Eljer Titan 4 being a pain

Support your community
Advertise with us
shop deals on amazon
Shop deals on ebay
Plumbing Forums

Help Support Plumbing Forums:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
T

Tryton

Member
Joined
Jan 9, 2011
Messages
5
Reaction score
0
Location
Hartford City, Indiana
I bought a new Eljer Titan 4 from Menard's yesterday and installed it today. The problem is that it's leaking between the tank and bowl. I cannot tighten the nuts up anymore. It has two lips sticking up that the tank sits on and there is a space in between them when the tank is tightened up. The front and back of the tank are in contact with these raised areas and there is no way to get it any tighter but the gasket apparently isn't sealed. I'm attaching a link so you can see what I'm talking about. Has anyone else had this trouble with this model? I have installed several toilets before and never had this happen. Is there a thicker gasket that exists maybe? I'm at a loss. Thanks in advance for the help.

Eljer - Titan 4 Tall Height Round Front Complete Toilet - Product Detail
 
Last edited:
Have you determined for certain that is is leaking between the tank and the bowl? If that gasket is the one that is leaking, it will leak when you flush the toilet, but not at any other time.

Is it possibly leaking around one of the bolts? I have seen this many times, either because of a defect in the casting preventing the rubber washers inside the tank from sealing, or a crack leading away from one of the bolt holes weeping out water.

Is there a crack in the body of the tank? Using a flashlight, look for a telltale water trail down the front, sides, back, or, more usually, one of the corners of the tank. These can be sneaky little leaks, not showing up as drips till the bottom of the tank, even though the crack might be halfway up the side.
 
No, I forgot to say that it's leaking only when I flush. I installed one of the pressure assist toilets several years ago and had the same problem so that's what I knew what was doing it. That toilet bowl had a flat top on it though so tightening the bolts further fixed it. This one has those lips that stick up so the tank bottoms out on those before the gasket gets enough pressure on it apparently. Tightening the bolts on this one is just gonna stress the porcelain more. I broke a tank once by overtightening so I'm always really careful. I'm not sure I can turn the nuts much more anyway.
 
Pull the tank back off and look for obvious signs that the gasket didn't seal either to the bowl or the tank. Rarely, but it does happen, the foam gasket doesn't seat properly, and the connection leaks when you flush. Look at the gasket as soon as you remove the tank, this is when the "evidence" is clearest.

I always tighten toilet tanks to the point that when I grab either side and try to twist the tank, it doesn't move, at least not easily. This tells me that the tank is tightened down against the bowl solidly. Usually, the foam gasket has sealed the tank to the bowl during the flush well before it gets to that point.
 
I did pull it off and inspect to make sure nothing looked pinched or torn and it looks good. I also made sure it didn't have any indentations or anything in it from being packed in the box. It did the same thing when I reinstalled it. Thank you for your help so far and I'm sorry I'm not giving much new info. Have you had experience with a bowl that wasn't flat? I'm also wondering if this gasket will swell up some and seal itself, but I know that's wishful thinking on my part.
 
It is possible that the water guard that the tank is resting on came out of the mold warped or bumped. (The 'lip' on the bowl)

Make sure that it is straight, a deviation will cause the tank to sit at an odd angle and may prevent the gasket from seating properly. Also check the inside of the bowl where the gasket seats to make sure that the casting seam is flush there, some models of toilets will have a fairly large cast line where the gasket seats which may cause an issue.


A totally unrelated issue: Make sure that the flush valve is tightened down all of the way. Sometimes these sit come from the factory not quite tight enough and may cause the gasket to ride too high on the tank to get a firm seal.
 
Installed one yesterday with the same problem. Called the company and they said they will send out another gasket - in 5-7 days. That's a long time for someone to hold it... I think these units are defective or they have the wrong gaskets shipped with the unit.
 
I'm gonna try to call them tomorrow and see if I can get a new gasket too. Been really busy since I posted this and haven't had time. I agree that they may have some issues with this model. The guy at Menard's where I bought it said they had just gotten them in and he didn't know a lot about them. I love the flush power. I think you could put a whole roll of tp in it and it would flush it.
 
Just an FYI update... received the new gasket and problem solved. The new gasket is slightly thicker, therefore it compressed tighter and solved the leak.
 
Is there any way to tell if the one I buy has the new, thicker gasket? Can I open the box in the store? If so, how thick should this new improved gasket be ? Have you tried sanding down the bumps that hold the tank up?
 
According to the installation instructions, it looks like the tank fits between the raised ribs on the mating bowl surface. Is that possible?
 
You can't sand it down. It is Vitreous China.
Solve your problem before you buy it. Buy something else.
Buy a Kohler or ?
 
I hate Eljer so I am going to side with Mr. David here and say skip the issue and buy something else.

That said, any good store will let you open the box on site. As a retailer I would much rather be standing there with the customer as he opens something to make sure it is what he wants. That way I make sure nothing goes missing and I can repack and tape the box properly. Getting back a destroyed box missing parts with mud and crap all over it because "it isn't what I wanted" is always a pain in the ass.
 
You wouldn't know at the store without having something to compare the thicker to the thinner gasket. Sanding the ribs isn't an option.

All I can say is the new gasket worked just fine, and you'll know if you have the wrong one right away when you install it.
 
I'm the OP but just recently had time to call the company. I got the new gasket but it says "Champion" on the packaging for the model. I'm wondering if they sent me the right onw.
 
Amer. Standard is so accustomed to sending out replacement gaskets for the Champions, maybe they send them out for all Eljer requests too just to cover their bases. I know, not funny....sorry.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top