What should an inspector observe about a toilet that runs continuously?

A toilet that runs continuously is telling you that one of two valves is not doing its job. Either the flush valve seal — the flapper — is no longer sealing, so tank water leaks into the bowl and the tank refills endlessly to replace it, or the fill valve fails to shut off and sends water over the overflow tube. Both are inexpensive, commonly replaced parts, and both waste a genuinely large volume: a leaking flapper can pass thousands of gallons a month with no visible sign beyond a faint trickle down the bowl. The inspector's report names the likely component rather than the symptom alone, because that is what turns an observation into something the client can act on without paying for a diagnosis first.

Continuous running means either the flush valve seal is leaking tank water into the bowl or the fill valve is not shutting off. Both are the sealing components, and naming them makes the finding actionable.

Toilet tanks refill when the water level drops. A deteriorated flapper leaks tank water into the bowl and a failed fill valve overflows into the overflow tube, either producing continuous running. Both are routine repairs.

Leaking Out or Never Closing. Water escaping the tank is the flapper; water arriving without stopping is the fill valve.

Dye in the tank confirms a flapper leak — colour appearing in the bowl without a flush is diagnostic and costs a few minutes.

• •Recommending fixture replacement for a valve failure
• •Attributing a single fixture's behaviour to house supply pressure
• •Reporting the running without identifying the likely component