HYDRO JETTING

Whatever you call it, the toilet is one of the most important items in your house. While the color and cost matter, how much water it uses and how well it flushes matter more. A good one conserves water and generates enough power to clean the bowl in a single flush. A bad one can be a 20-year pain in the butt. This will help you choose a high-performance dunny that will fit your bathroom, budget and backside.

A new generation of low-flow models

Since 1994, low-flow toilets that use 1.6 gallons per flush or less have been the federal standard. The first generation of low-flow toilets sucked or rather, they didn’t. That’s mostly because manufacturers tweaked a few things to reduce the amount of water used but didn’t change the basic design. You had to flush it twice reducing water savings. But 15 years later, more of these toilets actually work. Manufacturers have made significant design improvements such as larger trap-ways to prevent clogging and larger flush valves that allow a more powerful rush of water to enter the bowl. The following tips will make choosing a new toilet a lot easier.

Don’t pinch pennies

You can get a “contractor special” for less than 75 dollars. But everything from the working parts to the quality of the glazing will likely be low quality. And don’t expect a powerful flush from a cheap toilet. You’re going to use your toilet every day for years, so get a good one. Plan to spend 100 to 500 dollars for a gravity toilet and 225 to 600 dollars for a pressure-assist model.

Pipe fixture supplies and bathroom showrooms

Home centers offer some but not all of the top-ranked toilets. For the widest selections in makes and models, visit bathroom showrooms and check online retailers.

Unique features can cost you later

Custom seats and unusual flush mechanisms add a cool factor, but they’ll cost you time, money and frustration if they ever need replacing. A replacement custom seat, for example, costs more than 100 dollars. Whether you’re interested in remodeling the bathroom, you’ve discovered water damage on the bathroom floor or the toilet itself is damaged, there are many reasons to undertake the task of replacing your home’s toilet. Consult this list of common replacement causes to determine if it’s time for you to invest in a new fixture:

1. Leaks: Leaks from either the toilet’s tank or its bowl can go undetected for long periods of time, causing water damage to the flooring or subfloor. If allowed to continue, the entire floor may need to be replaced. Leaks can also cause damage to rooms below if the bathroom is upstairs. Especially when dealing with older toilets, it may be more cost-effective to replace a toilet than find and fix leaks. Leaks not only cause damage but also consume water, which may increase your utility bill.

2. Poor water-use efficiency: If you have an older toilet, just flushing it on regular basis may have a negative impact on your utility bill. Toilets manufactured before 1980 can use up to 7 gallons of water with each flush. Under federal guidelines enacted in the 1990s, modern toilets are required to use no more than 1.6 gallons per flush. To determining your toilet’s age, lift the lid and look for the date stamp.

3. Appearance: Your toilet may not match your current color scheme or even have any resemblance to your sense of style or home decor. Toilets with colors like avocado green and coral pink toilets were once in vogue, but today may make your home’s bathroom appear hopelessly outdated. Modern toilets can come in a variety of colors besides the common color themes such as bone, biscuit or white, but keep in mind that designer color toilets can cost significantly more than neutral color selections.

4. Comfort: When shopping for a new toilet, don’t forget comfort. Make sure the toilet seat isn’t too small or narrow and that the seat height isn’t too high or low. If you’re investing in a new toilet, find one that fits you and your family comfortably.

5. Broken or uncommon components: If your current toilet has a broken components such as flush handle or the interior mechanisms, weigh the cost of replacing these items versus the cost of a new unit.

6. Replacing the flooring: If you plan to replace your bathrooms’ flooring during a remodel, consider replacing the toilet. In many cases, the existing unit will have to be temporarily uninstalled to make way for the new flooring, so it may be an ideal time to upgrade to a new unit.

Replacing a toilet is a task best left to a qualified pipe fixing professional. Porcelain can be extremely heavy yet easy to chip or crack, the unit should properly fixed to the existing drain system to prevent leaks and ensure proper operation.

Fixing a Toilet – The Issues Involved

For a minor mending, 50 to 100 dollars for a service call, plus parts. Replacing a standard toilet could be 300 to 500 dollars. In most cases the parts to mend a toilet would be less than 25 dollars. Savings = 50 to 500 dollars. You can easily see that it may be worth your while to learn how to fix a toilet. Fixing a toilet yourself may not be worth it if you damage something worth more than the toilet fixture would cost. The toilet uses water to operate. If it clogs up, the water can be, well, let’s just say, less than desirable.

Anything that can be damaged by water should be removed from the area before the mending is attempted. Plunging a clogged toilet can splash dirty water around the area, old clothes and some protection for the walls might be a good idea. Getting the toilet partially fixed before it gets too late or the parts store closes can leave the toilet not operating. One trick is that a toilet can be flushed by dumping a couple of gallons of water quickly into it from a pail. This emulates the normal function of the tank.