a toilet's stability

Where should a floor mounted toilet get most of its stability from? Is it where it primarily from being bolted down or is the grout a significant factor in its stability?

Thanks in advance,

Chris

Reply to
tja
Loading thread data ...

Excellent question. The toilet or water closet stays on the floor by its own weight and the person sitting on it.

The gasket is a seal to keep gases out and help the siphon action. The flange bolts are to act as help in sealing and a place holder. They are hand tightened only. The grout/calk is there to keep water from getting in and then bacteria would form in there giving unpleasant odors.

Heavy people are always a problem with water closets.

Thanks in advance,

Chris

Reply to
Red Jacket The Laughing India

Well if you have a great solution for fat people, let me know.

My brother-in-law weighs a solid 500-lbs. I go over there fairly frequently to "fix" the toilet. And I've tried damn near everything I can think of to keep that bitch solid to the floor.

I don't know what the hell the dude does in there. I don't know if he sits in there and rocks back and forth or swivels his hips are what the f*ck the guy is doing in there. I've been over there more than once where the bead of silicone has been torn from the floor as the whole water closet shifted.

Maybe I should just install a "squatter" and be done with the whole thing. either that or I could install a shower with a 4" trap and just tell him to step into the shower and squeeze it right onto the floor.

Reply to
Blackbeard

This may be what you need.

formatting link

Reply to
Casino Knight

"Red Jacket The Laughing Indian !"

I don't know about everyone else, but I crank toilet bolts pretty tight.

Reply to
Mike Grooms

A prison toilet BB.

We talked some ruffneck bars into putting them in.

II'll tell you what tho....even some guys can rip them off a wall.

My brother-in-law weighs a solid 500-lbs. I go over there fairly frequently to "fix" the toilet. And I've tried damn near everything I can think of to keep that bitch solid to the floor.

I don't know what the hell the dude does in there. I don't know if he sits in there and rocks back and forth or swivels his hips are what the f*ck the guy is doing in there. I've been over there more than once where the bead of silicone has been torn from the floor as the whole water closet shifted.

Maybe I should just install a "squatter" and be done with the whole thing. either that or I could install a shower with a 4" trap and just tell him to step into the shower and squeeze it right onto the floor.

Reply to
Red Jacket The Laughing India

Its a fancy prison or jail type toilet. Looks good to me. Go with cost, stainless steel or this one.

Its 17 1/2 " I like that, it be nice if they were higher tho...

This may be what you need.

formatting link

Reply to
Red Jacket The Laughing India

That's Ok mike, you do everything wrong

"Red Jacket The Laughing Indian !"

I don't know about everyone else, but I crank toilet bolts pretty tight.

Reply to
Red Jacket The Laughing India

i tighten the bolts pretty tight too. if the toilet rocks ill double up on the wax rings (like on tile floor) and sometimes even shim it if bad enough. sometimes I have had to lag screw the toilet to floor to make it stable enough.

Reply to
Ned Flanders

I personally guarantee you that if you level the toilet properly (think 4 corners) that you will not have to excessively tighten or use lag screws. I know that some folks use "wobble wedges" and other such products but it is very difficult to beat plain old sheet lead. (pieces of flashing) It's flat, it doesn't rust or rot, and it is easy shape. Dry set the toilet (without wax) and level to a point where the toilet does not rock without any closet bolts. Make sure the lead is in the locations where it needs to be and lift the bowl straight up while making sure the lead remains on the floor and in the locations where it belongs. Set your wax ring and lower the bowl onto the lead shims. Tighten "carefully".

Bob Wheatley

Reply to
Bob Wheatley

"Bob Wheatley"

Realizing I'm asking a my guru, have you ever met a plumber who actually broke a toilet by tightening the closet bolts too tight? I never have.

Reply to
Mike Grooms

Yes sir I have. Actually....I broke one myself back in '79 despite being taught better by my dad. I have seen a handful since then..... Any time you have a situation where the china is suspended or is unsupported above the closet bolts and you over-tighten you are asking for the bowl to break. Although I must admit that I have seen more tanks broken than bowls, it is a fact that either can be broken if over tightened.

Bob Wheatley

Reply to
Bob Wheatley

I use rubber rings on tile. See, I'm a pro.

Reply to
Red Jacket The Laughing India

I have broken a couple of them. I use plastic wedges not lead. I have a plastic washer as normal on tile or anything else, I use 2 wax rings if tile is very irregular and if bad enough i use my plastic wedges. This is a better option because #1 plastic is not deadly and #2 plastic does not compress as easily. I never use rubber here.

Reply to
Ned Flanders

The primary reason I do not allow my men to use "wobble wedges" is because most guys just push the toilet down to the floor and then start pushing the wedges in until the toilet is level. The problem with that should be obvious. When you push wedges or washers in _after_ the toilet has been lowered to the floor, you are _raising_ the bottom of the bowl. Unless y'all are using some sort of space aged wax that I don't know about you are leaving a broken seal. Think about it, wax has zero elasticity. When you compress it, it does not re-expand to fill it's former shape. Once a toilet has been pushed down to the floor and you lift it, you are leaving the wax behind. That's why I described the traditional (and correct) method of dry setting and pre-leveling.

Bob Wheatley

Reply to
Bob Wheatley

I broke two toilets in my life and never had it happen again ! I over did the flange bolts, sometime later the porcelin broke. My Dad taught me same same Bob.

>
Reply to
Red Jacket The Laughing India

I never said to push wedges under toilet after the fact. I said I don't like lead because it changes shape or compresses which makes it hard to fit just right and its toxic (we try to be green here). I level toilet mark wedges then cut my wedges so they don't stick out past my (required by code) bead of silicone.

When you work with some of the more fancy tiles you will see that sometimes you are looking at over a 1/4 inch difference in elevations. I do not install the toilet slanted, I level it up. I use 1 wax ring with horn and one without. This has always worked well for us. I have not warmed up to the waxless seals which on paper look like a good choice for tile.

also I think the wax does move and stretch a bit. I agree that you want to try not to lift the toilet too much but a fresh wax ring will move a good

1/8 inch. ( This is only a guess from experience; never done a controlled test)

I think we agree in general I just like to use plastic instead of lead. (on boats we used bedding compound)

I did one time have to make my own cement platform that they tiled up to. The tile was one giant tile actually poured in place. They covered floor with white rocks; small ones.(like 1/2") roundish. then poured green colored epoxy into floor, the green when dry was see-through but green. This would have been hard to level with wedges so I recommended that I pour a mini-slab the exact footprint of toilet. This also solved their other concern of being able to see plumbing around edge of toilet. The outside of the cement was painted white. My finish job looks like the toilet just disappears into the floor.

Ever heard of frit ??

Reply to
Ned Flanders

"Bob Wheatley"

While we're on that subject, I've run into this problem with the "no-seep" rings with the insert. It seems like when you're forced to put the closet collar on the finished floor, some brands of toilets hit the insert with the horn before the base hits the floor. Does anyone else run into this?

Reply to
Mike Grooms

Are you using them with plastic flanges? I only use brass.

Bob Wheatley

Reply to
Bob Wheatley

"Bob Wheatley"

That's exactly the remedy. My complaint is that the toilets should be made with more clearance. Obviously there's little room for adjustments. I like the plastic repair flanges that reach down into the closet bend, but I always have to remember to bring wax rings without the inserts. I don't remember this ever happening with older toilets.

Reply to
Mike Grooms

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.