Which is the best Pressure Assist Toilet?

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Exoricst

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Hi all,

I am looking forward to remodel my house, and bathroom is on the top of the list, Luckily I found this forum, and this place will keep me busy for a very very long time. :)

Currently I am looking forward to install two Pressure Assist Toilet in two of my bathrooms.
But am in a great deal of delimma at the moment. Unable to deciede what brand to go for.
I am on a budget.. max i could go for is 350-400 dollars per toliet.. lower the better :eek: I was researching this forum, and i found people raving about FlushMate system for pressure assist. But i guess its just a part that needs to be installed inside the toilet tank. But I dont want to get into all that hassle, instead want to buy one off the shelf whole toilet pressure assist system which is below 400 dollars.. again lower the better. It wud be great if any brands carry inbuilt flushmate part.

I was looking at Kohler Wellworth Power Lite Pressure assist toilet, but i am not sure if they are any good.. i also read, Kohler brands are prone to clogging a lot.
Hence the confusion.

Can someone guide me on what pressure assist toilet brand / make /model i can buy.
Greatly appreciate all the help from the guru's in here.
 

Exoricst

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While going through this forum, and various reviews, i found another brand TOTO Ultramax elongated One piece toilets, how do they fare against pressure assist technology??
 

Gary Swart

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There are 5 problems with pressure assist toilets. First they really don't work any better than a well designed gravity flush (Toto) Second, they are extremely noisy when flushed. Third, they splash, and fourth, when they break, and since they are a mechanical device, they will break sooner or later, they are very expensive to fix and often the parts have to be factory ordered with perhaps 2 weeks delay. Finally, the pressure often tends to shred the paper and this doesn't flush completely. Kohler toilets have sharp bends in their innards which is a cause of clogging. A Toto Ultramax would be a good choice, but really any Toto will out perform a Kohler.
 

Terry

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For a pressure assist, I've been leaning towards the Kohler Pressure Lite.
I've installed quite a few of those in homes and restaurants.

If you want a good bowl for less money, then you might want to look at the Toto Drake.
I've been selling the round bowl for $239.99 and the ADA bowl for $289.99
Toto uses a 3" gravity flushvalve.

The Flushmate system requires a bowl designed to work with it. So you would need a complete tank and bowl setup.
That's how toilets are sold anyway.
A pressure assist normally starts at about $290.00

highline-pa-ken.jpg


I have the Kohler Highline with pressure assist for $369.99 in the Seattle area.

flushmate4_cutaway1.jpg
 
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Exoricst

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For a pressure assist, I've been leaning towards the Kohler Pressure Lite.

If you want a good bowl for less money, then you might want to look at the Toto Drake.
I've been selling the round bowl for $239.99 and the ADA bowl for $329.99
Toto uses a 3" gravity flushvalve.

The Flushmate system requires a bowl designed to work with it. So you would need a complete tank and bowl setup.
That's how toilets are sold anyway.
A pressure assist normally starts at about $290.00
I have the Kohler Highline with pressure assist for $399.99 in the Seattle area.

I guess Drake comes in two piece and Ultramax is one, i like the concept of Ultramax, its more clear looking, and easy to clean and maintain, so Ultramax is good.. but again, I am confused between Toto Ultramax I or II and Kohler Pressure lite.
I see Toto Ultramax II is far expensive as compared to Ultramax I. Any major differences between I and II. I would like to have a 1.4 or 1.6 gpa.
Personally what would you prefer Kohler Pressure Lite or Toto ultramax I or ultramax II?
 
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Exoricst

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I have the Ultramax II,
Tall bowl, CEFIONTECT and double cyclone rinse.
Between those three, that's my favorite.

Thanks for the quick reply.. can you please post a link to that toilet? I see multiple models in Ultramax II, but not able to find the one you mentioned.
 

Exoricst

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The toilet you mentioned above is amazing.
I might sound nagging and little bit irritating, but here is just one more..
Is there any toto brand toilet which is sanigloss, one piece, and cost around 250 dollars.
I wanted to buy two of these.. and did not wanted to invest more than 500 dollars for two of them.

P.S. If the toilet is double cyclone... it wud be the best. (I know i am asking a lot.. but just trying to push my options).
 
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Jadnashua

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IMHO, trying to pick a good pressure-assisted toilet is sort of like asking which model Yugo is the best...there are differences, but I'd not want one in my home.
 

Exoricst

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IMHO, trying to pick a good pressure-assisted toilet is sort of like asking which model Yugo is the best...there are differences, but I'd not want one in my home.

I see your point. I had no clue when i was asking for pressure assist toilets. I thought they are the best. Cos i see them in all the good hotels around... specially Marriott and Sheraton.
Anyways, now that i know about their pro's and con's, i have decided to let them pass, and instead go for Toto. I have been leaning towards TOTO now. I liked the CEFIONTECT feature on them.
By the end of the day today or tomorrow morning, i will end up buying an Ultramax II for one of the bathrooms, and a drake or an Ultramax I for the second one. I dont want to be spending more then 500 or max 600 dollars for two. Still looking around.
 

