drip from tank bolt, Help!

I just installed my second Toto drake. This one for the guest bathroom. The first one I installed, about a year ago in the master bath, went without a hitch. This one has a slight drip from the right hand tank bolt that I cannot seem to stop no matter what I do.

I used the search feature here and tried all of the suggestions with no luck. It will remain dry for a few hours, and then when I go check it there is water on the bolt under the tank.

Here is what I have tried:


[*]Installed per directions, both bolts leaked

[*]sanded inside of tank around bolt holes, same result

[*]installed extra washer and bolt directly under tank then reattached tank to bowl with metal washer and nut, same result

*removed extra washer and bolt from previous step and added rubber washer on bolt atop metal washer under bowl. Same result.

*I added a large metal washer above the rubber washer at the bolt head on the inside of the tank. No difference.

* Then I started tightening each bottom nut just a little tighter then I thought was needed as the tank was not at all loose. This stopped the drip from the left bolt, but not the right bolt.

I have tightened the bolt to the point where angels fear to tread, and I won't go any tighter for fear of cracking or breaking something. This seemed to slow the drip but not completely stop it.

I am at my wits end. Sometimes it takes over 12 hours for the drip to appear. I would appreciate any constructive suggestions.

I picked up the Toto not quite two weeks ago if that means anything.

HELP PLEASE!

TIA,
Dan

"installed extra washer and bolt directly under tank then reattached tank to bowl with metal washer and nut, same result"
I assume bolt is a misstatement, that you actually mean "nut". Not to pick on the misstatement, but per the instructions, the nut is not extra, it's supposed to go on the underside of the tank before placing it on the bowl.

I also did not see you mention the "three points of contact" that Toto emphasizes in the instructions.

I suggest you go over the instructions again carefully. Sit down in a comfortable chair and reread them a few times until they really make sense and you can visualize each step based on your mental picture of the product.

Sometimes it's a bad tank.

We sand where the bolts go through, then drop the brass bolt with rubber washer and washer it and nut it from under the bowl.

If you are using the extra nuts and washers, you would put another rubber washer under the tank, then the nut.

If you think the bolts are not leaking, but you still have a leak, it can be the seal for the flush valve.
I take a large set of pliers, or other type of wrench, remove, sand the inside and reassemble.
Or take the tank back for one that doesn't need sanding under the flush valve.
Once in a blue moon, a person can find just a small spec that keeps the seal from laying flat.
Thank goodness it's rare.

tank

I am not sure why the other things do not stop the leak, if we are reading them correctly, but putting a metal washer between the bolt head and the rubber washer is guaranteed to create a leak.

Possibly a small crack in the tank around the bolt hole. A good light source and magnifying glass will help you detect whether or not there is a crack.

Good luck.

pull the leaking bolt out and press a small amount of plumbers putty on the rubber washer and reinstall the bolt. If that wont stop the leak, the cause is something else.

thanks

for catching my typos. I did mean nut and I never let a metal washer come into direct contact with Porceline/china/whatever. I always use a rubber washer either under or over the metal washer as appropriate.

I did go to some hardware stores in the sticks where I live to try and get Toto replacement rubber gaskets, but no joy here.

So, I eased off both tank bolts, took off the right one and gave it a wrap of Teflon tape on the threads. Then I slowly tightened each bolt until just snug.
And no wiggle from the tank.

I know that I should only change one variable at a time, but I was a little frustrated. Oh, well, No leaks/drips/runs or errors since noon yesterday!

Thank you all for the feedback and hopefully this will be the end of this story.

Thanks again.

Well, we don't argue with success! But teflon tape would not be my recommendation.....interferes with the nut, and no sealing function at all.

Do not put a metal washer under the head of the bolt.....just rubber.

Sometimes, allowing some blue food coloring to soak in the tank for a while will expose the source of the leak.

Same problem different solution

I installed a Drake a few weeks ago and had what appeared to be a leak at the tank bolts. What I found was that I had a confirmed leak at the flush valve and might have been leaking at the tank bolts. Here is what I found:

On my initial install I noticed the that tank bolts were not perpendicular to the mating surface. By looking from the side of the tank I could see that the bolts were running at an angle. I removed the tank, centered the bolts in the holes like it said in the installation instructions and reinstalled the tank. Now with the bolts centered and true I still had a leak. At this point I could not see how I could still be leaking at the bolts. When I had the tank off I noticed that there was some water around the bowl where the flush valve mates with the bowl. This time I decided to remove the tank still full of water so that I could see where the tank was leaking. I found that the it was leaking around the flush valve. I removed the flush valve to inspect for possible causes of the leak. One thing that I noticed is that the seal was not uniformly deformed from being compressed. My guess is that the flush valve was no cented in the hole causing the seal to not be properly seated with the tank. I reinstalled the flush valve ensuring that it was centered in the hole and for extra insurance I used some 600 grit sand paper to remove what was left of the extra plastic left on the mold seam on the flush valve where it mates with the seal. It is now leak free since fixing the flush valve.