How to Remove a Toilet

When you know how to remove a toilet you can save money by tackling this DIY job yourself. Any resulting rubbish can be taken away with one our bathroom waste removal services.

My Job Quote estimates that the average cost to replace a toilet varies from £300-£600. You can reduce the cost of this job by trying to find a good deal on a new toilet and by uninstalling your old toilet yourself. Then you would only need a quote for a plumber to install your new toilet.

Step 1 – Give the Toilet a Quick Clean

Disconnecting a toilet is never the most luxurious of tasks but giving it a quick clean beforehand will make it a slightly less off-putting job.

Step 2 – Shut Off the Supply of Water

If your water supply pipe has an isolation valve on it, it will make this step easier. If this is not the case there may be a separate value somewhere else in your bathroom or you may have to isolate the water via your home’s stopcock. Once you believe that the water is off, flush the toilet to ensure you have properly shut off the supply of water.

Step 3 – Get Rid of Remaining Water

A quick tip that may help get rid of most of the water is to fill up a bucket and tip most of that water down the bowl. The pressure should get rid of a lot of the water. This may not work as effectively in all setups and even if it does there will still be a little bit of remaining water. As such as you will want to have some towels that you use exclusively for DIY at the ready. You should use these towels to absorb as much water as you can and squeeze it out into your bucket. This job is a lot easier if you have a dry and wet vacuum but most people will not own one of these.

Step 4 – Disconnect Pipes

You should then disconnect the water supply pipe, you may need the help of a wrench to loosen the connection. If you’re not installing a new toilet you will need to blank off this exposed pipe with a blanking cap. This will stop water flowing out of this pipe once the water supply is turned back on.

Step 5 – Undo Screws

The next step should be to find as many places where your cistern is screwed to both the wall and the toilet bowl. You will most likely need the help of wrenches and screwdrivers to loosen these screws and bolts. Places to check include in the cistern and underneath the toilet bowl. This should allow you to lift the cistern off of the bowl and away. Separating the cistern from the bowl is a good idea as it makes moving the toilet out of the house a much easier task.

Step 6 – Loosen the Bowl From the Floor

If you haven’t already, you should locate and unscrew anything that is securing the bowl onto the floor. You can then disconnect the bowl from the waste pipe and lift it away. You will want to cap off the waste pipe to stop smells leaking into your home. When water is in a toilet it creates a seal that will stop these smells and a cap will achieve the same goal.

Toilet Disposal Options

Heavy porcelain can be difficult to get rid off and some tips charge you to use their services for items like toilets. A Clearabee collection can be at your door on the same day of your enquiry and do all the heavy lifting for you.

If you are refitting or redecorating your bathroom yourself you may want a skip or Skip Bag to keep at your premises. This means you can tackle the jobs over a number of days or weeks and fill your skip in your own time. Once You’ve completed your DIY jobs we can then collect the resulting waste.