Replacing toilet handles, water closets, tub spouts
Tool Tips—April 2014
When replacing the toilet handle on 90% of the toilets out in the field, it seems like all aftermarket handles and sometimes even OEM handles don’t fit in the square cutout of the porcelain all the time. A common problem is that you have to torque the handle down, which sometimes results in stripping the nut. Or the next time someone presses the handle down hard to flush, the inner part of the shaft moves in the porcelain square, causing the chain adjustment to be thrown off and the toilet to run.
Here is my trick — save your empty Teflon case roll and cut out your own shims with a pair of snips. The roll is plastic, so it won’t rust out. Just place it between the porcelain and the new toilet handle square cutout. This will prevent the handle housing from moving and keep the flapper from running.