Toilet Repair in Maryland

Weighted across 1,477,759 occupied homes. Separately, 65% of the state’s 1,554,505 housing units — a wider universe, because it includes vacant ones — were built before 1990, which is before the Energy Policy Act of 1992 set a 1.6 gallon flush maximum.

Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, tables B25003 (tenure) and B25034 (year structure built), 2023 release. Flush volumes: US EPA WaterSense, tank-type toilet supporting statement.

A state average hides the thing that matters. Of the 157 towns we route in here, 38 are mostly pre-1990 housing and 25 are mostly post-1990 housing; on tenure, 93 are strongly owner-occupied and 9 are renter-heavy.

The two are close to independent of each other, so an old town is not reliably an owning town or a renting one. That is why every town page below carries its own pair of figures rather than inheriting these.

The fault list does not vary by state. A running tank is the flapper or the fill valve, and EPA publishes a ten-minute test that tells them apart. Water at the base is four different faults, one of which is condensation and not a leak at all. A fixture that rocks is the one that causes the seal failure you will meet later.

What varies by town is who fixes it. In a rented home the toilet is normally the landlord’s repair, and in the towns above that is a large share of households.

Checking a credential in Maryland

Maryland licenses are issued by the Maryland State Board of Plumbing, Department of Labor, which publishes a public search you can use before work begins.

