Is your toilet running? Strange gurgling noise coming from your toilet bowl? From water leaks to odd noises, toilets can do all sorts of frustrating things.

The good thing is, with a little troubleshooting, there are many toilet issues you can correct by yourself. Here, the experts at Ameri-Tec will go over some of the most common toilet problems, what they mean and whether it’s something you can fix yourself—or, if it is better to call in an expert.

1. Why Does My Toilet Always Run?

If your toilet is constantly running, it is something you should fix because it's most likely also costing you money on your water bill.

A common cause of a running toilet is something incorrect with the overflow tube. Located in the tank in the back of your toilet, an overflow tube directs excess water from the tank into your toilet bowl so the water level in your tank does not get too high and spill over the top of the tank. Occasionally, the problem is that the plastic tube connecting your fill valve to your overflow tube got detached. If that’s the case, you most likely can just reach into the tank and reattach them. It also might be your toilet is running due to the fact the overflow tube is too short for the water level and needs to be replaced by one that is the appropriate height.

Another reason for a toilet to run could be the flapper--which serves as a plug in the bottom of your tank—is damaged and no longer forms the tight seal required to hold water in the tank. This enables water to seep through or around the damaged flapper and leak out the bottom of your tank into your toilet bowl.

At times, a running toilet is caused by something wrong with your toilet float, which is a floating device that determines the water level in your tank. It achieves this by shutting off your fill valve when the water level raises the float to a preset height. If your float is set too high, this will allow the water level to rise too high, and the unwanted water will spill into your overflow tube and down into your toilet bowl.

2. Why Does My Toilet Keep Gurgling?

A gurgling toilet is commonly caused by a partial clog in your toilet, drain lines, mainline or a blockage in your sewage vent. If the reason for the noise is a clog in your toilet, you can attempt to correct this by using a plunger or drain snake to release the clog. If this doesn’t work, you can check where your sewage vent exits your home to make sure it is not blocked by debris that would restrict air flow.

If you've done these two trouble shooting tasks and the toilet is still gurgling or bubbling, it would be a good idea to call a professional such an expert from Ameri-Tec to evaluate the problem. As the experienced plumber in Narvon, Ameri-Tec will investigate whether the noise is caused by a blockage in one of the drain lines transporting toilet water out of your home or the mainline that takes waste water away from your home to the municipal water system.

4. Why Is My Toilet Hard to Flush?

If your toilet is hard to flush, there’s a good chance the pr