Offset flange nightmare.

[CS223]

Pulled the toilet to replace the wax ring which started to leak. The contractor at the time the house was built, installed an offset flange because they did a lousy job roughing in the plumbing. They used a Jones Stephens flange p/n C54343 which is oblong & not round which explains the wax ring failure, probably been fine had they used plumbers putty. The slots for the closet bolts were distorted and the bolts wouldn't stay in the slots. I decided I'd replace the offset flange with a new one, with any luck, the flange wouldn't be glued to the waste pipe. Why would I think that? Because I found the shower drain flange wasn't glued when I remodeled the shower. That's a whole other story.

Concrete slab floor.

Anyway, I get the flange screws out and figured I'd have to pry a little on the flange but it was worse than I thought, the original install that is. Seems the contractor just cut the bottom off the Jones flange and butted it up to the waste pipe and called it good. Why would he do that? Well the waste pipe termination is a 3" slip fit elbow which is about 1" below the surface of the slab with concrete poured around it. Nice ehh?

All the replacement offset flanges are made to fit over 3" or inside 4". If I were to make a nipple, then the replacement flange would sit about 2" or so above the slab.

The only three options that I see at the moment are:

Finding a straight flange that will fit inside the 3" pipe then replacing the toilet with a 10" rough-in model.

Demoing the concrete, attempt to repair & fit the pipe better and use the correct flange.

Find an offset flange that will fit "inside" a 3" slip. This is the option I most prefer but I've have had no success in locating such an animal. Local professional plumbing houses had nothing to offer. I haven't found anything on-line as of yet. Hoping someone else has run into this problem and has a solution. Thanks.

 

[Jadnashua]

An offset flange is a pain from the beginning, and compounding those issues with one that fit inside of a 3" pipe, effectively making it a 2.5" pipe would pretty much guarantee clogging on a regular basis. Sealing a toilet to an offset, oblong flange is somewhat of an art, but doable. You often need more than one wax ring, cut them, splice enough together to go around the perimeter, and set the toilet. A little tricky, but not horrible. Plumber's putty tends to dry out, shrink, and crack, not the best long-term solution there.

Your best, long-term solution would be to crack concrete and move things to use a standard 12" rough-in with a stock flange. Barring that, a straight flange to a 10" can work, but you're limited on the toilets that you can use, and your total costs may end up higher. Anything other than 'standard' tends to cost more.

 

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[LiquidPlumber]

Anyway, I get the flange screws out and figured I'd have to pry a little on the flange but it was worse than I thought, the original install that is. Seems the contractor just cut the bottom off the Jones flange and butted it up to the waste pipe and called it good. Why would he do that? Well the waste pipe termination is a 3" slip fit elbow which is about 1" below the surface of the slab with concrete poured around it. Nice ehh?.

Why would he do that you ask? because he didnt want to have to deal with what you are going have to deal with. He knew you were screwed as soon as he saw it. the only decision in his mind was what rig method he was going to use to cover it up.

if you have a 3 inch hub thats one inch from the floor level your options are exactly what others have already told you. that being said, the toilet flanges that glue inside 3 inch pipe are not a good idea as they are very restrictive. they work, but not well. If it were in my house I would probably bite the bullet and hammer up the floor and repair it properly. I would use a 4x3 closet bend with hubs at both ends, glue a short stub of 4 inch into the hub to reach floor level and then glue a 4x3 flange inside the 4 inch pipe. Be sure to anchor the new flange into the concrete. Some folks dont anchor thinking the glue joint will hold the flange still... It wont.
Good luck!

 

[hj]

The biggest problem with any "oval" offset flange is that it has a "shelf" right below the toilet outlet, and that is always a prime clogging condition. Redo it or use a 10" toilet.

 

[Gary Swart]

Toto has several models that use their 10" Unifit adapter. Regular 10" toilets are somewhat limited in models since they are not in high demand. The Toto models using the adapter are very fine quality and would take care of your problem. Go to the link at the top of this section, then click "Shopping" then "Toto". Scroll through the various models and find those using the adapter.

 

[Brett Reid]

Toto has several models that use their 10" Unifit adapter. Regular 10" toilets are somewhat limited in models since they are not in high demand. The Toto models using the adapter are very fine quality and would take care of your problem. Go to the link at the top of this section, then click "Shopping" then "Toto". Scroll through the various models and find those using the adapter.

Jacuzzi offers a 10 inch rough in toilet called the Lyndsay. It has an elongated bowl and is comfort height. It's offered by Lowe's for under $200. We ran into same problem because our plumbing was roughed in wrong.