
The fill valve uses a floater or pressure sensor to measure and respond to any change in the water level. After you flush a toilet, the water is pulled from the tank into the bowl. As the water is moved, the floater begins to sink.
Full Answer
What is a Toilet Fill Valve?
The toilet fill valve is a series of interconnected parts inside the toilet tank that’s responsible for controlling the water flow that refills the tank.
What is a float valve?
Internal Float Type Fill Valve. The internal float fill valve is named so as it has an internally floating mechanism with a small floater and lever to open and close the water inlet in the toilet tank. Given that the water inlet is also inside the fill valve, it’s very quiet and has been named the QuietFill valve.
How to adjust water in a toilet tank?
To adjust the amount of water that goes into the toilet tank, you bend the brass rod connecting the floating ball to the diaphragm up for more water and down for less water.
What is a plunger valve?
The plunger/piston fill valve uses a plunger or piston system to open and close the water inlet into the toilet tank. The inlet is the bottom-fill type which means that water is injected into the tank from below rather than from above.
How does a toilet floater work?
When the toilet is flushed, the floater moves downwards and moves the brass rod with it. This brass rod presses on top of the diaphragm which then opens the water inlet into the toilet tank. As the water fills up, it moves the floating ball upwards with it. The ball moves the brass rod which releases the pressure on the diaphragm.
How does a brass rod work in a toilet?
The brass rod moves the piston which opens the water inlet. As the water flows into the toilet tank and its level raises up, the ball is raised as well as the rod it is attached to. The rode raises the piston and slowly closes it until it’s completely closed when the tank is full.
What is the newest type of fill valve?
These are the most known types of fill valves, how they work and how to adjust them when you need more or less water in the toilet tank. The internal float fill valve is the newest of them all and is gaining lots of popularity.
What is the valve called when you pull the flapper off the toilet?
The valve and the flapper together are called—not surprisingly—the flapper valve. Tripping the lever simply lifts the rubber flapper off the valve and…whoosh, the water flows into the toilet bowl! A flush valve is 2 1/2 inches in diameter as is the ball-shaped part of the flapper.
What is the name of the valve that flushes water into the toilet?
When a conventional toilet is flushed, water from the tank rushes into the bowl through an orifice called the flush valve. Before you trip the lever, this valve is plugged with a rubber stopper, called a tank ball, flush valve seat ball, or the newer, more effective flapper or flapper ball. Find Pre-Screened Plumbers Near You.
How does a toilet work?
Refer to the illustration at right. A toilet has two main parts—the tank and the bowl. The bowl holds water and connects to the drain for disposing of waste water and waste.
What are the parts of a toilet?
A toilet has two main parts—the tank and the bowl. The bowl holds water and connects to the drain for disposing of waste water and waste. The tank, which sits up behind the bowl, contains reserve water for refilling the bowl plus the devices for flushing clean water into the bowl and refilling the tank. One of these devices—called ...
How big is a flush valve?
A flush valve is 2 1/2 inches in diameter as is the ball-shaped part of the flapper. The flapper hinges onto the vertical overflow pipe that’s next to the valve, and a small chain connects the flapper to the trip lever.
What is a ballcock in a tank?
One of these devices—called a ballcock—is connected to the water supply and controls delivery of water to the tank. When the tank’s water rapidly drops down into the bowl (upon a flush), the pressure causes the bowl’s waste water to go down the drain.
How does a bathroom tank float?
Some of the water goes down the refill tube and starts refilling the tank. The rest goes through the bowl refill tube, and down the overflow tube into the bowl. This refills the bowl slowly. As the water level in the tank rises, so does the float. Eventually the float rises far enough to turn the valve off. What would happen if the float were to become detached, or the filler valve were to jam so that it never cut off? Theoretically, the tank would overflow and flood the bathroom. But the overflow tube is there to prevent that from happening, directing the extra water into the bowl instead of onto the floor.
How does a refill valve work?
The refill mechanism has a valve that turns the water on and off. The valve turns the water on when the filler float (or ball float) falls. The float falls when the water level in the tank drops. The filler valve (or refill valve) sends water in two directions. Advertisement.
What is the purpose of a flush valve?
And the purpose of the tank and the flush valve is to hold and then dump about 2 gallons (7.6 L) of water very quickly into the bowl. Once the tank has emptied, the flush valve resituates itself in the bottom of the tank, covering the drain hole so the tank can be refilled. It is the job of the refill mechanism to fill the tank back up ...

What Is A Toilet Fill Valve and How Does It Work?
Advantages and Disadvantages of Toilet Valves
- Toilet fill valves are essential to your toilet functioning properly and filling your tank. When it comes to the advantages and disadvantages of toilet valves, we’ll list them below, dividing them per the fill valve type.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How Do I Know If My Toilet Fill Valve Is Malfunctioning?
There are a couple of indicators that could tell you that your toilet fill valve is malfunctioning: - How Can You Repair the Fill Valve on a Toilet?
You can repair the fill valve on your toilet by following these steps: However, sometimes, it’s better to replace the entire valve instead of repairing it as it’s inexpensive and easy to replace.
Conclusion
- Issues with toilet fill valvesare common, and, in order to fix them, you should be familiar with the type of toilet fill valve inside your toilet. Luckily, most fill valve problems are easily resolvable, and you can always reach out to a plumber if you’re unsure how to fix your issue. See also: 1. How Much Room Do You Need for a Toilet? 2. Why is My Toilet Seat Turning Blue 3. How Many Gallo…