How to remove the toilet seat cover?

[Tiong]

Hello folks,

Trying to replace an existing toilet seat and cover as the screw fittings are pitted and corroding.

I am not sure how to remove the screw fittings though, the only thing I can see are 2 small caps (left side circled red in 1st pic) which are difficult to dislodge.

Should I drill them out and can then reach the insides ?

Thank you.

Small cap circled on inside

[Brad]

Most have a nut on the underside that you can undo to remove the seat, for a streamlined bowl that area is sealed off. I have a feeling that those caps are a release button so the seat and hinge can be lifted off, the other blind hole alternative is if the seat has a split hinge so it can be pulled off and the hinges unscrewed that way, I would try to feel if there is a gap in the seat hinge if the push in and lift fails to show movement.

Given that some junk may of collected in the area gloves are a good idea.

[Jason]

Hi @Tiong,

Great to see you receive such a prompt and helpful reply by the knowledgeable @Brad. Please let us know how you go with following his suggestions. 

Let me also extend a very warm welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. We're so pleased to have you join us and trust that you'll receive loads of helpful information, advice and inspiration for projects around the house and garden from our wonderful members. Please feel free to post anytime you need a hand or have something to share with the community. 

Jason

[Tiong]

Thank you @Brad,

Those caps are hard and I can't seem to move them even with WD40 sprayed.

It's a sealed bowl so no nuts on underside.

I will continue to try and see if I can remove the split hinge somehow but thanks for pointing out the caps may be release buttons.

Regards

Tiong

[Tiong]

Thank you Jason,

Still working through my issue but heartening to receive feedback so quickly, it's great!   

[Jason]

No worries, I will ask the ever-helpful @MitchellMc to check in with you when he is back on the site on Friday in case you haven't been able to make any progress.

Jason

[Tiong]

Thank you, Jason.

No progress made at this stage, just fearful of breaking something if applying too much elbow grease.

Tiong

[MitchellMc]

Hi @Tiong,

I'm sorry to hear you are still having difficulty removing your toilet seat. My first thought is similar to @Brad's suggestion that those are release buttons or cover caps. Since you've had no luck removing them or pushing them in, I'd like to suggest you look elsewhere. Check on the other side of the fitting where the hinge pin comes out of it and also on the back of the hinge behind the toilet seat. You'll be looking for a tiny little grub screw, it will only be a few millimetres across and most likely concealed in a hard to reach place. I've included a few images below of what you might be looking for and the positions they could be in.

If you do find them, undo them with an allen key. Once they are undone generally the hinge slides off a base plate, so try pulling the whole seat and hinge assembly towards yourself or pushing it away.

If you can't find any grub screws on the hinge, that would be a good indication that they are under the caps or the pushbuttons are jammed. If the caps do not push in, try a small flathead screwdriver and prise them outwards.

Please let me know how you go or if you have some questions.

Mitchell

[Tiong]

Hello Mitchell,

Thanks for the suggestions and photos.

There are no screws anywhere that I could find, and the caps look to be jammed hard

As I couldn't make any progress and frustration had set in, I enlisted the help of a plumber who had to hacksaw the screw off from the base.

It made some marks that the new steel covers could hide so problem solved.

Unfortunately the cost for getting the plumber out was more than the new seat cover itself but I wouldn't have been able to sort it out myself.

Thank you all for your suggestions and advice!

Regards

Tiong

[MitchellMc]

Hi @Tiong,

I'm glad to hear you got it sorted out in the end. If a plumber had to resort to using a hacksaw to cut the mounting points off, then you can rest assured that you did everything possible up until that point to fix the issue.

Please let us know if you ever need assistance with any other projects around the house and garden.

Mitchell