Repairs on a budget
What a bathroom part costs and what it fixes are only loosely related. These are the cheap parts that undo a complaint people were about to answer with a new toilet, a new faucet or a service call.
Four parts, each the cheap answer to a complaint that usually gets an expensive one. Every one of them fits a measurement, so the tape measure comes out before the order goes in.
A worn flapper lets tank water seep into the bowl, and the fill valve refills it every so often: the hiss or the “ghost flush” you hear at night. Before buying anything, measure the opening of the flush valve under the flapper.
For a 3 inch valve, the Korky 3060BP is a flapper in chlorine-resistant rubber on a stainless steel chain. It is a flapper only, with no flush-volume adjustment and no published warranty.
For a 2 inch valve, the Fluidmaster PerforMAX 555CRP8 has a dial that sets the flush volume, for toilets rated 1.28 to 3.5 GPF, and installs peel-and-stick without removing the tank. The listing says returns will not be honored, which makes measuring first even more important.
The trap under a sink or shower holds a plug of water that keeps sewer gas out. Plumbing codes require that seal to be between 2 and 4 inches deep, and in a guest bathroom used rarely it can simply evaporate. Run the water for a few seconds and see whether the smell goes.
If the trap itself is cracked or leaking at its nuts, the Oatey Dearborn P9703WBG is a plain 1-1/2 inch P-trap with a reversible J-bend and wing nuts that tighten by hand. Two cautions from its listing: a bathroom sink tailpiece is usually 1-1/4 inch, so measure, and the listing contradicts itself on PVC versus polypropylene, so don’t plan to solvent-glue it.
On a push-button (click) pop-up drain, the chrome cap is often the worn part, not the drain. The Fastrohy pair of caps is 2.56 in (65 mm) across with a 0.31 in (8 mm) screw hole, in zinc alloy. Unscrew the old cap and measure both figures before ordering: the maker advises the same.
No part needed to start. Unscrew the aerator at the tip of the spout, soak it in white vinegar and rinse the screen. If it is corroded, take it to the hardware store: standard US aerators use a 15/16 in male or 55/64 in female thread, and the two are not interchangeable.
Before replacing the hose, replace the rubber washer inside its nut. It costs pennies and is often the actual fault. While you are under the sink, check that the shutoff valves close fully: a stuck shutoff turns every future job into a whole-house shutdown.
A substitute for a fixture that has genuinely failed. They are the cheap explanations, worth trying first because they are cheap, not because they are always right.
Large premium toilet flapper fitting a 3 in flush valve opening, made of chlorine resistant rubber with a stainless steel chain attachment; described by the maker as an ultra high performance flapper
A 3 in toilet flapper in chlorine resistant rubber with a stainless steel chain attachment.
Best for: A three-inch valve with a tired flapper, where chlorine-resistant rubber and five minutes are the whole job
≈ $12
Universal PerforMAX 2 in toilet flush valve repair kit with a peel-and-stick design eliminating glue and requiring no tank removal, including the PerforMAX adjustable water-saving flapper whose dial controls flush volume; a 2 in flush valve replacement kit suitable from 1.28 gallon high-efficiency designs to older 3.5 gallon per flush toilets, built from corrosion-resistant materials with a 5 year warranty per the maker description; the listing states a limit of one per order and that returns will not be honoured on this closeout item
A universal 2 in flush valve repair kit with a peel-and-stick seal and an adjustable PerforMAX flapper.
Best for: A leaking two-inch flush valve, measured first — the cheapest complete repair on this shelf
≈ $12
1-1/2 in tubular P-trap with a threaded PVC adapter and a reversible J-bend, bagged with a True Blue premium washer; the first bullet states it is made of PVC for easier cutting and glue applications while the fifth states it is available in white or black polypropylene, and the description states the traps are manufactured with a PVC or ABS plastic adapter and True Blue premium washers for superior sealing in tubular drain applications; super nuts with full sized wings and longer threads, and a marvel connector included
A 1-1/2 in tubular P-trap with a reversible J-bend, hand-tightenable nuts and a premium washer.
Best for: A 1-1/2 inch drain that needs a plain, well-made P-trap and nothing clever
≈ $9
Pack of two chrome sink drain push button click clack plug tops in high quality zinc alloy, intended as a replacement pop up click clack plug top; the title states 2.60 in (66 mm) and the bullets state a chrome plug diameter of 2.56 in (65 mm) with a screw hole diameter of 0.31 in (8 mm), and the maker advises measuring before choosing
A pair of chrome click-clack plug tops in zinc alloy, with an 0.31 in (8 mm) screw hole.
Best for: A cracked or pitted click-clack cap, where two for nine dollars means one spare in the drawer
≈ $10
Put a few drops of food coloring in the tank and don't flush for 15 to 30 minutes. If color shows up in the bowl, water is leaking past the flapper, and a new flapper is usually the whole repair.
Measure the opening of the flush valve at the bottom of the tank. A 3 inch flapper does not seal a 2 inch valve, and the reverse is just as true, so measure before ordering.
The trap holds a plug of water that blocks sewer gas. In a sink or shower used rarely, that water evaporates and the smell comes straight up. Running water for a few seconds refills it, which is why nothing poured in will fix it.
When one faucet is weak and the others are fine, it usually is. The screen collects scale and grit; it unscrews, and it either cleans up in vinegar or costs a few dollars to replace.
Then you have spent a few dollars and ruled out the cheap explanation, which is worth doing before paying for a service call. Each of these is also a part the fixture will need eventually.
No. Redoing the job is the real cost, so a better silicone caulk is one of the few upgrades worth paying for here.
Right for: A three-inch valve with a tired flapper, where chlorine-resistant rubber and five minutes are the whole job
Its best quality: Chlorine resistant rubber, which addresses the one thing that actually destroys toilet flappers
Its main catch: No warranty published, where Fluidmaster’s 3 in flapper on this shelf carries ten years for $4.91 more
Right for: A leaking two-inch flush valve, measured first — the cheapest complete repair on this shelf
Its best quality: A complete valve seat and flapper for $11.99, a cent more than the Korky flapper alone and less than the $16.89 Fluidmaster flapper on this shelf
Its main catch: Returns will not be honored, so ordering the wrong size costs you the money
Right for: A 1-1/2 inch drain that needs a plain, well-made P-trap and nothing clever
Its best quality: Nuts with full-sized wings, which means it tightens by hand — and under a sink there is rarely room to swing a wrench
Its main catch: Bullet one says PVC and mentions glue; bullet five says polypropylene, which cannot be solvent-glued at all
Right for: A cracked or pitted click-clack cap, where two for nine dollars means one spare in the drawer
Its best quality: Four dollars eighty-three each, the cheapest cap on this shelf, and two in the pack so one is a spare
Its main catch: Zinc alloy, where the ALI2, UXELY and Tong Gu parts are brass — zinc pits faster in permanently wet conditions
$8 – $12
6 models
$29 – $119
6 models
The fittings listed come from this catalog of this site. Specifications are the published ones, from the maker and from the Amazon page; prices are what Keepa reported on the date below, and both move over time. The order uses declared specifications, the balance between stated strengths and stated limits, and price. No fitting here has been installed or tried by us, and the page does not claim it was.
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Prices quoted in these summaries are dated readings. The live price is shown next to each product.
