9 Solutions For Too Much Water in the Toilet Bowl

Last Updated on September 21, 2022 by Alex Cubias

There are a number of reasons a toilet bowl would have too much water in it. Here are a few reasons why that would happen and what you can do to fix it.

1. Unclog the Toilet with a Plunger

A toilet will overflow with water if a clog in the pipes is keeping water from draining out, so check for a blockage and clear out your toilet first to make sure that’s not the issue. You can use a plunger on the toilet to pull up any material that could be clogging your pipes.

If you don’t know whether or not a clog is an issue, check the side of the toilet. The side will have a curve in it in an S or P shape. If the top curve is lower than the water level, you have a clog in your toilet. If the water is lower than the highest curve, then the issue is caused by something else.

Remember, only waste and toilet paper should ever be flushed down a toilet! Trash and waste that doesn’t dissolve in water may be keeping water from getting flushed, so dredge it up and pull it out of the toilet. Of course, you will want to wear a pair of very sturdy rubber gloves. If this doesn’t fix the problem, then you might need to bring in the big guns.

Related Article: THE BEST WAY TO UNCLOG A TOILET WHEN NOTHING WORKS

2. Use Chemical Drain Cleaner

Chemical drain cleaners can dissolve and unclog any blockage that’s too far down for the plunger to go. You can use a cleaner built specifically for toilet clogs, but you can also try using lots of dish soap. Dish soap is built to dissolve tough grease and can clean out your pipes and let that water drain better.

Let the drain cleaner sit for a while, then flush the toilet and see if the water goes down better.

If cleaning out your pipes doesn’t lower the water, then clogs probably aren’t the problem, and you should look into an issue with the flushing mechanism.

3. Repair a Broken Floater

If clogging isn’t the problem, then you’re going to have to look into the toilet tank. That’s where all the machinery to work the flushing system is, and if part of that mechanism is broken, then your toilet won’t refill the way it’s supposed to. The floater is the most likely culprit, but not always the cause.

The floater is the rubber ball on a stick in your toilet tank. This rubber ball keeps track of the water level, and if it isn’t working, it can lead to issues with the tank refilling. The floater isn’t necessarily broken, there are other reasons the toilet bowl has too much water, but if it is, then repair or replace it to fix the water level.

Before working on the water tank in any capacity, turn off the water valve located by or on the toilet, and flush until the tank no longer has water in it. Then turn the water back on and see if it refills to the right level.

4. Adjust Float Height

The floater may not be broken. It might just be up too high, letting too much water in the tank. If the floater is a rubber ball, you can lower it to get the water line lower. The rubber ball is attached to a stick, which is attached to a pump with a screw. After emptying the tank, unscrew the screw and adjust it to a lower level to lower the rubber ball and keep excess water out of the tank.

Not every toilet floater is the same, some use cups that turn to lower or raise the water level. Remember to wear gloves and empty the tank before doing this to keep toilet water from splashing everywhere!

Related Article: How to Adjust Water Level in a Toilet bowl and Tank

5. Cleaning Out the Other Holes in Your Toilet

Did you know the flush hole isn’t the only hole in your toilet? There are lots of small holes just under the rim of the toilet bowl that are roughly fifteen smaller holes that bring in new water when you flush your toilet. You’ve probably seen the water come out of these holes before without realizing they were there!

Hard water build-up in these holes can mean water won’t enter the toilet bowl correctly. Use a bent coat hanger to clean out the residue in these holes. To see the hole’s location, you can use a small handheld mirror in the toilet bowl.

6. Clean Water Jet

Like the holes under the rim, there are other holes in your toilet you don’t notice. Some toilets have a jet coming in the opposite direction from the flush hole. This can get clogged, so use a bent wire or drain snake to unclog it and let the water flow correctly in the toilet.

7. Fix the Flapper

The flapper is another culprit for a toilet bowl with too much water. This is a rubber plug at the bottom of the toilet tank that lets water into the bowl from the tank. It’s attached to a chain, and it the chain has too much or too little slack, the flapper won’t be able to control water flow. Fix the chain length to fix the water flow.

8. Replace the Flapper

If the flapper chain is the right length and the water is still not being properly controlled, then the flapper may have just given out! Replace the rubber plug to keep the water in check.

If you’re wondering whether the flapper is the real reason, flush and see if water continues to leak from the tank into the bowl after the water reaches the floater. Water in the toilet should be at the floater line, and not above the highest curve in the pipes.

Related Article: REPLACE A TOILET FLAPPER IN 5 MINUTES

9. Replace Fill Valves

Like other toilet parts, fill valves get worn out and don’t do their job anymore. If all other mechanisms in the toilet are still working, and the fill valve isn’t in line with the water in the tank, then it might be time to retire that piece and replace it with a new one. Make sure you know the fill valve is the problem before you do anything. Try other solutions first.

Related Article: 5 BEST TOILET FILL VALVES