Toilet draining completely, no leak found

[jhqpzjg]

Hey Folks,

Can't figure this one out. The water in the bowl drains completely after some time (a number of days), below the level of the trap, and even below the level of the jet outlet. I noticed it once the toilet was not in use, as no one was living at the house. I thought it might be evaporation, as the climate is really dry here, but the other toilet in the house doesn't evaporate at the same rate. It might be draining to a certain point, and then evaporating the rest of the way, but I still can't figure out why it would be different than the other toilet. I can't locate a leak anywhere, either. Nothing on the floor in the bathroom, which is on the second floor, no evidence of water or water damage on the first floor, and no evidence of water in the basement where the pipes are exposed. There are no cracks in the toilet that I can see, and the house is about 12 years old. This is a Briggs toilet. Any insight?

Thanks,

J

 

[majakdragon]

Guessing that there is a crack in the bowl, and the water is leaking into the drain pipe. This is lucky thing for you since it isn't causing a mess. The downside is that it will allow sewer gas to enter the home until you change the toilet out. Keep adding water to the bowl until you decide what you will be doing.

 

[jhqpzjg]

Thanks for the reply, M.

Is it possible that this crack could be in a place I can't see, or so small that its not visible? I've looked, and can't see one.

Thanks,

J

 

[majakdragon]

Quite possible. May be a hairline crack low in the trap. Since it takes a few days to drain, this is most likely the problem.

 

[Mr_David]

You would have to pull the toilet off the floor to check.
one way is to set it up on some blocks so you can see the bottom.
put some water in the bowl to just below it's normal lever. You could add some dye/food color to make the leak more visible.

 

[drainman]

I have a similar problem here at my home. I have two Kohler low flush toilets (1.28gfp) installed back to back (either side of a wall) and on one of them the water keeps draining out of the bowl. Gets quite low. When I flush the toilet in the other bathroom, I can see the water moving in the problem toilet. Over the period of a number of flushs the water eventually almost drains completely. I have contacted Kohler and they think its a drain pipe issue where there may be a "T" type connection in the drain vs a "V" type connection. Unfortunately all the drainpipes are behind finished drywall. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Originally Kohler sent me two replacement toilets because they thought the problem was in the toilet. I had the same problem after installing both of them.

 

[Caduceus]

The slow siphoning described on both toilet scenarios could also be related to a clog in the drain line. The clog doesn't allow an even distribution of atmospheric pressure on both sides of the trap seal.
Though in jhqpzjg's case I would be leaning towards the crack in the bowl as Mr. David stated.

 

[havasu]

Do they still use antifreeze to look for cracks?

 

[Caduceus]

I'm sure it would be the pink non-toxic RV anti freeze if you did.
Clarification to my last post:
May be a crack in bowl as majakdragon stated, search to confirm as Mr David stated.