After a flush, water fills the toilet tank, lifting a float that ... first three steps and your toilet keeps running, chances are you have a worn-out flapper.

Consider the 140,000 times you're likely to flush a toilet over a lifetime, and it's easy to see why toilets guzzle nearly 30 percent of a home's water use ... where the tank and bowl are molded ...

This article is part of Running Out, an occasional series about Texas’ water crisis. Read more stories about the threats ...