Looking for a toilet that fits in a small space

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MikeQ

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You may have a problem with getting the vent where it needs to go if you don't have more depth.

Maybe I don't understand what you are saying but I would install the water tank under the horizontal plumbing vent line.
 

WJcandee

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Maybe I don't understand what you are saying but I would install the water tank under the horizontal plumbing vent line.

We're getting outside my expertise, but I do know that Toto makes an "optional residential installation kit" that is supposed to fit a 2x4 wall instead of 2x6, and it has a special drain kit. The installation instructions are on the toto web site. Look at CWT418MFG for the whole shebang.
 

WJcandee

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Thanks for the feedback. I currently have a Toto in my main bath and while I don't know the exact model it is a G-Max flush. Works very well and I am more than happy with it. The only thing I don't like is it is regular white porcelain (not CEFIONTECT) and it is stained very easily. Is G-Max flush a type of washdown flush (but without the dual flush feature)? I'm wondering if the flush action and bowl shape of the Aquia wall mount can be compared to the Aquia III?

The flush on the Aquia wall-mount is different from your G-Max flusher. More of a big cascade of water into the bowl and you don't get that same gurgle at the end (hence "washdown"). Your G-Max uses a lot of the water to pull the water down from the bowl and through the trapway (which is one reason you have to start with the right amount of water in the bowl), and less for rinsing, if that makes sense. I wish I had used an Aquia floor-mount before so I could compare for you, but I haven't. However, given the suprising number of videos on youtube of toilets flushing, maybe you could type in Aquia there and see what comes up. (There's a couple of videos there of a properly-functioning Drake G-Max flush that I made for someone who wondered if his toilet was working right. It wasn't, and he could see the difference in the video.)
 

MikeQ

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The flush on the Aquia wall-mount is different from your G-Max flusher. More of a big cascade of water into the bowl and you don't get that same gurgle at the end (hence "washdown"). Your G-Max uses a lot of the water to pull the water down from the bowl and through the trapway (which is one reason you have to start with the right amount of water in the bowl), and less for rinsing, if that makes sense.

Good idea!

I found this video of an Aqiua floor mount:


It looks to flush almost just like my Toto G-Max except the G-max water level goes closer to zero during the very end of the flush. The washdown part looks very similar.

I also found this video of an Aquia wall mount that looks like it may not be installed or adjusted properly:


It looks like the flow is terminated too early.

MikeQ
 
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MikeQ

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We're getting outside my expertise, but I do know that Toto makes an "optional residential installation kit" that is supposed to fit a 2x4 wall instead of 2x6, and it has a special drain kit. The installation instructions are on the toto web site. Look at CWT418MFG for the whole shebang.

Yes, I saw that, it looks like the drain may be smaller diameter. I wonder if that would affect it's flushing ability?
 
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WJcandee

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Good idea!

I found this video of an Aqiua floor mount:


It looks to flush almost just like my Toto G-Max except the G-max water level goes closer to zero during the very end of the flush. The washdown part looks very similar.

I also found this video of an Aquia wall mount that looks like it may not be installed or adjusted properly:


It looks like the flow is terminated too early.

MikeQ

I saw both those videos and I was shocked that the first guy got it to gurgle. Every one of these Duravit and Aquia wall-mounts I have seen doesn't have the gurgle, and there's something weirdly-incomplete and unsatisfying about it. The Duravits I have seen are worse than the Aquias, which in my experience are just like the second one you posted. If you look at 4-5 other Aquia floor-mounts on youtube, even, they all flush without the gurgle. Either there are a lot of crappy installs out there, or that's the way they normally work. I would actually be curious to know which one it is...
 
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MikeQ

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I saw both those videos and I was shocked that the first guy got it to gurgle. Every one of these Duravit and Aquia wall-mounts I have seen doesn't have the gurgle, and there's something weirdly-incomplete and unsatisfying about it.

I think the first video is a floor mount. I would think the gurgle/no gurgle would have to do with either the amount and speed of the water released and/or the amount of wasteline vertical drop before hitting a Y.
 

Jadnashua

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These toilets stop the draining when the siphon is broken...THAT causes the gurgle. The shape of the newer toilets and the speed with which they flush all combine to make the gurgle more common of one that works well. If you want silent, use an outhouse!

A dual-flush toilet by its nature will have either less water in the bowl to start with, since you still want to empty it all regardless of the small/large flush you activate otherwise, it would only be diluting things, and not flushing them out. Depending on the design, you can either make a smaller waterspot that is deeper, or a shallower one that is wider. Or, make one that only dilutes things and doesn't really flush on the smaller flush.
 

