Toto Drake - Does the 1.28 (CST 744EL) flush as well as the 1.6 GPF (CST 744SL)

[DragArl]

I want to order a Drake, but am trying to decide on a 1.6 GPF tank (CST744SL) or a 1.28 GPF (CST744EL).

Does the 1.28 flush as well as the 1.6, considering that the Drake was designed for 1.28?

I can understand that the Drake II with 1.28 does as well (or better) since it was designed with Cyclone Flushing and has a CEFIONTECT ( CeFiONtect) finish -- both features lacking in the regular Drake bowl. I have a Drake II in a different bathroom, and would order another except that a shorter rough-in will only accommodate the regular Drake.

Of course, I would like the extra savings of a 1.28 model; but I am replacing an old-fashioned 3.5 GPF toilet. So, I would still be delighted with a 1.6 Drake tank if the toilet flushes better than with the 1.28 tank.

Can you kindly share your candid opinion?

 

[Terry]

The Drake EL bowl was redesigned some years back for 1.28 gallons.
They offer two tanks for that bowl, 1.28 and 1.60
Both will clear the bowl just fine. The 1.6 has a little more rinse, which can also be gotten on any of the tanks by holding the handle down for a pause.
Most have a hard time telling a difference with both in the home, but I do give the rinse edge to the 1.6

 

[Sponsor]

 

[DonL]

Can you get something for nothing ?

Not that I have ever seen.


Enjoy the flush test, Get Charmin Ultra Plush for your test.

 

[WJcandee]

I'll second Terry's comment that it's not about the flush, it's about the rinse. You may get a little more rinse with the 1.6, but you won't be able to see any difference in the "power" of the flush. We say it over and over and over again on this forum: the flush is all about the trapway -- whether it will accomodate what's in the bowl and whether it will generate a reliable siphon to pull the waste out of the bowl. The bowl is the same on both toilets, and it is designed for 1.28. On the old bad 1.6 toilets from non-Toto manufacturers, no amount of extra water dumped into the bowl was going to make them flush well, because the trapway design sucked.

In either case, the rinse will cover all of the bowl surface, but if something is stuck there, a little more of it might come off with the 1.6. Or you could hold the handle down a little with the 1.28 when you need it and use a little more water to rinse. For most encounters with the toilet, you won't need to do that, so you will save with the 1.28. And if you don't like it, we can recommend a different flapper that will give you roughly a 1.6gpf flush cycle.

I did the math in a thread on the toilet forum, and only about half of the 0.32-gallon difference in water usage relates to the actual flush; the rest relates to the refill.

You would be happy with either toilet, I think. We love our Drakes.