valve is an intake valve that lets water into the tank. When the tank is full, it automatically shuts off the water. The flush valve a flapper or ball, lets the water rush out fast enough to keep the bowl clean.

In the flush tank, the water level is controlled by a float arm and ball. The ball is hollow and floats on the water in the tank. When it rises high enough, the float arm closes the inlet valve.

Noise in the tank, no matter how low, is usually a good indication that there is a small leak. If the water keeps running, there is probably an internal leak in the flush tank. No water gets on the floor because it runs down the overflow tube. This often means the float ball is out of adjustment. The first thing to do is raise the ball by hand. If the water stops, try setting the adjusting screw in the end of the float arm. If that doesn't work, bend the float arm. Lowering the float will cause the valve to close before water reaches the top of the overflow tube.

If the water still runs, one of the valves is leaking. Sometimes it is difficult to find which one. You can put food coloring into the tank. Don't flush the toilet. If some of the color gets to the bowl after about 15 minutes, the flush valve is leaking. Turn off the inlet valve under the tank. Feel around the flush valve and the valve seat. Clean it if necessary. Check to see if the valve drops back straight into the center of the valve seat. If not, adjust the lift wire so it does.

When the flush valve does not leak but the tank keeps running down the overflow tube, the problem is probably the float valve. To repair it, turn off the valve below the tank. Take apart the float valve carefully, keeping the parts in order. You may be able to find replacement parts for any that are broken or worn. Most likely you'll have to purchase a toilet tank repair kit. Most of these kits have plastic fittings. Directions are included.

Sometimes the flush tank will leak water onto the floor. This happens when one of the tank fittings corrodes. Find out where the water is coming from and turn off the inlet valve. Then drain the tank by flushing. Remove the fitting and replace the washers. Be careful when replacing the fitting. Turning too tight will crack the flush tank.

Don't be too hasty to replace valves. In a warm, humid house the cold water supply may cause the tank to sweat rather than leak. You can get a special fitting that lets a little hot water into the tank with each flush.

Toilet bowls seldom plug up unless something that doesn't belong there has been dropped in. Often a wire hanger or a plunger will remove it. You may need to use a special toilet auger. As a last resort only, it may be necessary to shut off the water, drain the tank, and take up the bowl to reach the obstruction from below. Use a new gasket between the toilet and soil pipe. Be careful when tightening the bolts so that you don't crack the toilet bowl.

If all else fails to unclog a toilet, you will have to drain it, unbolt it, and remove the obstruction. When you replace it, be sure there is a good seal between the bowl and the soil pipe. Be careful not to tighten the bolts too much.

Toilet tank repair kits include replacements for flush tank parts. It may be easier to purchase the entire kit than to search for individual parts.

The water comes into the toilet tank through the float valve. The rise and fall of the float ball opens and closes the water intake valve. The most common toilet leak occurs when the float arm is out of adjustment. This causes the tank to overfill and water to leak out of the overflow tube.

Water runs from the tank through the flush valve and then through the bowl. The valve must fit snugly into the valve seat. Water will leak out of the flush valve if the seat is in bad condition or the guides are not seating the valve properly.

Raising the float by hand is a test to see if the intake valve will shut off. If it will, the float needs adjusting. The float arm is adjusted with the adjusting screw at the end of the arm. Sometimes the float arm must also be bent slightly to make the valve close at the proper water level.

The moving parts in a toilet are where most toilet problem.

Another one for all you do-it-yourself buffs out there. Five different kinds of pipe are used in most homes:

•    Black iron pipe

•    Galvanized pipe

•    Copper tubing

•    Plastic pipe

•    Clay sewer pipe

Iron and steel pipes are threaded and may be screwed together. Pipe joint compound or teflon tape on the male threads will help prevent leaks and make it easy to join the pipe and fittings together. Be careful not to break the pipes by screwing them together too tightly.

Black iron pipes should be used only for gas lines.

Galvanizing is a coating of zinc that slows down the rusting of pipes. After several years, the pipe will rust. So, whenever possible, use copper tubing to replace galvanized pipe. Copper costs more, but it doesn't rust, lasts longer, does not need to be threaded, and can be bent around obstacles. Copper also weighs less and is easier to install.

However, where copper touches galvanized pipe, the copper will begin to destroy the galvanized pipe within a ew weeks. To avoid this eating away, ailed electrolysis, you must use an insulating union or coupling.

You can cut copper tubing with a jacksaw, but you will have to file the edge clean both inside and out. A cutter leaves cleaner ends. The reamer on the cutter is used o reshape the turned-in edge. Copper tubing is joined to copper fittings by moldering.

Plastic pipe is becoming more corn- on for replacement pipe. It does not dust or corrode and is not subject to electrolysis. Check your local building code to see if it is permitted in your area.

Plastic pipe is easy to cut with a hacksaw. Clean the inside edge with a pocket knife and the outside with a file.

Different kinds of plastics are used for pipes. Some are rated for hot water, some for sewers, and some can be used under pressure. Be sure you use the right kind for the job. Cements for joining plastic pipe also vary. Base your choice of cement on the type of pipe you are using.

People have made pipe for thousands of years, but fittings with standard,

A copper tubing cutter makes the cleanest cut. Tighten the handle and rotate the cutter around the pipe. Repeat this process until the pipe is cut through

An insulated union is used to join copper and iron pipe. It prevents electrolysis by keeping the pipes from touching. The insulator is usually fiber or nylon.

Some of the main kinds of fittings are:

•    Couplings

•    Nipples

•    Reducers

•    Unions

•    Caps and plugs

•    Ells

No fitting ever goes inside a pipe. Pipes can be externally threaded only. Some fittings are threaded and some are slip (glued or soldered) fittings. There are regular and drainage fittings. The drainage fittings are smoother inside. Choose the right type and the right material for the job. Special fittings can be made by combining these fittings.