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warning - men only topic: watercloset mechanics


Galen
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Galen,

I was thinking about your delima but not to seriously when a thought came to mind. When I worked at an eating disorder facility some girls were given donuts (inflatable tubes) to sit on because they were so thin an bone on hard wood hurts. Possibly this could assist in dangle challanged situation.

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If you just want a toilet that works well (EVERY time), get a "pressure assist" toilet.

Since the low flush (1.6 gallon) code went into effect 8 or 10 years ago there's been some VAST improvements in toilet design. I remodel kitchens and baths for a living (along with just about any other part of the house, but baths are sort of my mainstay) and have used just about every design out there, and the pressure-assist models are still my favorite.

They have a small pressure tank inside of the porcelain tank of the toilet. The water for the flush cycle is pressurized by the incoming water, and when you trip the lever SHWOOOSH!, things happen. They're a little noisy, but damn, they work. Still only 1.6 gallons, but they work better than anything you've used previously, I promise.

American Standard makes one called "The Water Miser" that I usually use, but that's only because I have an account with their local wholesaler. Kohler, Crane, Elger all have a pressure-assist model and all the brands use the same pressure tank (made by Sloan).

Briggs also has a model called the "Vacuity" that works a little differently, but is still very effective.

Whatever you do, don't buy a cheap toilet. The $70. or $80. models that are always on sale at the chain stores aren't worth the time to install them. They are junk. Plan on spending $200. - $250. and you'll get a pretty good unit.

Add a Toto "Washlet" toilet seat bidet (about $450. - $600.) and your wife will love you even more.

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Galen-

I can't say I have ever heard of anyone with your dangle problem. geesh, maybe your only answer is to use the john only when you have an erection.

Have you tried a "comfort height" toilet? They are 16, 16 1/2 or 17" from the floor to the top of the rim, as opposed to the 14 1/2" standard. They are also sold as ADA compatible. (to accomodate those with need to move from wheelchair to stool., or with difficulty getting up from that awkward squat poistion) Many of my older clients are requesting them when I remodel their bathrooms. You could try them at virtually any public privy which is equipped with wheelchair accessible toilets. They are all over the place.

I believe the extra height should also increase the distance to the water from the seat, but I admit I never checked that. You might also consider an elongated rather than a round one (bowl). The water reservoir is often further back in the bowl, where it is needed.

As far as brands, I feel you were misled by that website. There is difference in the flush action, as well as the bowl reservoir design, especially now with the 1.6 gal max usage requirements. Manufacturers are trying hard to counter the concern some folks have about the early versions not cleaning themselves well. They are improving the action with each new model.

My experience has been American Standard and Kohler do much better than Eljer, and that Kohler seems to install easier. (although there is no rocket science to putting any of them together.) Cheaper brands have a tendency to not be as well cast, and often have an uneven bottom, which makes installation harder when you try to prevent a rocky base.

American Standard makes a "power flush" model which uses some sort of a forced pressure to flush the system. They work incredibly well, but are rather loud. My clients have been very happy with them in spite of the loudness.

I dunno if any of this will help you with your dangling participle, except the ADA seats. Do you live near Ms. Bobbitt? (ouch)

Poor cleaning of the bowl can have many causes, from a clogged wax ring, corroded/crusty inlet holes in the bowl, improper water level, or bad/weak flapper valve (where the water leaves the tank to go to the bowl) My first guess is the flapper valve, second the wax ring. You should never set the float valve to fill the tank above the water elevation mark which is cast into the back of the tank. It's a waste of water and does little to increase flushing capability.

Out here in the arid west, we can't waste any water more than necessary.

Oh, regarding installing used 3.5 or 5.0 gallon toilets. Its a bad idea unless the area has soft water. You are buying someone else's problems most likely, but most contractors would give them to you so they don't have to haul them to the dump. Licensed plumbers cannot install them for you (at least in my area).

I guess plumbers need to know more than that water flows downhill and payday is on Friday.

Good luck-

HAP

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quote:
Whatever you do, don't buy a cheap toilet. The $70. or $80. models that are always on sale at the chain stores aren't worth the time to install them. They are junk. Plan on spending $200. - $250. and you'll get a pretty good unit.

Add a Toto "Washlet" toilet seat bidet (about $450. - $600.) and your wife will love you even more.


More expensive than a condom, but sounds like it's worth it! icon_biggrin.gif:D-->

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Galen, I'm not trying to be funny here but am raising a son so feel I know something. Could you maybe hold the dangling part a little from the top so it doesn't dangle and you can go from both ends at the same time if need be?

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Galen wrote:

quote:
When I suspect blockage I routinely use 150 psi air to blow such blockages out into the street.


Is that what submariners call "blowing sanitary"?

Sounds like a great way to leak test your drains. Ever forget to block all them before that exercise?

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Galen,

Re: “Actually I just ‘raised’ the level of water in the water-closet by 2 more inches. Which had an immediate effect on flushing characteristics.”

That has nothing to do with what I suggested. A toilet holds water in two places, the tank and the bowl. You raised the water level in the tank, which helped flushing by increasing the amount of water dumped from the tank to the bowl when you raise the flapper with the flush lever. What I suggested was decreasing the water level in the bowl, thereby increasing the distance from the seat to what you call the puddle, which is what you say you want.

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Something else I should have noted, you should be sure to get a toilet with an "elongated front" rather than a round front. It gives the men in the house a little more "equipment" room.

Unless space is really limited, it's the only kind of unit I'll put in a bath anymore. Round fronts are icky.

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George is right. The round-front toilets are a curse unto mankind.

Ladies: For those of you who get annoyed that men sometimes "miss" the toilet, you have to understand how men are built. Now, you know perfectly well that as you urinate, the pressure gradually drops until you stop. It's the same with us, except that our bladders are larger than yours and the pressure is higher. Since you pee straight down, the pressure doesn't matter to you. Since we pee "out" more or less, the stream is going to jet out for a distance proportional to the pressure at any given instant. That's why we have to stand back a bit from the toilet and can't stand completely over the bowl to catch drips--we'd whiz all over the tank if we did. So, when we're close to finishing we have to lean in a bit as the stream gets shorter. Sometimes the pressure can stop abruptly through flexing of the urinary sphincter, and oops, some can hit the floor anyway. It's not intentional, it's just bio-physics.

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