How to Install a Toilet
Learn how to replace and install a new two-piece toilet, seal the wax ring correctly, level the bowl, attach the tank, and secure leak-free plumbing lines.
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🧰 Required Tools & Equipment
- ✓ Adjustable wrench
- ✓ Torpedo level
- ✓ Sponge and small bucket
- ✓ Putty knife
- ✓ Tape measure
- ✓ Utility knife
📦 Materials & Supplies
- ✓ Two-piece toilet kit
- ✓ Wax ring with sleeve
- ✓ Closet bolts and plastic washers
- ✓ Braided flexible water supply line
- ✓ Plastic toilet shims
- ✓ Tub and tile silicone caulk
⚠️ Safety Checkpoints & Warnings
- • Verify the water supply shut-off valve is completely closed and drained before starting.
- • Lift the heavy porcelain bowl using your legs, not your back, to prevent injury.
- • Do not overtighten mounting nuts; excessive force will crack porcelain instantly.
📋 Step-by-Step Guide (6 Steps)
Prep Flange and Set Closet Bolts
Scrape any old wax residue off the floor flange using a putty knife and wipe the surface clean. Slide the new brass closet bolts head-down into the flange slots parallel to the wall. Thread plastic retainer washers down the bolts against the flange to hold them upright.
- • Clean, flat flange visible with zero old wax buildup.
- • Two brass bolts standing perfectly vertical and equidistant from the back wall.
- • Leaving old, hardened wax on the flange preventing a flush fit.
- • Misaligning bolts so they are not parallel to the back wall.
Attach Wax Ring and Lower Bowl
Remove the temporary drain rag. Press the rounded side of the new wax ring firmly onto the bottom discharge horn of the toilet bowl. Lift the bowl directly over the flange, look straight down to align the base holes with the closet bolts, and lower it straight down onto the floor.
- • Bolts protruding cleanly through the mounting holes on the base.
- • Bowl sitting resting flat without tilting before weight is applied.
- • Dropping the bowl off-center and shifting it horizontally, ruining the wax seal.
- • Forgetting to pull the temporary sewer rag out before setting the bowl.
Compress Wax, Level, and Bolt Down
Press down firmly on the bowl rim using body weight to compress the wax ring until the base contacts the floor. Place a torpedo level across the bowl; slide plastic shims under low edges if uneven. Slip plastic washers, metal washers, and nuts onto the bolts, tightening them incrementally side-to-side with a wrench until snug.
- • Level bubble centered in both front-to-back and side-to-side orientations.
- • Nuts snug against washers without bowl wobbling when gently pushed.
- • Overtightening one bolt fully before touching the other, causing uneven stress.
- • Cranking nuts down so hard that the ceramic base snaps.
Mount and Secure the Tank
Fit the large rubber spud gasket over the flush valve nut on the underside of the tank. Lower the tank onto the bowl, aligning the tank mounting holes with the bowl deck. Insert rubber-gasketed tank bolts from inside the tank down through the bowl, then alternate hand-tightening wing nuts underneath until the tank sits level and stable.
- • Tank standing parallel and firmly seated against the bowl rim.
- • Even gap between the back edge of the tank and the wall.
- • Over-compressing the tank bolts causing the bottom of the porcelain tank to crack.
- • Placing metal washers directly against the inside of porcelain without rubber washers.
Connect Supply Line and Test Flushes
Thread a new flexible braided supply line hand-tight onto the tank fill valve shank, then give it a quarter-turn with a wrench. Connect the lower end to the shut-off valve and tighten securely. Slowly open the shut-off valve, let the tank fill to the waterline mark, and flush several times while inspecting all joints and the base perimeter for water.
- • Tank fills smoothly and shuts off automatically at the fill line.
- • Completely dry base perimeter, tank bolts, and supply connections.
- • Cross-threading the plastic threads of the fill valve shank with the metal supply nut.
- • Turning water on full blast instantly, blowing loose seals.
Cap Bolts and Seal the Base
Snap the decorative plastic bolt caps onto the closet bolt washers. Apply a smooth bead of silicone caulk around the front and sides of the toilet base where it meets the finished floor. Leave a 1-to-2-inch gap uncaulked at the rear center of the base.
- • Smooth, continuous caulk bead sealing the front and sides.
- • Clear 1-2 inch uncaulked gap visible at the back center of the base.
- • Plastic snap-caps firmly covering the cut closet bolts.
- • Caulking the entire 360-degree perimeter, which traps hidden leaks inside the base.
- • Applying overly thick caulk lines that smear messily onto floor tiles.
Credit: inspired by an original tutorial by The Home Depot Canada — watch the original on YouTube.
Don’t have everything?
- No Wax ring? Rubber foam zero-mess toilet seal gasket
- No Plastic toilet shims? Cut pieces from an old plastic gift card or plastic washer