• Abingdon 81% owner-occupied · 41% pre-1990
• Adamstown 85% owner-occupied · 37% pre-1990
• Annapolis 70% owner-occupied · 67% pre-1990
• Arnold 85% owner-occupied · 76% pre-1990
• Ashton 99% owner-occupied · 28% pre-1990
• Baldwin 92% owner-occupied · 82% pre-1990
• Baltimore 58% owner-occupied · 90% pre-1990
• Bel Air 83% owner-occupied · 56% pre-1990
• Beltsville 66% owner-occupied · 69% pre-1990
• Bethesda 70% owner-occupied · 74% pre-1990
• Big Pool 100% owner-occupied · 58% pre-1990
• Boonsboro 80% owner-occupied · 72% pre-1990
• Bowie 86% owner-occupied · 52% pre-1990
• Boyds 92% owner-occupied · 21% pre-1990
• Brookeville 96% owner-occupied · 59% pre-1990
• Brunswick 86% owner-occupied · 58% pre-1990
• Burtonsville 78% owner-occupied · 79% pre-1990
• Cabin John 94% owner-occupied · 70% pre-1990
• Cascade 90% owner-occupied · 90% pre-1990
• Catonsville 72% owner-occupied · 81% pre-1990
• Cecilton 67% owner-occupied · 66% pre-1990
• Centreville 79% owner-occupied · 43% pre-1990
• Charlestown 72% owner-occupied · 75% pre-1990
• Chesapeake City 87% owner-occupied · 78% pre-1990
• Chester 72% owner-occupied · 54% pre-1990
• Chestertown 71% owner-occupied · 67% pre-1990
• Chevy Chase 66% owner-occupied · 78% pre-1990
• Church Hill 85% owner-occupied · 42% pre-1990
• Clarksburg 87% owner-occupied · 11% pre-1990
• Clarksville 92% owner-occupied · 26% pre-1990
• Clear Spring 89% owner-occupied · 64% pre-1990
• Cockeysville 44% owner-occupied · 72% pre-1990
• Colora 99% owner-occupied · 58% pre-1990
• Columbia 64% owner-occupied · 73% pre-1990
• Conowingo 88% owner-occupied · 52% pre-1990
• Cooksville 95% owner-occupied · 24% pre-1990
• Crofton 81% owner-occupied · 59% pre-1990
• Crownsville 90% owner-occupied · 56% pre-1990
• Damascus 89% owner-occupied · 76% pre-1990
• Davidsonville 95% owner-occupied · 55% pre-1990
• Dayton 96% owner-occupied · 73% pre-1990
• Derwood 78% owner-occupied · 71% pre-1990
• Dickerson 78% owner-occupied · 73% pre-1990
• Earleville 89% owner-occupied · 71% pre-1990
• Edgewater 89% owner-occupied · 57% pre-1990
• Elk Mills 79% owner-occupied · 53% pre-1990
• Elkridge 64% owner-occupied · 33% pre-1990
• Elkton 68% owner-occupied · 54% pre-1990
• Ellicott City 76% owner-occupied · 48% pre-1990
• Fairplay 86% owner-occupied · 78% pre-1990
• Fallston 97% owner-occupied · 68% pre-1990
• Finksburg 94% owner-occupied · 69% pre-1990
• Forest Hill 89% owner-occupied · 42% pre-1990
• Frederick 68% owner-occupied · 46% pre-1990
• Fulton 96% owner-occupied · 11% pre-1990
• Funkstown 61% owner-occupied · 87% pre-1990
• Gaithersburg 66% owner-occupied · 63% pre-1990
• Galena 78% owner-occupied · 61% pre-1990
• Galesville 88% owner-occupied · 89% pre-1990
• Gambrills 83% owner-occupied · 38% pre-1990
• Garrett Park 95% owner-occupied · 87% pre-1990
• Germantown 66% owner-occupied · 54% pre-1990
• Glen Arm 87% owner-occupied · 85% pre-1990
• Glen Burnie 56% owner-occupied · 79% pre-1990
• Glenelg 92% owner-occupied · 39% pre-1990
• Glenn Dale 96% owner-occupied · 36% pre-1990
• Glenwood 99% owner-occupied · 48% pre-1990
• Grasonville 83% owner-occupied · 46% pre-1990
• Greenbelt 45% owner-occupied · 73% pre-1990
• Gwynn Oak 61% owner-occupied · 89% pre-1990
• Hagerstown 59% owner-occupied · 67% pre-1990
• Halethorpe 66% owner-occupied · 87% pre-1990
• Hampstead 86% owner-occupied · 60% pre-1990
• Hancock 72% owner-occupied · 77% pre-1990
• Hanover 66% owner-occupied · 22% pre-1990
• Harwood 90% owner-occupied · 71% pre-1990
• Highland 97% owner-occupied · 74% pre-1990
• Hyattsville 41% owner-occupied · 83% pre-1990
• Hydes 94% owner-occupied · 71% pre-1990
• Ijamsville 96% owner-occupied · 52% pre-1990
• Jarrettsville 92% owner-occupied · 77% pre-1990
• Jefferson 85% owner-occupied · 51% pre-1990
• Jessup 61% owner-occupied · 48% pre-1990
• Joppa 82% owner-occupied · 70% pre-1990
• Keedysville 95% owner-occupied · 51% pre-1990
• Kennedyville 75% owner-occupied · 76% pre-1990
• Kensington 80% owner-occupied · 89% pre-1990
• Kingsville 92% owner-occupied · 77% pre-1990
• Knoxville 88% owner-occupied · 68% pre-1990
• Lanham 72% owner-occupied · 76% pre-1990
• Laurel 55% owner-occupied · 60% pre-1990
• Lutherville Timonium 79% owner-occupied · 73% pre-1990
• Marriottsville 97% owner-occupied · 43% pre-1990
• Maugansville 56% owner-occupied · 85% pre-1990
• Middletown 88% owner-occupied · 58% pre-1990
• Millersville 87% owner-occupied · 69% pre-1990
• Millington 81% owner-occupied · 65% pre-1990
• Monkton 96% owner-occupied · 64% pre-1990
• Monrovia 98% owner-occupied · 53% pre-1990
• Montgomery Village 68% owner-occupied · 82% pre-1990
• Mount Airy 93% owner-occupied · 55% pre-1990
• Myersville 93% owner-occupied · 59% pre-1990
• New Market 93% owner-occupied · 28% pre-1990
• New Windsor 92% owner-occupied · 70% pre-1990
• North East 75% owner-occupied · 40% pre-1990
• Nottingham 69% owner-occupied · 73% pre-1990
• Odenton 64% owner-occupied · 18% pre-1990
• Olney 86% owner-occupied · 66% pre-1990
• Owings Mills 53% owner-occupied · 41% pre-1990
• Parkville 65% owner-occupied · 83% pre-1990
• Pasadena 86% owner-occupied · 72% pre-1990
• Perry Hall 84% owner-occupied · 39% pre-1990
• Perryville 76% owner-occupied · 62% pre-1990
• Phoenix 99% owner-occupied · 77% pre-1990
• Pikesville 67% owner-occupied · 76% pre-1990
• Point Of Rocks 100% owner-occupied · 30% pre-1990
• Poolesville 93% owner-occupied · 53% pre-1990
• Port Deposit 84% owner-occupied · 49% pre-1990
• Potomac 90% owner-occupied · 74% pre-1990
• Queen Anne 85% owner-occupied · 70% pre-1990
• Queenstown 89% owner-occupied · 61% pre-1990
• Randallstown 69% owner-occupied · 70% pre-1990
• Reisterstown 78% owner-occupied · 65% pre-1990
• Rising Sun 82% owner-occupied · 56% pre-1990
• Riva 98% owner-occupied · 69% pre-1990
• Rock Hall 77% owner-occupied · 66% pre-1990
• Rockville 54% owner-occupied · 60% pre-1990
• Rohrersville 57% owner-occupied · 59% pre-1990
• Rosedale 62% owner-occupied · 66% pre-1990
• Sandy Spring 86% owner-occupied · 54% pre-1990
• Savage 50% owner-occupied · 80% pre-1990
• Severn 81% owner-occupied · 45% pre-1990
• Severna Park 89% owner-occupied · 76% pre-1990
• Sharpsburg 81% owner-occupied · 74% pre-1990
• Silver Spring 57% owner-occupied · 77% pre-1990
• Smithsburg 78% owner-occupied · 66% pre-1990
• Sparks Glencoe 71% owner-occupied · 73% pre-1990
• Stevenson 88% owner-occupied · 79% pre-1990
• Stevensville 81% owner-occupied · 57% pre-1990
• Sudlersville 77% owner-occupied · 57% pre-1990
• Sykesville 87% owner-occupied · 58% pre-1990
• Takoma Park 43% owner-occupied · 91% pre-1990
• Towson 55% owner-occupied · 74% pre-1990
• Union Bridge 84% owner-occupied · 82% pre-1990
• Upperco 83% owner-occupied · 71% pre-1990
• Walkersville 86% owner-occupied · 70% pre-1990
• Warwick 90% owner-occupied · 50% pre-1990
• Washington Grove 95% owner-occupied · 93% pre-1990
• West Friendship 100% owner-occupied · 35% pre-1990
• West River 98% owner-occupied · 48% pre-1990
• Westminster 77% owner-occupied · 65% pre-1990
• White Marsh 88% owner-occupied · 48% pre-1990
• Williamsport 69% owner-occupied · 75% pre-1990
• Windsor Mill 48% owner-occupied · 64% pre-1990
• Woodbine 90% owner-occupied · 57% pre-1990
• Woodstock 84% owner-occupied · 22% pre-1990
• Worton 90% owner-occupied · 56% pre-1990