Why Should You Buy the Best Toilet Fill Valve?
When buying the valve for your toilet tank, it is very important to buy the very best toilet fill valve. Why?
There are several problems you can encounter with your toilet tank. First of all, the most common problem most users deal with is the valve not registering the water level. Therefore, the tank does not get filled.
The second problem refers to constant re-filling when water keeps going away and therefore re-fills all the time. As a result, you spend lots of water! This is a serious problem you must address immediately.
In addition, many users complain about lots of noise when the tank is getting re-filled. This is also related to the fill valve. Slow re-filling process is another boring problem caused by a poor tank valve.
This is why you must get a quality product which will last for a long time and perform in an impeccable manner. In order to pick the right valve, you should know more about its internal parts. First, let’s share with you our experience in picking the best models.
How Did We Pick the Best Fill Valve?
As I myself was searching for the best fill valve, I’ve read lots of toilet fill valve ratings and quiet toilet fill valve reviews on the Internet. However, I noticed that the content was rather poor regarding the explanations about what makes the best toilet fill valve. I wanted to know the problem in depth.
This is why I consulted the experts. We have put this toilet fill valve together, after months of hard work. Their considerations regarding these useful, yet so tricky devices were eye-opening. This led us to the full list of criteria. You will be surprised by the number of things you have to consider when picking the valve. Then, we made thorough online research about the offer on the market based on the value grid mentioned before.
I must say that the community-based reviews were of immense help, as some brands advertise their valves as superb, high-end products, while the users warned us about their flaws. We followed the real-life user experiences over three months. In addition, we had a chance to personally test most of the analyzed products.
As a result, we came up with a list of ten top-rated toilet fill valve products on the market. Before we go through the selected products, we want to talk about the things you must consider when you want to buy toilet fill valve. Stay with us and learn the answers to the “What is the best toilet fill valve”, “Who makes the best toilet fill valve”, and many more questions!
Things to Consider While Buying Best Toilet Fill Valve?
There are some important factors to consider when it comes to quality and adjustability of toilet tank valves that will heavily impact the valve performance. Those include:
- Internal parts
- Type
- Adjustment
- Installation
- Anti-siphon feature
- Tank height
- Flush type
- GPF
- Price vs quality.
Let’s learn more about each of these factors and how they affect the valve performance.
1. Internal Parts
As fill valves are supposed to stay immersed in water, most experts agree that durable, high-quality plastic is the very best choice. Even though metal is more durable than plastic, being immersed in water would lead to corrosion.
This is why the best fill valves are made from PVC, rubber or other synthetic materials and they don’t contain metal parts.
2. Type (Ballcock or Plunger)
If you pick the ballcock or plunger type of toilet float valve, it means that the valve belongs to the older generation of water fill valves. It has two key parts. Those are the brass arm and the float ball. If it breaks, you have to get the new part called rubber washer.
3. Type (Diaphragm Style)
The other popular style is the diaphragm style. It is a bit trickier to repair. However, these valves are very cheap and you don’t have to spend a fortune to replace the whole valve.
4. Ease of Installation and Adjustment
It is very important to pick a valve that is easy to install. As this type of things are usually DIY projects, you probably won’t call the handyman or an expert. That’s why you should look for a valve that requires simple installation.
Today, most manufacturers provide all of the necessary tools. You can usually install the valve within 10-15 minutes. Also, there are some great models on the market that don’t require any tools for installation.
When it comes to the ease of adjustments, most valves today are easily adjustable. This, mainly, refers to the height. This is very important for suitability of the valve for different types of tanks and toilets. Also, users highly appreciate valves that offer water flow rate adjustments.
5. Anti-Siphon Feature
This is a great feature that only some products come with. If you come across the anti-siphon valve, we definitely recommend you to buy it. What does the anti-siphon feature provide?
Basically, it is a feature that blocks the back-flow of water. This is important for preserving the cleanliness of drinking water system. Simply put, the anti-siphon feature allows the water to flow in only one direction.
6. The Height of Your Tank
The height of the tank used to be the most important determinant when buying the valve. However, today, most manufacturers offer adjustable height valves. This is why most valves today fit most tank models.
Therefore, you should pick the valve with adjustable height. Most valves have several inches adjustment space, from 7.75 to 13.8 inches or within this range. This suits most toilet water tanks.
7. Flush Type and Gpf of Your Toilet
When it comes to the flush type, don’t underestimate this information. It is very important, as it might lead to incompatibility of your valve and toilet tank. Namely, there are two types of flush – the single and dual flush.
Some valves do not support the dual flush feature. Actually, they won’t fit those tanks. Therefore, you should check your tank type before buying the valve. Look for the special “dual flush” label on the valve and you’re good to go! Note: these valves are usually more expensive than the regular ones.
When it comes to the GPF of your toilet, you must understand and keep in mind some regulations. Namely, GPF stands for gallons per flush. We believe that you have already understood that this story has something to do with the water consumption regulations. Correct!
The Federal law states that the maximum amount of water spent per flush shall not be over 1.6 gallons. If you want to have a high-efficiency toilet, you should go even below this limit. Why is this important for the valve type? Actually, the valves are now produced in accordance with these regulations, especially when it comes to the high-efficiency toilets. Pay attention to the labels and you won’t have any bad experiences.
8. Price vs Quality
There are many price categories and you can find extremely cheap and very expensive toilet tank fill valves on the market. However, what is the relationship between price and quality?
Always remember that you won’t get too much with the cheapest model on the market. At the same time, there is no need for overpaying the valve. You should stick to the balanced, mid-range prices.
How to spot a good price vs quality ratio? Check for the features. If your valve is made from quality materials and the manufacturer offers a decent warranty, go for it. Remember that you can always find some special offers, even by reputable brands.
Our Top Ten Best Toilet Fill Valve
Writing this toilet fill valve review was not an easy task. There are different types of valves, different brands, and different categories with the best products in each. This is why we have picked the top 10 products but also labeled them as the top valves for different purposes. For example, we have the best for noise, best budget valve, etc.
We hope that this kind of approach will help you easily spot the best product for your problem. Let’s begin and see which products are the best-rated toilet fill valve models on the market!