How to remove outlet valve on 1983 Armitage Shanks toilet cistern?

[gormster]

 

 

The washer on this thing is leaking. This should be a pretty simple thing to replace, I would think.

but I’ve scoured the internet and every single outlet valve guide says just give it a twist and it comes right out. None of them feature a valve that looks anything like this one. And I’ve tried twisting, this thing does not want to budge. It definitely looks like it should twist, with this weird angle not aligned to the cistern, but does it? It does not. Or am I not twisting hard enough? I really don’t want to break it; a leaking toilet is better than a non functioning toilet.

I’m sure I’ve seen this exactly cistern all over the country but for some reason the internet is failing me here. Can someone help me out?

Cheers,

-gormster

[JacobZ]

Hi @gormster,

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community and thank you for your question.

On older cisterns like yours, the outlet valve usually isn’t the same twist-and-lift style you’ll see in modern cisterns. Instead, the whole assembly is normally held in place by a large retaining nut underneath the cistern. That means twisting from the inside won’t achieve much, and trying to force it risks cracking the plastic, which after forty years will be quite brittle.

The first step is to shut off the water and drain the cistern completely so you can work dry. Once that’s done, take a look under the cistern. You should see a big plastic or sometimes brass nut securing the flush outlet in place. If you undo that nut, the whole valve body should lift out from the top, giving you access to the washer and internal parts. If the nut is stiff, you can use a pipe wrench or multi-grip pliers to help grasp and rotate the nut.

From there, it should just be a matter of removing the washer, heading in store with the old washer and matching it up with a suitable replacement. 

Let me know how you go and if this doesn't prove to be the solution, please let me know so I can assist further.

Jacob