Why Does My Toilet Squeal & How to Fix It

If you’ve been living with a toilet making those high-pitched squeals, you’re not alone. Here’s why your toilet is producing a squealing sound:

If your toilet squeals, it’s probably due to the high pressure in the plumbing system. The whistling toilet sound can also be produced by a faulty fill valve as it loses its elasticity and deteriorates with time, leading to squealing sounds in your toilet.

Squealing toilets are a common issue, and they can be pretty frustrating. In this article, we’ll discuss why your toilet is squealing, and how to fix it.

Read on to find out!

5 Reason Why Your Toilet Squeals

Here are the top five reasons why your toilet might be squealing:

1. Fill Valve Fault

If your toilet is squealing at night for no reason or after flushing, it’s due to a fill valve fault. When the diaphragm kit of the old fill valve loses its elasticity and efficiency, it wears down and hardens, thus producing squealing sounds in the toilet.

A fill valve is used to regulate the amount of water in the toilet tank after flushing. When the tank is empty, the fill valve opens to allow the water supply into the tank. When the tank fills, the fill valve closes.

Unfortunately, the life of a fill valve is around five years. It means that it deteriorates with its age. It will not only produce irritating squealing sounds but will also vibrate the entire tank unnecessarily.

Here’s how you can verify if the faulty fill valve is the cause behind toilet squealing sounds:

1. Remove the lid of the feces tank.
2. Lift the float lever slowly.
3. The sound will stop if the fill valve is the cause

How to Fix It?

Sometimes, squealing will also occur if the fill valve fails to close at an appropriate time. If your fill valve isn’t damaged or torn out, you can fix this problem on your own without calling a plumber.

By setting the float lever in the feces tank to a lower level, you may fix this issue. First of all, find the float in the toilet tank.

Next, you would have to identify the type of float. Usually, there are two types of float in a toilet tank; cylindrical float and spherical float.

A cylinder float will be attached to the fill valve body while a spherical float (float ball) will be attached to the rod’s end.

If your toilet tank has a cylinder float, To lower the float and ensure the water stops flowing, you’ll need to tighten the adjustable clip on the side.

On the other hand, if you have a float ball, turn the screw in an anti-clockwise direction until the water stops flowing.

After following these steps, flush the toilet and listen to any squealing sounds if they occur. If they persist, you would have to call a plumber to fix the faulty fill valve.

2. Irregular Water Pressure

Irregular water pressure can also cause squealing sounds in your toilet when the water is running.

If the pipe that carries water to your toilet tank isn’t thick enough, it will create obstacles to the water flow, leading to irregular water pressure. A clog or small holes in the pipes will cause vibrations. These vibrations can cause squealing sounds if the toilet assembly is loose.

Ideal water pressure for toilets would be anywhere between 40 and 55 PSI.

If the water pressure exceeds this limit, it may cause squealing noise.

How to Fix it?

You’ll have to regulate water pressure in the toilet by using a pressure regulator.

Alternatively, you can decrease the flow rate from the water inlet valve.

Unless you know what you’re doing or have a plumber do it for you, don’t mess around with your PRV outside your house.

3. Restricted Water Supply

It is somehow linked with the previous reason. But it’s quite evident that your toilet will squeal if it’s getting a limited water supply due to blockage. The most common reason for this is if the shutoff valve is partially or fully closed.

If your main toilet valve is working fine but the water supply is still terminated, it means that the washers are damaged or caked.

Here are some quick fixes for it.

How to Fix it?

Make sure that the main shutoff valve is fully working and open.

Examine the entire ball valve and make sure no water line is blocked or restricted.

The filler pipe is most likely clogged or the toilet bowl is clogged if your toilet tank suddenly stops flowing or flows slowly when you flush. Replace the float ball with a new one if it is broken — also replace ball valve washers.

I would recommend disassembling the entire ball valve, cleaning each part, and then assembling it together. It’ll help reduce strange noises.

If the squealing persists, the last resort would be to change the ball valve.

4. Calcium Deposits Due to Hard Water

If the toilet squeals when the water is filling up in the toilet tank and the noise stops when the tank is full, it’s probably due to the calcium deposits in the tank. Calcium deposits are also called limescale and it’s commonly faced by the people who use hard water.

This is because hard water is high in mineral content.

Limescale is easy to detect. If you check the outside of the toilet bowl, you’ll see the white calcium deposits or scale buildup. That’s a sign of limescale invading your toilet tank and obstructing the water supply.

How to Fix It?

Lysol toilet bowl cleaner gel is specifically used to remove hard water and limescale.

You may also call a plumber to get rid of the scale in your toilet pipes and tank.

5. Faulty Flapper

If your toilet flapper is worn out or faulty, it’ll cause squealing sounds when not in use. It’ll not only cause irritating noise but will also waste a lot of water by leaking from the tank down to the toilet bowl.

A faulty flapper may increase your water bills significantly. If your water bills are on the uptick and the toilet is squealing, it means that the flapper is defective and needs to be replaced.

How to Fix It?

In most cases, it’s difficult to replace a worn-out flapper on your own.

Therefore, I would recommend calling a plumber for the job and letting him fix it.

Amos Christen

Amos Christen graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Interior Design from Drexel University — Philadelphia, PA. Since 2003, Amos has worked with top interior design professionals in this area, including architects and interior/graphic/lighting designers. As a skilled interior designer, Amos Christen is highly versed in fine arts and crafts and uses that to supplement his main area of expertise. He often publishes articles related to home décor on several websites, including Sprucetoilets.com, Sprucebathroom.com, and Mybesuitedhome.com. He also contributes to leading interior design magazines.