Rocking toilet

Hi, I had a toilet that would rock forward sometimes when I sat down on it. I loosened up the nuts and shimmed it in two spots in the back. Then I tightened up the nuts and all is well.

I'm a little paranoid that the rocking may have compromised the wax seal. I don't have any leaking or anything, but that concerns me. Should I have pulled the toilet and put in a new ring before shimming it? Thanks, I'm just looking for some peace of mind.

You're on the right track. When a toilet rocks, the wax ring seal can break. I'd pull the toilet, clean the old wax ring off of it and the flange, then set the toilet in place without a ring. If it still rocks, then determine where to shim, and reset the toilet on a new ring.

Yep, wax isn't like rubber...it doesn't rebound, so the movement probably caused a seal leak. Now, unless you have a backup, it may not leak liquids, but it would allow gasses to escape.

JumpG, If the Cadet 3 bowl that you installed rocks, then you need to shim near the back.
I like to set the bowl without wax first, then I can see how much shimming it will need.
I then pull the bowl back up, put the wax down, and reset the bowl.

When the bowl is finished being set, I caulk with PolySeamSeal around the base, except at the back. If the wax is leaking, I want to know right away.

For peace of mind, I would just reset it.

Terry said:

JumpG, If the Cadet 3 bowl that you installed rocks, then you need to shim near the back.
I like to set the bowl without wax first, then I can see how much shimming it will need.
I then pull the bowl back up, put the wax down, and reset the bowl.

When the bowl is finished being set, I caulk with PolySeamSeal around the base, except at the back. If the wax is leaking, I want to know right away.

For peace of mind, I would just reset it.

Click to expand...

Thanks, Terry, I will reset it just to be sure.

This isn't the Cadet, by the way. I did shim that one when I installed it and it's great. The rocker was a cheapie Kohler Devonshire that was here when I bought the house. I will probably end up replacing it in the future.