tired of cheap American Standard.

[shortylickens]

They make lousy products. Always needing maintenance.

Went ahead and finally ordered the toilet I've always wanted:

http://www.wayfair.com/Kohler-Persu...h-Toilet-with-Top-Actuator-3654-KOH14179.html

Now I am truly happy.

 

[boomerang]

Now I am truly happy

For how long?

 

[evident]

I'm a big Toto fan... that is until I moved into my current house. In my townhome I replaced a few toilets w/ Toto's and they were awesome. my current house came w/ Toto's, but I think the previous owners bought the bottom of the barrel models. Flushing mechanism doesn't work right, always have to flush twice before getting everything down, even if it's just liquid. And it stains like crazy. I guess it doesn't have the "sanigloss" feature or maybe they used such harsh cleaners that it wore off. And maybe the hard water screwed up the internals of the toilet, i dunno.

I guess what i'm getting at is maybe the american standard toilets you had were lower end models w/ the same issues as my toto's

 

[shortylickens]

Fuck.



That wayfair company lied.

Did you notice the website claimed installation is between 230 and 280?
Well, unbeknown to me, after I completed my online order they called up a couple different INDEPENDENT companies to come by and do an estimate. Neither company know who called them to ask for the estimate, they just got a request from Somewhere.
The first guy was from Mr Rooter and wanted 590 dollars to install it. And that was after a 10 percent New Customer discount.

The 2nd guy is supposed to show up soon and I have no damn clue what he's gonna say. I might not be getting my uber-commode at all.

 

[shortylickens]

2nd dude came by. Looked at the job. Offered me same explanation. Bid 300 dollars for it. Told him he way cool and I'd contact him soon.

 

[NoCreativity]

2nd dude came by. Looked at the job. Offered me same explanation. Bid 300 dollars for it. Told him he way cool and I'd contact him soon.

Assuming there is nothing wrong with your flange replacing a toilet will take less than an hour. And that's for someone who doesn't do it often. This guy will probably be less than 30 minutes from start to finish. $600/hour, man I need to look into becoming a plumber.

 

[Elixer]

One new wax ring + 35-45 mins screwing everything in and hooking up water, and done.
If the old toilet is still there, then sucking out water with shop vac + unscrewing (or cutting) old bolts, remove old wax seal takes around 20 mins max.
Don't need a plumber for this kind of job.

 

[Exterous]

One new wax ring + 35-45 mins screwing everything in and hooking up water, and done.
If the old toilet is still there, then sucking out water with shop vac + unscrewing (or cutting) old bolts, remove old wax seal takes around 20 mins max.
Don't need a plumber for this kind of job.

:thumbsup: Toilets are pretty straight forward to install or remove.

I'm a big Toto fan... that is until I moved into my current house. In my townhome I replaced a few toilets w/ Toto's and they were awesome. my current house came w/ Toto's, but I think the previous owners bought the bottom of the barrel models.

Like many companies it seems Toto, Kohler etc make products across a range of quality. Parts for Totos are hard to find around here so I've gone with good quality Kohlers for the 4 toilets I've replaced across various houses and have had zero issues with any of them. I think making sure you get things like a fully glazed trap, external tank screw mounts and good quality flush valves is more important than the brand.

 

[SparkyJJO]

When I did mine I had to replace my flange as it was all rusted out, but I have easy access to the pipe underneath and it is just ABS drain pipe. Easy to replace. And I didn't screw around with a wax ring, got one of those saniseal things and it worked really well.

I put in an American Standard but got one just 1 notch down from the top model. Been a year so far, seems fine.

 

[NoCreativity]

Like many companies it seems Toto, Kohler etc make products across a range of quality. Parts for Totos are hard to find around here so I've gone with good quality Kohlers for the 4 toilets I've replaced across various houses and have had zero issues with any of them. I think making sure you get things like a fully glazed trap, external tank screw mounts and good quality flush valves is more important than the brand.

Pretty much this. I bought 3 good Kohlers for my current house and both Kohler and American Standard for my old house. Zero problems with any of them because I went with the better models.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I bought a nicer Kohler model when we did a bathroom remodel last year and love it.

Oh, and yeah, you're getting robbed even at $300 for a toilet install. Unless you have damage to the floor boards (such as rot) or need some serious plumbing, it should be a 30-45 minute job.

 

[shortylickens]

Nope. Brand new floor. Used to be a utility closet, only just recently made it into a bathroom. Nice sturdy tiles. I like it.

Only problem was the builder-grade toilet we installed. Now regretting the decision.

 

[boomerang]

He's getting quotes that high because they don't want to do the job. They don't want to travel and lug tools for a quick job like that so they price it accordingly. The OP needs to find a handyman that typically does small jobs.

 

[DrPizza]

Heck, if I lived within an hour's drive of you, I'd install a toilet for you for $200 any day of the week, provided by install, you don't mean running the water line and drain line, and you just mean remove the old toilet, put together the new toilet, install the new toilet. As everyone above said, it's a 30 minute job. OP, I think that if you watched one or two Youtube videos, you would realize that you could do it yourself. Heck, I think the only tools you'd need is a crescent wrench and screwdriver. Oh, and a little hacksaw blade to shorten the bolts after installing it so you can stick those little white caps on them, though some brands of the bolts actually are made that you can bend above a certain point and the excess length snaps off. Seriously, OP - I'd trust a kid to install a toilet if he watched a couple of videos first to learn how to do it.

Re: someone mentioned the flange above - they make a metal replacement flange to repair bad flanges. I think HD carries them, and likely Lowes or any other plumbing supplier. I can't remember who I helped, but we had to stick one of those in, and it worked like a charm.

 

[NetWareHead]

Toilet replacement is easy. The worst part about it is emptying the bowl. Old sponge and bucket does the trick. And handling of the old wax ring which is no doubt contaminated with all sorts of goodies. I wear vinyl gloves to do this and no problem. Have an old putty knife you dont care about that you can use to scrape up the remnants of the wax ring. You need a few small tools as covered by DrPizza.

Dont move a toilet in one piece. The tank and bowl separate. Have a garbage bag handy so you can place the bowl portion into it and not get the floor dirty. Dont reuse the supply hose. Typically a compression fitting, they dont always seal after being unscrewed, plus they are cheap so get a new one for peace of mind. Also, most toilets have a sticker above the tank waterline: read it. The ones I've dealt with recently do not allow toilet cleaning products in the tank. Talking about those chlorine tablets or products that turn the water blue you drop in the tank. They are corrosive and eat the seal between the bowl and tank leading to leaks or damage the tank flushing assembly.

Also, IMO, plumbers charge so much because they can. Not many guys entering the blue collar industries especially plumbing. Its hard and sometimes dirty work. Its a hard trade to truly master and there are big differences between a hack and a truly skilled plumber that does quality work. My plumber tells me stories about some of the stuff he has had to do and its frankly disgusting. He also charges $135 an hour (expensive for a plumber near me) and is always busy. But he has built a reputation for quality work and really does a a damn fine job.

Re: American Standard, make sure you save the receipt and and proof of purchase. If you ever have a warranty claim, American Standard wont help you without this.