This is foolish advice. Instead, drill the bolts out next time. First drill a small hole in the stripped bolt head with a 3/32" bit. Then drill out the bolt with a 1/4" bit. The bolt will drop straight out. This takes <5 minutes, which includes fetching the drill.
You're a lifesaver. When the bolt broke, I was sure my DIY project would end in a huge plummers bill, just to change a toilet seat. I Know you made this video 5 years ago, but it's still making a difference. Thank you
I grunted and groaned to fix this and even had a neighbour help to no avail. Home Depot had me buy a spiral screw extractor set but after I bought it, it didn't make sense to me. I watched your video. The one piece I was missing was FULLY removing the plastic. piece under the bolt. Solved the problem in under a minute. Thanks so much!
FWIW, I was removing seat of my Toto Aquia and found tht the bolt wasn’t stripped but that whn you turned the screw, the rubber gasket wouldn’t grip porcelain such you could loosen the screw. Instead of destroying a perfectly good seat, i used 3 wood shims against the rubber gasket to hold it in place and then used a drill screwdriver on reverse to pop the screw loose. Then i was able to keep pressure on rubber gasket w shims while I unscrewed the screw w a hand screwdriver. And next time it happens, i will try and get a pair of needle nose plyers on the rubber by accessing it through hole on back side of toilet skirt and then loosen the screw. Probably need 2 people for tht.
Thank you so much for this video! I applied your method to my own toilet when I was at the point of thinking I was going to have to replace the whole toilet because of a stuck seat bolt. I didn’t have wood and used cardboard instead-which made me nervous but it worked. The pressure ended up busting a few plastic parts and the bolt just fell out. Joy!!
Thank you for this video! I was getting desperate after destroyed the toilet seat but still couldn’t get the bolt out. Followed this video and it worked!! Saved my day! I used a piece of plastic board instead wood board. I was also concerned that the toilet might break, leaving a much bigger issue. But luckily the rusty bolts were more fragile than the toilet. It took more force than I thought, but I think less than to break the ceramic. Just be careful that the last pull might come earlier than you thought!
I had that exact problem, followed your directions and low and behold it worked--thanks sooo much. No to get an expansion anchor or something to put the new bold into. Thanks again.
After some scary pulls I worried would crack the toilet, I quit. But noticed the bolt had more clearance so went back at it some more. It Worked!!! Thank you very much.
Thank you! After months of not using my ensuite bathroom for this exact reason I used your technique. Was worried about busting the porcelain but the wood brace worked perfectly.
This helped me! Thanks! I was installing a new seat on a D-shaped toilet and couldn't remove the bolts; using the pry end of a hammer worked like a charm. There was a soft expanding nut which pulled right out once I got enough pull on it. Used cardboard to brace the hammer against the toilet for no damage. All done!
Thank you so much for this, I had been trying all afternoon to remove the bolts. One viewing of your video and I got the hammer and bit of wood and it took a couple of minutes to fix. You are a prince amongst men.
Thanks for this video, I was a little concerned about putting that much stress on the ceramic but as I had nothing to lose I gave it a go and it worked a treat! The first bolt was hard to remove, you really have to give it a good strong pull. The second one was not coming out so with what had been exposed of the bolt I heated it up (carefully) with my blow torch and then used the claw of the hammer to pull it out of the softened threads of the plastic expansion plug. Thanks again for the tip!
I thought replacing my old toilet seat was going to be a 5 minute job. Here I am on youtube looking for help lol thx for the vid
Ridiculous how hard this is. Bad design for maintenance.
This video was a lifesaver. Amazing how many people ran into the same issue for a "5 minute job". Thanks!
This is foolish advice. Instead, drill the bolts out next time. First drill a small hole in the stripped bolt head with a 3/32" bit. Then drill out the bolt with a 1/4" bit. The bolt will drop straight out. This takes <5 minutes, which includes fetching the drill.
I'd just use a dremel at that point... That hammer made me cringe.
You're a lifesaver. When the bolt broke, I was sure my DIY project would end in a huge plummers bill, just to change a toilet seat. I Know you made this video 5 years ago, but it's still making a difference. Thank you
Thank you so much! You saved my husband from ripping the entire toilet out of the floor & throwing it out of the house! Whew! Thank you!!
I grunted and groaned to fix this and even had a neighbour help to no avail. Home Depot had me buy a spiral screw extractor set but after I bought it, it didn't make sense to me. I watched your video. The one piece I was missing was FULLY removing the plastic. piece under the bolt. Solved the problem in under a minute. Thanks so much!
FWIW, I was removing seat of my Toto Aquia and found tht the bolt wasn’t stripped but that whn you turned the screw, the rubber gasket wouldn’t grip porcelain such you could loosen the screw. Instead of destroying a perfectly good seat, i used 3 wood shims against the rubber gasket to hold it in place and then used a drill screwdriver on reverse to pop the screw loose. Then i was able to keep pressure on rubber gasket w shims while I unscrewed the screw w a hand screwdriver. And next time it happens, i will try and get a pair of needle nose plyers on the rubber by accessing it through hole on back side of toilet skirt and then loosen the screw. Probably need 2 people for tht.
Extremely helpful I was just crying over the toilet bowl sober 🤣🤣🤣 this worked and was very satisfying tearing it to shreds❤❤❤
Thank you so much for this video! I applied your method to my own toilet when I was at the point of thinking I was going to have to replace the whole toilet because of a stuck seat bolt. I didn’t have wood and used cardboard instead-which made me nervous but it worked. The pressure ended up busting a few plastic parts and the bolt just fell out. Joy!!
Thank you for this video! I was getting desperate after destroyed the toilet seat but still couldn’t get the bolt out. Followed this video and it worked!! Saved my day! I used a piece of plastic board instead wood board. I was also concerned that the toilet might break, leaving a much bigger issue. But luckily the rusty bolts were more fragile than the toilet. It took more force than I thought, but I think less than to break the ceramic. Just be careful that the last pull might come earlier than you thought!
I had that exact problem, followed your directions and low and behold it worked--thanks sooo much. No to get an expansion anchor or something to put the new bold into. Thanks again.
After some scary pulls I worried would crack the toilet, I quit. But noticed the bolt had more clearance so went back at it some more. It Worked!!! Thank you very much.
Thank you! After months of not using my ensuite bathroom for this exact reason I used your technique. Was worried about busting the porcelain but the wood brace worked perfectly.
This helped me! Thanks! I was installing a new seat on a D-shaped toilet and couldn't remove the bolts; using the pry end of a hammer worked like a charm. There was a soft expanding nut which pulled right out once I got enough pull on it. Used cardboard to brace the hammer against the toilet for no damage. All done!
Thank you so much for this, I had been trying all afternoon to remove the bolts. One viewing of your video and I got the hammer and bit of wood and it took a couple of minutes to fix. You are a prince amongst men.
Thank you so much for this video. I had no hope in replacing my toilet seat until I came across this video. You saved me a large plumbing bill.
Please add me to your list of fervent admirers! I was at my wits' end-then I found your video. All is well with the world again!
Thanks for this video, I was a little concerned about putting that much stress on the ceramic but as I had nothing to lose I gave it a go and it worked a treat! The first bolt was hard to remove, you really have to give it a good strong pull. The second one was not coming out so with what had been exposed of the bolt I heated it up (carefully) with my blow torch and then used the claw of the hammer to pull it out of the softened threads of the plastic expansion plug. Thanks again for the tip!