<p>I help some friends with their rental house here in town. A simple bathroom floor redo has turned into a major project, done by the skilled and committed renters. We’re already in for a sink, so why not toilet as well? But I know there have been functional issues with some of the low flow toilets on the market. Anyone have good reports on functionality, as well as ease of installation for the sort of toilets carried by Home Depot and Menards?</p>
<p>There are a few reviews on line, but they tend to be other brands than are carried by those big box, open today, retailers.</p>
<p>I have a Kohler low flow that works well, an American Standard dual flush low flow that works well, and have installed a Toto low flow that works well. By and large the kinks have been worked out of low flow toilets such that they work as well as or better than the older standard toilets.</p>
<p>Toto gets high marks as does Kohler and Am Std and they’re generally reasonable in cost. Paying a lot more money for a toilet is usually just for the syle/color of it - not better flushing functionality. The brand name ones above at HD and Lowes and the like are fine. I’d stay away from the extra low cost ones from other lesser known brands - it’s not worth the few dollars you’d save. If you want a Toto check some other hardware stores or a plumbing supply location. If you go to Toto’s website they have a ‘where to buy’ link.</p>
<p>Removal of the old toilet and installation of a new toilet is usually very easy -
Measure the distance from the back wall to about where the center of the drain for the existing toilet is before you buy the new toilet. Most are set at around 12" from the wall but could be out another inch or two. If it’s closer to the wall than that then you may need to get a special non-standard toilet - check the spec on the replacement toilet.
Shut off the water supply at the toilet and disconnect the supply hose at the tank.
Flush the toilet a couple of times to drain most of the water. Use a large sponge, towel, or other means to get rid of the rest of the water in the toilet.
Remove the two nuts from the bolts holding the toilet to the floor (one on each side).
Lift the toilet off the floor. Be careful not to break it since broken ceramic will be sharp. If it seems stuck, try rocking it and/or cut through any caulking that might be around the bottom sticking it to the floor. Sometimes it’s easier to take the tank off first to reduce the weight and make it less unwieldy. The tank comes off easily - 2 bolts.
The toilet will be somewhat heavy so be prepared for that. It’ll also have old seal wax on the bottom so don’t set it down on anything nice.
Clean out the old wax from the drain in the floor.
Get a new wax kit at the hardware store. These usually include new bolts. Follow the instructions to put the new wax ring in place and replace the old bolts.
Carefully set the bottom half (or whole thing if it’s a one piece toilet) of the new toilet into place over the drain. Rock it from side to side slightly while pushing it down and then sit down on it to make the wax ring seal well.
Put the washers and nuts on the hold down bolts and tighten but don’t over-tighten or you could break the toilet.
Install the new tank if it’s not a two piece toilet. This is usally just 2 bolts. Tighten but don’t over-tighten or you could break the tank.
Attach the supply line to the tank and turn on the water valve.
Test it a couple of times and check for leaks.</p>
<p>Thanks, talk about complete guide! Should just get you a ticket to fly out and replace the one in my house! I helped my ex move toilets around at times. Truly a pain to get seated on that wax ring, or so I remember. </p>
<p>Toto seemed highly rated, but not carried at the big box stores. Glad to know the name brand ones are functional these days.</p>
<p>Whatever kind of toilet you get, be sure to pick the seat that has the slow and silent closing mechanism for both seat and lid. Very soothing for us old folks…</p>
<p>The bolting on of the tank is tricky, make sure all the gaskets are in the right place. Don’t over-tighten the bolts or the toilet or tank could crack.</p>
<p>But don’t leave them too loose or water will flood all over when you flush. Not that this happened at our house last weekend…nope, not us…</p>
<p>Oh, and the American Standard Cadet III toilet at Home Depot really flushes well with little water. It’s a bit higher seat, good for many aging knees and taller folks like my family, but if you are under 5’4" or so your feet may be swinging.</p>
<p>Liv4physiz, what? you’d prefer the kitchen sink? </p>
<p>Dragon mom, so sorry! Can’t imagine how awful. Hopefully not a 2 story house, with water damage below? </p>
<p>Thanks for the garden web reference, will check. </p>
<p>My original googling seemed a bit confusing. But later I did find reference to the American Standard Cadet III, which is not too expensive and well rated. I told the renter to get that, but as he’s waiting for plaster repair to dry, will check out a smaller store tomorrow with different brands. </p>
<p>Will have to look at Terry Love again. The one thread I checked had rather pricey recommendations. </p>
<p>Slow closing seat? I think I want that for my house. </p>
<p>Liv4physiz, if you think a toilet thread is weird, you should take a look at our colonoscopy discussions. Welcome to the world of adults - where toilets leak, bathroom mirrors fall off of the walls, dishwashers stop working, chipmunks take over the yard, etc. This is what you will be facing upon graduation from the fairy tale land AKA college. :D</p>
<p>OP, my low flow Kohler toilets installed by the builder 12 years ago still work fine. They were the “higher end” stuff offered at HD at that time.</p>