Exoricst

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As i told you guys, i am here to stay on this forum for a long long time. This place is getting interesting day by day.
Never in my life i imagined i would be sitting and doing this whole day.
I have brought enormous gadgets over the years, but it never took me so much pain to go through all the decision making. But a "TOILET"?? wow.. this is facinating.

I have finally decided to go with Drake II CST454CEFG

What are the other components i will require to fit this toilet to the bathroom. Plumber will be installing it, hence i would only require the accessories that go with this toilet.
I know i will need seat cover. what else.. pls guide.
 

Jadnashua

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Any decent plumber will have everything needed to install the toilet: wax ring, flange bolts, supply hose, and it may be a good idea to replace the shutoff valve, too (use a 1/4-turn one, unless there's a good looking one already there).

Your choice on seats is wide. The Toto Soft-Close seats come in various profiles. Most people like them, some hate them. A generic seat will fit, but may not match the shape as closely, but still eminently usable. Bemis is the only other one I'm aware of that has the soft-close feature. It adds the ability to quickly remove it for cleaning, if that's important to you. I've never used one, but people seem to like them.
 

Jimbo

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I love my pressure assist ( mansfield ) 19 years. Yes, loud. Splash? not really, but if your house pressure is high, could be. Break up the paper sometimes? Yes. If we use the 'right' paper ( Kirkland or cheaps Scott) if flushes everything in one gulp.
 

SteveW

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As i told you guys, i am here to stay on this forum for a long long time. This place is getting interesting day by day.
Never in my life i imagined i would be sitting and doing this whole day.
I have brought enormous gadgets over the years, but it never took me so much pain to go through all the decision making. But a "TOILET"?? wow.. this is facinating.

I have finally decided to go with Drake II CST454CEFG

What are the other components i will require to fit this toilet to the bathroom. Plumber will be installing it, hence i would only require the accessories that go with this toilet.
I know i will need seat cover. what else.. pls guide.


Yeah, this site is sort of addicting. People who haven't spent time here or who aren't into tech stuff think it's weird to hang out at a plumbing site. They don't know what they are missing!

I think you'll be very happy with your Drake. I took out a pressure-assist toilet and put in a Toto Soiree in one of my bathrooms. Nice to have a simple, relatively quiet toilet without expensive hardware in the tank.
 

SteveW

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Also, it actually does make some sense to spend time picking out a toilet.
First of all, you can't road test them like a car, so, other than a site like this, how do you really get unbiased info? I am a long-time reader of Consumer Reports, but have read on this site that they really don't use good, real-world tests of toilets. On the other hand, the pros on this site, like Terry, who install hundreds of toilets a year, many to repeat customers, get to see what works and what doesn't.

Lastly, if you choose well, a toilet should be a one-time purchase. If you choose poorly, you may be replacing it in a couple years when you get tired of its poor performance. That won't happen with a Toto.
 

Sevenfeet

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I suspect most people don't put any serious effort into selecting a toilet. That's a shame considering how dependent we are on them. They are what separates us from how everyone used to do it before the 20th century. Especially for we men, I think we think more about buying the next TV or gadget versus researching a high performance lavatory.

My wife and I are going to be replacing all three toilets in our house over the next several months. For us, the issue now is "which Toto?". For the kids bathroom, I'm thinking of the Eco Drake since it satisfies my wife's Watersense requirement and it is nearly identical in profile to the horrendous Briggs toilet the builders installed 20 years ago (a toilet my autistic son permanently broke). I could spend a little extra money for a Drake II but it's a narrower design and I'd like to hide some wallpaper imperfections behind the toilet that date to when the room was finished.

The master and guest bathroom toilets will be harder choices. The default would be a Drake II although we will probably go for designs with some more style. Regardless, they will be Watersense dual-cyclone Sanigloss designs...we just have to decide what designs we like.
 

SteveW

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Sevenfeet -

Good guidelines - yes, by all means get double-cyclone bowl wash. I have 3 Totos with this and it is a great feature.

I am less enamored with CEFIONTECT - not really sure it's made much of a difference.

I would also recommend "comfort height" or whatever Toto calls it.
 

Exoricst

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Thanks for all the suggestion guys. I am placing an order for Ultramax II for the main bathroom, and Drake II for the second one.
When i tried to add Ultramax II in the shopping cart, i was prompted for accessories along with it.. though a seat is not required with this, as its a part of the package.. although it shows an option for THU004 (from $17.92) as the Toto Tank Lever. Is this required?? I thought everything else other than the wax ring and bolts would be a part of the package??
 
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