Walmart really does have just about anything a person may need. One thing I love is the home improvement section of the store. Not only are there great prices, but the other day, I noticed these little tear off fliers near some of the items for sale. The flyers give you a step by step instruction on how to do small tasks around the house.
Last fall, we had a toilet annoyance. It would drain and refill about every 5 minutes. Not entirely refill, but refill back to the level in the mechanism. It was a huge annoyance, but also a huge money and water waster. I think our water bill increased by nearly a 1/3 that month. When it came time to do something about it, we called a plumber. Neither of us wanted to mess with the internal parts on the toilet for fear that we would break something else. It ended up costing us a pretty penny to have someone come over. I saw how fast he did it and yet he charged us a lot.
Back in the Walmart home improvement aisle, I saw a flyer for how to fix this very problem and what really got me thinking…How much would I save if I just tried to do these sorts of things on my own?
The answer is..I would save a ton. The part I needed to fix this issue was only $1.97. Let me just say that is a whole lot saved compared to what I shelled out to the plumber.
If you are having the same problem I did with my toilet, skip the plumber and do the following:
Head to Walmart and buy what is called a “Flapper”. The flapper is the rubber piece that sits over the valve in your toilet tank. Make sure you take the old one with you so you know what kind to get. There are several types and sizes. Get a flyer while you are there. If you forget or they are all out, here are the instructions:
1. Turn off the water to your toilet. This is usually located at the base of the toilet near the floor.
2. Flush the toilet to remove water from the tank.
3. Remove the old flapper and clean the area around where it was from debris or water sludge/hard water build up.
4. Attach the new flapper and turn the water back on.
5. Flush the toilet and watch how the flapper works. If it doesn’t sit right in it’s spot, it may need to be adjusted.
See how easy that is? No more running toilet and it only took 10 minutes of your time (if that!) and less than $2.00. So worth it!
Bonus tip! If you are a person who puts a brick in your toilet tank to save water, don’t. The brick can actually break down toilet components. Instead fill a plastic water bottle with rocks.
What do you do to save water and on plumbing costs?
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