Replacing a toilet fill valve. Need to replace the supply line?

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Kind of bored and this seemed like a simple project. I just want to hot rod my toilet with a faster fill valve. Nothing specifically wrong with the original Fluidmaster 400A that came with it, although I did add the fill tube with the pinch roller. But I saw the 400H with the big knobs and dial-style bowl fill adjust.

However, the supply line is the same one that was in my house when I moved in. Not sure how old it is, but I was thinking it might be replaced as routine maintenance. I moved in more than 10 years ago. I think it'll cost about $4.
 
It wouldn't hurt.
I have had them leak before after replacing the valve. Spend the extra $ and get the braided SS line.
 
Be careful R+R'ing with those braided lines, Both that I replaced recently, leaked at the shut off. I ended replacing the shut off too.
 
I replaced both the toilet shut off valves in my house with 1/4 turn ball valves. Sometimes when you need to turn off the water supply to a toilet you need to do it quickly.
 
I replaced both the toilet shut off valves in my house with 1/4 turn ball valves. Sometimes when you need to turn off the water supply to a toilet you need to do it quickly.
Is that the Fluidmaster Click Seal?

I know it's a short line, but I'm seeing a slightly cheaper price for 12" vs 9". I'm pretty sure that my current one is 9", and even then it's a little bit long. HD (where I ordered the fill valve for pickup) doesn't have those in stock - have to be special ordered. They do have Brasscraft supply lines in stock.

 
My thoughts prevention. Imagine the inconvenience if the line started to leak or broke? I was extolling the virtues of the 1/4 turn shut off valves and my brother who does quite a bit of DIY plumbing scoffed, told the old type can be rebuilt. Has anyone else noticed that a shut off valve is fine when fully on and fully off, but drips while turning the valve on, or off? One other observation, is this toilet in an area you don't mind a noisier fill?? It seems to me that a faster fill will be noisier. Korky Quiet Fill claims to be a lot quieter than Fluid Master. Just some random thoughts from an amateur.

Scott
 
My thoughts prevention. Imagine the inconvenience if the line started to leak or broke? I was extolling the virtues of the 1/4 turn shut off valves and my brother who does quite a bit of DIY plumbing scoffed, told the old type can be rebuilt. Has anyone else noticed that a shut off valve is fine when fully on and fully off, but drips while turning the valve on, or off? One other observation, is this toilet in an area you don't mind a noisier fill?? It seems to me that a faster fill will be noisier. Korky Quiet Fill claims to be a lot quieter than Fluid Master. Just some random thoughts from an amateur.

Scott

I got confused as to what was meant by a "valve". I picked it up and finished the job. It wasn't that hard except the OEM fill valve was attached with a hex nut and my crescent wrenches on hand weren't wide enough. So I pulled it off with some pliers. It was a huge pain too because there was little room given how small the base of the tank is. It's wedged right in there. The nut with the replacement fill valve is meant to be hand tightened. Also - the shutoff valve wouldn't completely close, although it kind of had a slow trickle where I put a dishpan under it (also to collect the water coming out of the tank). I think the washer in the shutoff valve probably needs to be replaced. Still haven't replaced the supply line, but I did order one.

The Fluidmaster 400H is pretty simple. It's basically just the 400 with minor changes. It does seem to fill faster and might be a little quieter. I'm not sure about the bowl fill adjustment. It's basically a gate that restricts the water flow, although it can't completely shut off the bowl fill. I just turned it all the way down and it still filled to the top of the line before shutoff. I guess it's better than the non-adjustable fill tube that might waste about a quarter gallon.

I've installed a QuietFill Platinum myself for my parents. It was either that or Fluidmaster's funky (and expensive) fill valve (the PRO747) for low-profile toilets. Fluidmaster's 400 series doesn't go that low.
 
Is that the Fluidmaster Click Seal?

I know it's a short line, but I'm seeing a slightly cheaper price for 12" vs 9". I'm pretty sure that my current one is 9", and even then it's a little bit long. HD (where I ordered the fill valve for pickup) doesn't have those in stock - have to be special ordered. They do have Brasscraft supply lines in stock.

Is that the Fluidmaster Click Seal?

I know it's a short line, but I'm seeing a slightly cheaper price for 12" vs 9". I'm pretty sure that my current one is 9", and even then it's a little bit long. HD (where I ordered the fill valve for pickup) doesn't have those in stock - have to be special ordered. They do have Brasscraft supply lines in stock.

I did it a long time ago - around 2000, IIRC. I cut the copper pipe to remove the original compression fit shutoff valves. The ones I installed were also compression fit. Today, I would use Shark Bite, or equivalent, valves.
 
Kind of bored and this seemed like a simple project. I just want to hot rod my toilet with a faster fill valve. Nothing specifically wrong with the original Fluidmaster 400A that came with it, although I did add the fill tube with the pinch roller. But I saw the 400H with the big knobs and dial-style bowl fill adjust.

However, the supply line is the same one that was in my house when I moved in. Not sure how old it is, but I was thinking it might be replaced as routine maintenance. I moved in more than 10 years ago. I think it'll cost about $4.
For four dollars, I wouldn't even be asking to do or not to.
 