<p>Haven’t read all the other posts but will include my experience. In the last five or so years we have replaced three toilets in our 1961 home. We bought one American Standard, chosen because it was the only non-commercial, old-fashioned wall mount we could find at the time. It has a pressured flush which is very loud and might frighten small children. We’ve had a few problems with it; I wouldn’t buy another. One Kohler, the Rialto, was chosen because it was the shortest front to back and we were putting it in a small room. It is the newest and is such a PITA I avoid using it (and it’s in the master bath). No matter how careful I am flushing it always seems to run. Lastly, we bought one Toto; I remember reading Terry Love’s recs. It has been in our boys’ bath (which is used for Bed & Breakfast when they are at school) since 2006. Nary a problem. If I ever get to build my dream home, it will have nothing but Toto toilets.</p>
<p>Among other things, my grandfather was a very talented plumber of 40+ years (mainly commercial plumbing). When we redid one of bathrooms about 10 years ago, we got one of the new (at the time) dual flush toilets. The model we have, which is made by Caroma (an Australian company), is excellent and “can flush a cantaloupe.” The low level flush (0.8 gpf) is all that is usually needed (the full flush is 1.28 gpf; while most toilets are now 1.4 or 1.6 gpf, older ones are 5-6 gpf). Of course, this toilet was not cheap, but we’d buy another one in a heartbeat.</p>
<p>As a word of advice, buy an elongated toilet and also one that is further off the ground if you have taller family members. Many homes are still built with tiny, non-elongated toilets, which are really annoying and are a factor against my family buying/renting a house.</p>
<p>HD carries an American Standard dual flush, comfort height (higher), elongated toilet for $178. I think this is the one I bought and installed (either that or another AmStd at HD with the same features).</p>
<p>It works fine but keep in mind that the ‘low flush’ doesn’t do well to flush down even a little TP. </p>
<p>When you buy a new toilet to replace an old regular flush model check with the community since there may be rebates from the city or elsewhere available as incentive to replace the less efficient toilet.</p>
<p>My problem with the HD dual flush was the flush thing on top of the tank… Metallic plastic that would have to be disinfected/scrubbed on a regular basis and no way to know if the parts would be available in the future. I predict about a three year “looks nice” window on the tank-mounted flush apparatus. And how much are you willing to disinfect that push-button? Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, wasn’t it a great play?</p>
<p>^^ I don’t see how disinfecting the buttons on top would be any different from disinfecting a handle. They appear to be plastic with a highly polished metallic coating - i.e. not particularly any more of a germ collection area than anything else. If anything it might be slightly easier to disinfect than a handle just due to the shape (a nit).</p>
<p>I don’t know about part availability in the future, we’ll see how that goes, but the cost of the toilet was low enough that if it needs to be replaced 5 or 10 or so years down the road it’s not a big deal.</p>
<p>We have 3 (elongated, 1 dual flush) Totos. I love them all! Our water bill went down significantly when we got them, as they replaced toilets that were 25 years old. We found relatively good prices by shopping around locally, and at the time, qualified for rebates through our local water supplier. We got the slow-closing lids and purchased Bemis seats separately because we found them to be much more, well, comfortable.</p>
<p>The Terry Love site mentioned by MommaJ provides a wealth of information. When our contractor/neighbor installed the toilets, he apparently didn’t read the directions and tried to install them like regular toilets, and, as a result, one of them developed a small leak. I emailed Terry Love late that night, and he got back to me with a quick fix by the next morning!</p>
<p>Totos are the one brand that we can always count on to do what they are supposed to do - flush! (One of my friends has some kind of accessory that turns it into a bidet which she loves, but that was a little beyond our needs.)</p>
<p>We have an Elger Titan comfort height. I hope to replace our other toilet with the exact same one. It’s low flow but rarely requires more than one flush. Whoosh! My husband love it, ha ha. Even better is it has some sort of “stay clean” coating on it to reduce the, um, skid marks. What a topic…</p>
<p>We built our current home 6years ago and put in toto toilets. After raising three boys with standard/builder grade plumbing this was a major upgrade. They are much easier to clean (elongated bowl, single piece design, low profile), and use less water. We paid a ton, but it was well worth it. When the basement was finished a few years later the contractor got to the bathroom much quicker then anticipated and we didn’t have time to order. We picked up an Am Standard ‘champion’. We haven’t had any problems with it.</p>
<p>We did have friends who also built at the same time and yes, the discussions did turn to toilets (grown-ups are so boring!!). She called her brother (a successful plumber) to see if a $500 toilet could possible be worth the cost. He assured her that he installed a toto toilet at least once a week and they were in fact the toilet of the gods. We thought this was pretty funny.</p>
<p>Another vote for enlongated bowl style Toto toilets…WITH the soft close seat (you won’t regret it). We upgraded our baths a couple years ago and also consulted That Home Site forum + Terry Love’s Plumbing advice. The only knock I have on the Totos is that we’ve replaced some of the small mechanical parts in the flush valve, otherwise they work great and rarely clog. We didn’t get all the fancy components, just the soft close seat. You can buy those seats separately at plumbing supply & big box stores now.</p>
We’ve had a few problems with it; I wouldn’t buy another. One Kohler, the Rialto, was chosen because it was the shortest front to back and we were putting it in a small room. It is the newest and is such a PITA I avoid using it (and it’s in the master bath). No matter how careful I am flushing it always seems to run. Lastly, we bought one Toto; I remember reading Terry Love’s recs. It has been in our boys’ bath (which is used for Bed & Breakfast when they are at school) since 2006. Nary a problem. If I ever get to build my dream home, it will have nothing but Toto toilets.</p>