any plumbers out there. *** JOB DONE THANKS ***

[al]

Anytime.


al.

 

[Neil]

And just to hijack this, a little - one of the loos, when you flush it, it can take an age to fill up. If you take the lid off the tank - sometimes that's enough for the ballcock thingmy to drop down and it start filling at a normal pace, other times a gentle prod and it falls to the empty-ish level of water.

Seems the plastic / nylon-y hinge thing maybe is a bit sticky - this normal, and will a bit of WD-40 do the trick? (I've seen the duct tape / WD-40 flowchart!)

This will depend on the type of cistern and valve, some common causes are
The float/ ball rubs on the side of the cistern (especially if it's a plastic cistern). Turning the ball slightly will cure this.

The arm drags on the side of the syphon or gets caught on the moulding line on the top of the syphon. Turning the valve usually cures this.

Some of the newer valves rely on water pressure to "suck" the valve closed and any split or limescale on the washer or in the valve will cause this. A new washer will cure it.

The old style have 2 different washers These are identified by a long arm with a float.

The newer type can be any one of about 15 different washers costing nearly as much as a new valve and are identified by being very compact or a short arm (3" or less).

The pivot where the arm meets the valve rarely stick of sieze but it has been known, WD40 will be washed away in a few flushes so a silicone based spray is better though a heavy silicone grease is better.

Usually the valve would be stripped and the washer changed anyway as if it's problematic it's better to cover all the bases rather than being called back later the same week.

Hope that helps.

Thanks for the info - most helpful.

The ball isn't touching the back of the tank, nor does the arm seem to foul anything - just seems to be the plastic / nylon-y joint thing that sticks a bit - as far as I can see, anyways.

Most of the time, simply lifting the lid off the tank can be enough (vibration, I'm guessing) for the arm / ball to fall, other times, the lightest of touch and it will fall.

I've got some silicone spray (used for lubing car windows in their channels?), so I'll give that a go, thanks.