My toilet seat hinge busted, so I'm replacing the whole thing. It's a Duravit Starck 3 seat. I'm trying to remove the old hinges, which are screwed into plastic things that are a permanent part of the toilet itself (there's no way to get inside/underneath, new ones were not supplied). The problem is, as I turn the screws on the old hinges, the plastic things just rotate in the holes so I can't unscrew them. What should I do?
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Can you post a couple of clear well focused photos of these hinges. Without something to evaluate it will be next to impossible for folks to provide any help.– Michael Karas ♦Sep 5, 2017 at 12:04
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1By the way. It is extremely unlikely that these "plastic things" are a permanent part of the toilet. The hinge attachment scheme for most toilets are accessible from underneath the upper back area of the stool unit on either side.– Michael Karas ♦Sep 5, 2017 at 12:08
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@MichaelKaras it's wall mounted (in an extremely small room), there's no way to get 'inside' the toilet without ripping out considerable amounts of tiling and wall.– Tom MedleySep 6, 2017 at 14:18
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@TomMedley having same problem as you, trying to unscrew doesn't work. Plastic around the screw doesn't seem to move but screw doesn't go up. Can touch the screw from down the toilet but it is of no help.Duravit, not good design. :(– Ricardo stands with UkraineSep 5, 2020 at 19:24
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2 Answers
It looks like there should be a bolt with a hex-head that you unscrew using a spanner (wrench) to replace the hinge mounting (the hinge itself appears to be integral to the seat).
It's a designer toilet, designers tend to prioritise visuals over practicality.
If you put some pulling force under part 4 (e.g. lever with a screwdriver using a small dowel as a fulcrum) it might create enough friction on the (presumed) captive nut or insert to hold it in place while you unscrew the bolt.
answered Sep 5, 2017 at 19:50
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Sadly the existing hinge anchor is fitted with plain screws without a bolt head, making it much harder to apply a pulling force. In the end I span them extremely fast with a powered screwdriver, stripping the thread from the plugs and allowing me to yank out the old screws. I've got the new lid loosely fixed into the ruined plugs, and new plugs on order... Sep 6, 2017 at 14:17
Finally removed the screw from my Duravit toilet as suggested by @RedGrittyBrick (kudos to him) using the back of a claw hammer, a rolled toilet roll cardboard cilinder as fulcrum and to avoid damaging the porcelain and quite a lot of brute force.
answered Sep 5, 2020 at 20:15
