New Toilet Leaking

I had a new toilet (Kohler) installed. It's been in two days and I notice a slight leaking around the toilet seal where the toilet sits on the tile floor. I've called the plumber to come fix it, but before he arrives I would like to know what would cause this leakage. I want to know what questions to ask and what to look for when the plumber arrives. Seems to me a toilet installation is a pretty simple deal. At least based on what I've read on-line. Could be I've got a bad toilet or a bad plumber. Or maybe there are other possibilities. I'd like to know.

One more question. Should toilets sit level? Mine is not. If the floor is off, should the toilet be slightly off also.

Thanks for your help.

BJW

The toilet should be level. Shims are used to level it on an unlevel floor. The cause of the leak may be the fact the to toilet is not seated on the wax ring properly and that could be why the toilet isn't level. I doubt if the problem is a bad toilet, and I wouldn't necessarily call the plumber bad either. You're right, toilet installation is a pretty simple operation, but stuff can happen even on simple jobs. Give the man a chance to make it right.

There are 2 parts in between the toilet and the drain: a flange and a wax ring. The flange connects the drain to the toilet and should sit flush with the finished floor (the tile). It should be cemented below the floor to the drain. The connection for these 2 parts is below the floor, so a leak here would likely result in a a water spot on the ceiling below the toilet.

The more likely suspect is the wax ring. It sits atop the flange and gets squished down by the weight of the toilet, creating a watertight seal. If your floor is uneven, it is possible that the toilet shifted, which can break the seal. A leaky ring would cause water to leak onto the floor of the bathroom from the base.

The toilet should be level to the floor to prevent it from jiggling. The flange should be level with the floor (and hence the toilet so the wax ring gets even pressure and seals on all sides.

Apart from making sure yr plumber sets the toilet properly in the seal, verify that the flange is at the right height, and that he secures the toilet so it cannot shift and break the seal.

I have a call into the plumber now. While I'm certain he knows to check the flange and the wax rings, I'll ask him about seeing if we can't level the toilet out a bit using shims.

Thank you for your replies.
BJW

Just remember that if the floor is level and the flange sets level on the floor, the toilet should set level without shims.

No biggie....He will just reset your toilet.