Guinevere Toto toilet - too tight space creating problems - ideas to fix welcome! Pl

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fixitmom

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Our contractor put the trip lever into the toilet and then installed it. Sounds normal but he neglected to tell us that there would then only be about 2" clearance between the side handle and the wall. So now that the trip lever is broken, we cannot remove the lever because there isn't enough clearance to pull it out and we cannot install a new trip lever unless it can be taken out. We can cut through the existing broken trip level but it's getting one in that is the real puzzle. Is there in existence a side handle trip lever thata comes in 2 pieces - handle and stick - that I can use with this toilet? is there a side lever that I can be creative with to get back to having a functional toilet It's a one piece (sigh) Guinevere Toto.
 

Reach4

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Tight...

You could lift the toilet, make the fix, and put it back. Maybe somebody will have an alternative. Maybe somebody could convert it to a right hand flush handle! https://terrylove.com/forums/showth...*converting**-a-Toto-Promenade-to-Right-Flush

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fixitmom

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I cannot lift the toilet without cracking all the tile because it was grout sealed. Trying to avoid that because the tile is no longer available and I would have to close match or redo the whole dang floor....trying to avoid an expensive fix just to get a trip lever in and out of a toilet!!! I think next time I buy a toilet, I will get a 2 piece!

Could I convert to a right side handle? Anyone have answer?
 

Gary Swart

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There is no conversion on the handle. It would appear that you do not have 15" from the center of the toilet to the walls which is code. Not much you can do about that. Grout is not the standard or preferred medium to seal the base of a toilet to the floor, so I would wonder if it maybe is caulking. There are two types of caulking commonly used; latex and silicone. Latex is really best because it can be more easily removed, but silicone can be removed and even if it doesn't come off 100%, the residue would cover with new caulking. Use a putty knife and see if it can be worked under the sealant material. Even if it is grout, it should chip away with a bit of effort. Regardless of the medium, when to new caulking is applied, it will cover any minor floor damage. Use latex this time. About the easiest to use is Dap brand that comes in a red tube. No applicator tool is needed and clean up is with water. Tip for applying: Use a wet finger to smooth the bead. Wipe and re-wet the finger as needed. The caulking will help hold the toilet in place, but the real value is keeping spilled water from getting under the bowl. The two flange bolts do the major job of holding the toilet down and in place. When you reset the toilet, you will need a new wax ring. Get the type without the plastic funnel, and place it on the flange (not the toilet) then set the toilet in place.
 

WJcandee

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Maybe a more fundamental question is how is the trip lever "broken"? Is there something we can do to solve the problem without changing it out? Can you post a photo so we can see what's going on?
 

Terry

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Toilets are designed to be removed when needed. The fact that your contractor cemented it to the floor goes beyond common sense.

For those out there wondering how a toilet is installed, we recommend using a clear polyseamseal to caulk the bowl to the tile. If you ever need to pull the bowl, it lifts right up, without disturbing the floor tile.

korky_max_inside_tank.jpg


There is no reason you can't make a square hole for a new trip lever and install it on the right side. I would think four holes with a masonry drill and then using a tile router on it. Put the new trip lever on the right, and connect the chain. It's a brass rod, and you can bend it a bit if needed.
 
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Reach4

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Can the golden-colored actuator rod be separated from the handle? I have seen comments that would tend to say it is.
 

fixitmom

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No the golden brass rod/stick cannot be taken out of the handle. I am going to upload a few pictures and let you all take a look see.
 
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fixitmom

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Is the toilet just missing the plastic screw?

based on your uploaded photo of a working Guinevere toto, am I just missing the plastic screw that screws onto the trip lever inside the tank?




Toilets are designed to be removed when needed. The fact that your contractor cemented it to the floor goes beyond common sense.

For those out there wondering how a toilet is installed, we recommend using a clear polyseamseal to caulk the bowl to the tile. If you ever need to pull the bowl, it lifts right up, without disturbing the floor tile.

korky_max_inside_tank.jpg


There is not reason you can't make a square hole for a new trip lever and install it on the right side. I would think four holes with a masonry drill and then using a tile router on it. Put the new trip lever on the right, and connect the chain. It's a brass rod, and you can bend it a bit if needed.
 
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Jadnashua

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This probably wouldn't be an issue if, one, it was a code compliant install (15" minimum to either side required - it sure looks tighter than that!), or two, the installer used some sense and didn't cement it to the tile. FWIW, the toilet might still break loose, but it's not a given - try at your own risk!
 

fixitmom

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I know it's not code compliant and if I had known at the time would have not got this particular toilet! It looks like I am missing the plastic nut...where can I get another one. It seems like this is a continual problem - the plastic nut breaking - for Toto guinevere. Where can I purchase the correct size nut for this handle?
 

WJcandee

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I know it's not code compliant and if I had known at the time would have not got this particular toilet!

Don't know about the nut. Never heard of it breaking before, but whatever. There is a right-hand model available, which your plumber probably should have told you.
 

Reach4

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Does that plastic nut have a left-hand thread?

No. It's standard threaded.

4. Install new handle and tighten locknut by turning clock-wise. Remember it is reverse threaded.
That seems contradictory,
 
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Gary Swart

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I don't know if the nut would be available locally or not, but I think Toto USA would send you one. I also don't know about it have "reverse threads", but that would not be difficult to to determine when installing...it will only go on one way, the correct way. Sorry I didn't pickup on the missing nut before. Still have to say that using grout is a stupid way to set a toilet.
 

WJcandee

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Does that plastic nut have a left-hand thread?
That seems contradictory,

You are correct, sir! That is an error on the Toto web site. The trip lever nut is always reverse-threaded, and it's the one thing in the bathroom that is. To tighten a reverse-threaded nut, you turn it counter-clockwise (as you are looking at it, at least). Instead of righty-tighty, lefty-loosey, it is righty-loosey, lefty-tighty when it's reverse threaded.
 
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Reach4

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I feel pretty confident from reading that a missing nut is not the original cause of the problem, but probably resulted from trying to get the old malfunctioning actuator out. I don't know the nature of the underlying failure.
 

eiichi

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Broken left-hand threaded nut on Toto tank

I feel pretty confident from reading that a missing nut is not the original cause of the problem, but probably resulted from trying to get the old malfunctioning actuator out. I don't know the nature of the underlying failure.

I have a Toto ST743S toilet with a trip lever mounted on the left side. The left-hand threaded nut just fell apart in normal use; I thought it just broke in two but there are more incipient breaks upon closer inspection. So, I think this probably WAS the underlying failure with the original poster. I am contacting Toto to see if they have improved those nuts.

IMG_0014.jpg
 

Wallijonn

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... he neglected to tell us that there would then only be about 2" clearance between the side handle and the wall.

I have to ask - is there plenty of room on the right side? Meaning, if you had gotten a right hand lever tank, would you have then been able to easily romove it?
 

Terry

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Kohler has a nice aftermarket product for that.
It replaces the handle and makes it hands free.


k-1954_product_1.jpg


k-1954_product_2.jpg


Four Double A batteries with a motor that lifts the flapper.
Operated by waving your hand over the tank.
 
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