We fixed it!

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So, to put the cistern back, we first made sure all the rubber seals were nice and tight – no leaks there. Then we lifted the cistern back into position and somehow, lying on my back on the floor, I managed to winkle the washers and wingnut back into place on the right side. But the left was much harder. The washers that should have been there were already missing, and then while fiddling about with just my fingertips in the tiny gap, I dropped the nut into the inaccessible space behind the toilet! Bother. Luckily a rummage in the garage produced another nut, so I tried again and managed to fasten everything down. I reconnected the water and checked for leaks – all good. We flushed the toilet and at first it all seemed fine, but then after the third flush water began dribbling out from between the cistern and the toilet pan! It seems that when the toilet is flushed, water gushes out with some force and a big rubber washer between the cistern and the pan should make sure it goes in the right direction. If it doesn’t, there is actually a depression there where water can accumulate, so everything appears fine – until suddenly it overflows! So we took the whole thing off again and examined the washer. It looked as though it must be the wrong size, as it was obviously small enough that when everything was screwed down, the washer was pushed partly into the hole. You could see from the shape of it that it had always been like this, although somehow it had worked before. Anyway I thought I had better get a new one, but when I looked online all the mainstream suppliers of such parts only offered one size – the one we had. Perhaps that was the problem someone else had run into before. Finally I managed to find a supplier of spare parts who did actually have more than one type of this ‘doughnut washer’ available. And when I asked for their advice they suggested one, so I ordered that, then had to wait a few days for it to arrive. When it came I wasn’t sure it was quite right, but obviously there was only one way to find out. My partner was away so I decided to try and fix it before he got back (less cursing and shouting that way!!) I managed to get the whole thing off again, then position the new washer and put the cistern back, with the bolts through the holes. So far so good. But getting the washers and wingnuts back on the bolts was a nightmare. And of course I dropped the nut down the inaccessible black hole again! This was obviously going to be a long job, but there was no point getting cross about it. I armed myself with a magnet and a length of string. Big One managed to drag herself away from her book and come to help as well. I used the magnet to ‘fish’ down the hole for the nut I had dropped. I found that one – and the one I lost before – and a couple more that had obviously been lost down there by other people – and a spare screw – and the washers that had been missing from the cistern, plus a few spares that presumably others had lost before as well. Bonus! Then we had the job of putting everything back together tightly, which took ages. It was one of those jobs which you just have to resign yourself to as an exercise in infinite patience. Positioning a nut on a screw thread, upside down and back to front, in a space which only accommodates two fingers and where you can’t see what you are doing, and the nut has to go up onto the thread so if it doesn’t ‘catch’ it just drops off and disappears along with the washers above it, is really quite difficult. Finally I managed to fit one and Big One managed the other. After that re-attaching the water pipe was a breeze. Of course we couldn’t celebrate yet as we knew it could still leak! I also put a bead of silicone sealant along the edge between the tile we removed and the next, so when it dried I could put the tile back and it would look neat but could just be easily lifted off another time. I flushed the toilet a couple of times, and it seemed OK. I draped bits of toilet paper around the water pipe connection and between the cistern and the toilet pan to detect any dribbles – nothing. That was two days ago now and it’s still fine so I think that means we can now officially celebrate. And thanks to ‘Fix the Bog’ for the advice and service - yes that really is what they’re called: All rights reserved. © Text and image copyright Fleur 2025.