Better Hairpin Clip

I use a nylon cable tie.

Yeah, that's good, but half the stuff I own is now fixed with cable ties, duct tape, and plumber's epoxy. Doesn't anybody design stuff that works??

Yeah, that's good, but half the stuff I own is now fixed with cable ties, duct tape, and plumber's epoxy. Doesn't anybody design stuff that works??

Appears you've answered your own question.

I replace the flapper pull with a light duty nylon rope, which will outlast the toilet.

The last time I had to do it a pop rivet was the only thing I could lay my hands on -

2 - 3 years down the line it is still working.

I have bought a replacement already - maybe I should replace it now while it is still nice and warm.

use a bread bag tie.

I have the opposite problem. The hook on mine can't be bent by any force on earth that I know of.

I use a large fishing swivel snap. You can find them made of both brass and stainless steel. A package of five usually can be bought for under $1.00 US.

A ring type clip won't fall off, it's the same as the ring that holds your keys together so that you can lose them all at the same time.

Eureka! That's it. Not the snap kind, but the double ring one. Thank you; that's "outside the box" to use a key ring for a plumbing job. Plus, I think I can steal find those for free.

You can find these in stainless steel at boat stores.

Thanks. SS helps.

Good heavens, think way outside the box, use a freakin paper clip. Free, quick, easy...

Nope. Regular paper clip doesn't work because the inside loop hangs up. Already fixed it with Nigh's solution. Works great and was free since I swiped liberated it from my wife's keyring.

I miss the good old days of a ball cock valve and good old ball chain. I moved four years ago from a house built in the 60's to a modern brand new house in the burbs I've had to ******* around the guts of my toilets at least once a month since I moved in. The kids called me the other day and said Dad water is coming thru the light fixtures in the kitchen, due to a sticking valve and a clogged up joke 1.5 gallon flush that always requires a courtesy flush yes 3 gallons total. I won't tell you how I really feel, I like the paper clip idea. Can you still buy a ball cock valve?

You can certainly buy them in the UK, I don't know about elsewhere.

Screwfix does them mail order, see here & here.

About fifteen years ago, I got tired of the chintzy, spec-built bathroom downstairs and remodeled. In the process I got one of those new 1.6 gpf toilets. For years we had to be very careful about keeping a plunger nearby and warning guests about the tendency to clog.

Last month, the ##%! tank decided to leak, so I took it off to see what the matter was. It was the rusted "brass" bolts. While I was at the big box store buying a new gasket and bolt kit, I got to looking at toilets and saw they now have a numerical rating for how well they flush. My old one wasn't there but, by inference, I suspect it must have been a "1" or possibly a "2". To make a long story short, I bought a new one with a "10" rating and it works great. It was also next to the cheapest, so that certainly helped. You can actually adjust the amount of water per flush and I have it just slightly above 1 gal per flush.

Being the ever nebby inquiring engineer, I studied the traps on the old and the new one, stuck an inspection mirror in, then a snake. The difference is astounding. I have always been fond of the great holding company that made the old one, but what in blazes made them think two sharp kinks in an "S" trap was good design?

As an aviation type, I would use .032 stainless steel safety wire, but then I have a reel of it handy in my tool bag.

Hooker <-- 100 mph (duct) tape for holes, safety wire for most everything else