Replacing a toilet seat is quick and easy. If you know how to replace a toilet seat, you can make a cosmetic improvement to your bathroom in just a few minutes. Seats get damaged or cracked, but most often the goal is to simply freshen up the look of the toilet. Replacing a toilet seat may be the easiest bathroom repair to make because you don’t even need to turn off the water.
Toilet seats come in two styles or sizes: round (16 inches from front to back) and oblong or elongated (18 inches from front to back). Measure the old seat before you go shopping to ensure that you get the correct size.
To replace the toilet seat, you'll need a screwdriver, an adjustable wrench, and, of course, the new seat.
Pry open the bolt caps.
Use a screwdriver to pop open the bolt caps.
Hold the nut on the underside of the seat bolt.
Use the adjustable wrench to hold the nut located on the underside of the seat bolt.
Remove the seat bolts and lift off the seat.
Turn the seat bolts with the screwdriver. After you remove the nuts, lift off the seat.
Push the anchor bolts of the new seat through the holes and hand tighten the nuts.
Align the bolt holes of the new seat with the holes of the toilet base. Push the anchor bolts through the holes, and then screw on the nuts from the underside of the bolts until they’re hand-tight. Center the seat and then tighten the nuts.
Once the seat is centered, use the adjustable wrench to tighten the nuts. Don’t over tighten the nuts — just beyond snug is good enough.
