Our home is over 40 years old and we want to replace the toilets. One is 11 1/2 inches from the woodwork (or a little less than 12 inches from the wall). The other two toilets are 10 inches from the wall to the bolts at the bottom of the toilet. What specification do we need to make when ordering replacements for each of the three units since none are 12inches, the standard size in the home improvement stores?
Mary Anne
Tom: You got a couple of options here. One, you can change the flange and do an offset flange that means calling in a plumber, whose going to set the toilet and what they can do is there’s a flange that will offset and pull it away from the wall up to two inches. Try to stick to a one inch if you can.
The other thing is special ordering a toilet and quite frankly, they can get rather expensive because they’re supposed to be 12 inches from the wall. Again, it depends how much space you can handle behind there.
You can go ahead and look at toilets that can handle that particular spacing, you can also talk to a plumber about an offset flange and I think the offset flange will allow you to use new modern toilets without having to buy special ones.
Charlie: That does not sound like Mr. Do-it-yourself project there.
Tom: I don’t like dealing with flanges but anyway I would call a plumber, yes.
Charlie: Okie dokey.
Tom: You have to set all the toilets and whatnot too.
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