A
few months ago I installed a new Mansfield toilet for a friend.
The mechanism in the tank looked just like all the other Mansfield
toilets that I have seen and repaired.
But when I flushed it, the
similarities stopped right there.
Not much went down the drain.
Solids rarely went down in one flush. Even liquids, what should be
simple from an engineering standpoint, did not completely
disappear.
I took the lid off and watched to
make sure the mechanism was working properly. It seemed to be. But
the flush valve fell quite rapidly back into the hole.
This, I began to understand, is
what all those people have been hollering about. Those 1.6 gallon
per flush toilets that don't work right.
It seems to me that Mansfield
took their old design, which worked rather well, and altered it so
the flush valve falls back into place much faster, thus limiting
the amount of water that can pour out of the tank. If I recall
correctly, the tank wasn't even half empty when the flush valve
stopped the action.
So I got wise and tried flushing
by holding the lever down until the liquid in the bowl made that
funny gurgling sound that most toilets make when they succeed. And
it seemed to flush much better. It probably consumed more than the
EPA's allotted 1.6 gallons, but I didn't care. I repeatedly
flushed the new toilet in this fashion and it seemed to work
almost every time. It does, however, mean standing there for a few
seconds, which could get frustrating when you're in a hurry.
So if your toilet is fairly new
(it would say 1.6 GPF on the bowl behind the seat) then try
holding the trip lever down until everything is gone. Otherwise, I
don't have a clue what's wrong with your Mansfield toilet. If I
stumble across a way to make the flush valve descend more slowly,
I will let you know. I wonder if the flush valve (which is
replaceable) could be replaced with one from the previous
generation?
Bruce W. Maki, Editor.