WJcandee

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I think the first video is a floor mount. I would think the gurgle/no gurgle would have to do with either the amount and speed of the water released and/or the amount of wasteline vertical drop before hitting a Y.

I thought that, too, but there are a bunch of floor-mount Aquia videos with no gurgle that look very much like the action of the wall-mount. So I'm confused.
 

MikeQ

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FWIW, if you go with the Drake (not the Drake II or any other toilet in the Toto line), you could move that drain so it's 11" off the finished wall and the Drake will fit (but also beware the baseboard or whatever at the floor level, if there is one). However, that's probably a lot of work that's then going to leave you with a very challenging situation if you decide to or otherwise need to swap the Drake for something else (or if you or your successor wants to put in a different toilet ten years from now), so it's not something that's probably all that brilliant an idea.

After visiting the site I've eliminated the wall mount idea and since I'll be raising the drain rough-in to accommodate a tile floor I am quite interested in the Drake I. I've already cut the 90 degree ABS elbow below the drain off at the horizontal end. I did this because the original rough-in was actually 12 3/8" from the finished wall. So I'm committed to moving the drain closer to the wall. The only question is how close.

What is the story behind the Drake I and it's larger back wall clearance? Is this a model designed specifically for installs where the 12" rough-in has shrunk to 11" due to addition of thicker wall facings being added (such as tile)? Why would the Drake I be unique in this way?

Maybe I should mount the drain at 11 1/4- 11 1/2" to preserve future options?

Mike
 
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Jadnashua

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If it were my house, I'd want the flange at the standard 12" from the finished wall...then, I'd have a huge range of choices at any time in the furure (or now). If you moved it closer to accommodate your preferences for a specific toilet, you'd forever be stuck should you wish to remodel down the road.

Why the Drake ends up with a larger gap than many, I don't know. It is a good toilet...I put two of them into my mother's house. If I had to do it today, I'd seriously consider the Drake II for the neater bowl wash and lower water use. Toto just announced a new toilet that only uses 1g! Not sure when you'll actually be able to buy it, but if you were in an area where water was particularly dear, it sounds like a great choice.
 

MikeQ

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If it were my house, I'd want the flange at the standard 12" from the finished wall...then, I'd have a huge range of choices at any time in the furure (or now). If you moved it closer to accommodate your preferences for a specific toilet, you'd forever be stuck should you wish to remodel down the road.

I agree. I was thinking there is a little "fudge" room with a wax seal but perhaps not a full 3/4". Since condensation will not be a problem with this particular install, and since space in front of the toilet is at a premium, I'm thinking I'll be OK if I mount it 11 5/8" - 11 3/4" from the finished wall. That will allow me to mount 12" toilets that normally sit 3/4" (or more) from the wall such that they only sit 1/4" out.
 

Brucet99

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I am leaning toward getting a Toto to replace a round Eljer toilet. My bathroom is small and the Eljer stands only 27" from the wall. The tank is 19" wide. Is there a Toto that can be adjusted to fit in this space?

I too needed to find a short toilet. Todd Williamson at Toto told me that the shortest toilet Toto makes is Promenade round bowl (CST423). It comes in 1.28 gpf or 1.6 gpf versions and CEFIONTECT is available in the white version only.
 

MikeQ

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If you can get past the styling of the Promenade and if you fit on a round bowl. If you can spare 1 3/8" you can get the Aquia III which looks better, has an elongated bowl and has dual flush. Unfortunately, it's not available with CEFIONTECT.
 

MikeQ

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I finally mounted the Aquia and have been using it a couple of weeks. I'm very pleased with it's looks, sounds, ergonomics and performance. Compact but with no dingle-dangle! Best toilet I've ever had.

I ended up mounting the flange at 11 1/2" which worked out perfectly and kept wasted space to a minimum.

One thing I was not aware of - The Aquia requires two mounting blocks be mounted on the floor behind the drain flange. This was almost a big problem as I had already installed floor heating wire that was about 7" from the flange. Fortunately I had taken pictures of the heating wire install before tiling over and one photo was taken from a very good angle that allowed me to determine the screws for the toilet mounting blocks would miss the wire by at least 1/2". Too close for complete comfort but I crossed my fingers and drilled away. Not a problem after all. Also, the Aquia is not compatible (as far as I could tell) with the new waxless style drain seal. But this wasn't a problem - I just used the traditional wax ring. The Aquia is designed so a small rocking motion of the toilet will not gradually work the wax seal. Not that the toilet should be installed such that it can rock but the system does seem less prone to fail over time.
 
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