When I changed a fill valve a while back, I could not get it to stop leaking where hose attached underneath, so I had to replace hose also. Even though I replaced a Fluidmaster fill valve with a Fluidmaster, I guess the washer/gasket in the hose had taken a set or something and would no longer seal to the new valve.
 
When I changed a fill valve a while back, I could not get it to stop leaking where hose attached underneath, so I had to replace hose also. Even though I replaced a Fluidmaster fill valve with a Fluidmaster, I guess the washer/gasket in the hose had taken a set or something and would no longer seal to the new valve.

I probably need to replace the washer in the shutoff. I don't think it's too tough, but I'll have to shut off the main supply.

The fitting between the fill valve and the supply line can have a few issues. Most fill tubes have a plastic shank now, although Fluidmaster has some "pro" versions that have a brass shank. I've removed a few older ones, and the threads on the plastic shanks have often been scratched up, although I'm not sure if was on removal or some other way (not sure how).

The washer can often be deformed and might not seal again. There could be slime or mineral deposits creating a seal.
 
Any idea how to repair the washer on the shutoff valve? The valve was sweated to the pipe, and I'm not going to be able to do that myself. If it was a simple compression fitting I'd just replace the whole thing, but I don't have the funds or the inclination to replace the whole thing right now.

I've seen Brasscraft has a more or less universal stem replacement kit with a washer. I don't know if I really need to (or want to) replace the metal stem with a plastic one.
 
OK - I replaced the washer. My main shutoff valve to the house water supply doesn't completely shut off and I figure that probably has a worn out washer too. So I had to work quickly. I covered it with tape after I pulled out the handle to take to a hardware store. All they had for that was a variety pack of faucet washers. They came in different colors, but there were about 2 or three that seemed to be a close enough fit. It was just a flat washer screwed in to the inner end of the stem. It was all cracked and clearly wasn't forming a good seal when I tried shutting off the supply. I needed to use a knife to scrape off the washer from the end of the stem as the washer was crumbling and sticking to the metal. The replacement washer was harder than I thought it would be.

I might also have ordered the wrong supply line. I think I need a 1/2" compression and not a 3/8" compression fitting. 1/2" seems to be a bit harder to find.
 
At Lowes I had to hunt for a sweat on shut off. There were plenty of the shark bite types though. Most of my attempts to replace washers were a failure because my water dissolved the bibb screws. A replacement stem should work too. Please post a follow up.

PS Jeff Keryk Shhh Don't say the R-word, don't even think, lest my wife hears 😃
 
At Lowes I had to hunt for a sweat on shut off. There were plenty of the shark bite types though. Most of my attempts to replace washers were a failure because my water dissolved the bibb screws. A replacement stem should work too. Please post a follow up.

I'm not going to replace it. It's just not worth it unless we're ready to swap everything out (no I won't use the R word). I ended up with a pack of 22 assorted washers and thought that maybe one of them would work on the older faucet supply valves. So I managed to take it off. I did note that our main supply line doesn't completely shut off - probably because of a disintegrated washer after decades. But when I took it off I had no idea what to do. The washer was clearly disintegrating. Even a few years ago I saw some bits of rubber in the aerator screen where the flow through the holes turned into a trickle. But the fitting had no screw. I was some sort of friction fit where the washer stretched over the end of the stem like a cap on a mushroom. All the washers I had were ridiculously hard. That didn't seem a problem with the original one other than it was disintegrating. So I headed for another hardware store (the one I bought washer pack from only had those in this particle size) after putting it back in place and watching it leak slowly because the disintegrating washer had been damaged more upon removal. I ended up looking in the plumbing section and couldn't really find anything other than an employee pointing out some loose piece that seemed like it might work. When I described the problem he said a complete stem repair kit might be better, but then showed a ton of parts for different applications.

We ended up going to the other side of the store where they had neorprene washers for universal applications. There was nothing that was exactly the right size, but there was something that was a little bit smaller, had the hole about the right size, and about half the thickness. So I bought two of these. I managed to get two of them in there and it's actually holding. I can't actually turn off the supply (the handle just won't turn off), but at least now I don't need to worry about it eventually leaking.

Not sure why I'm going through all this. I'm just kind of bored right about now and need something to do.
 
I would replace supply line. Braided stainless is the way to go.. unless your local codes requires a solid plumbed supply line.
 
I would replace supply line. Braided stainless is the way to go.. unless your local codes requires a solid plumbed supply line.

Yeah - ordered a new line from Amazon and it wasn't the right fitting. Not sure what to do with it. They have me this weird "returnless refund" option as long as I took the refund in the form of an Amazon gift card. I guess I don't return a whole lot of stuff and they're not going to process a return over less than $5 of merch. I might just give it to my parents since they might be able to use it.

I just want to get it right and I'm not 100% sure of the size of the nut. I think it's a 1/2" compression but I'm not quite sure what looks different compared to a 1/2" FIP. The old one looks like it might be about 20 years old. It's got corrosion on the compression nut. However, since I fixed the toilet supply valve, I can actually shut the water off and bring it with me.
 
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