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I recently bought an older house, and the toilet tank is leaking. In exploring the issue and googling around for toilet repair, I saw no mention of one of the parts that is in my toilet tank. Within the tank, there is a smaller plastic container that surrounds the flush valve. It seems to restrict the amount of water that ends up being used per flush, so perhaps it was added to reduce water consumption? What is this thing, and how does its presence affect my approach toward replacing the different pieces of the toilet?

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That looks like a milk container cut in half. – 0A0D Apr 23 '12 at 17:48
@0A0D I assure you that it is not a milk container. It definitely seems specifically built for the purpose (it has spacing for the bolts for example), and is made of much sturdier plastic than a milk container. – RationalGeek Apr 23 '12 at 19:20

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I believe that you are correct and that the container was added to reduce the amount of water used per flush. As for whether it will affect your fix - it might. If the tank is leaking then unless it is cracked then there are only two places that it could be leaking from - where the inlet connects to the tank or where the tank connects to the bowl. If it's leaking from the inlet valve then the container would have no effect other than giving you less space to work. If it's leaking form the spud washer (the rubber gasket between the tank and bowl) then you may need to remove it to get to the bolts that hold the tank to the bowl (though it appears that the container has indentations that go around the bolt heads so again it may just come down to the only effect being a more cramped space to work).

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Yes I believe that I can still get to the bolts... – RationalGeek Apr 20 '12 at 21:13
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That barrier was part of the toilet as sold. This was one of the early designs to meet the "low flow" requirements that were foisted upon us. You were supposed to wink-wink, nudge-nudge, "forget" to install that damn -- so that your toilet would still work decently. – Brock Adams Apr 21 '12 at 2:52
@BrockAdams thx for the info Brock. If I end up having to replace the flush valve I will certainly "forget" that piece. – RationalGeek Apr 21 '12 at 12:37
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@jkohlhepp - Sigh. No. leave it in there. The toilet apparently flushes properly as is. That there is a leak only means that there is a leak. Using more water than necessary will not change things, other than you personally being wasteful and foolish by choosing to waste water. If we all save a gallon of water per day, then we will have saved a great deal of water. Since that single toilet will be flushed many times per day, this equates to many gallons saved by you alone. – woodchips Apr 21 '12 at 13:56
@woodchips: If the toilet works well, sure. But I've never known one of those older "LoFlo"s to be worth a {sneeze}. (Many of the modern LoFlo's are {cough} too.) – Brock Adams Apr 22 '12 at 0:16

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