need lowboy toilet replacement

[rookie1234]

Help, I finally have to repair or replace an old (70+ yrs) American Standard lowboy toilet. I am told that parts are non-existent. It flushes fine, but runs continuously. It is about 18" at the highest point. What brand /style should I consider? We have an old home (obviously) and low pressure.

 

[Gary Swart]

You would do well to look at the Toto line. The Willingham model is one good possibility, there may be others that would fit. You are really coming out of the Dark Ages if your old beast is 70 years old. It is likely a 5 to 7 gallon per flush water hog and you will be moving into the 1.6 or even 1.28 gallon units. You need to understand that although every toilet on the market has to meet these standards, no choice in that, all brands do not work as well as others. Many of the big name brands of the past are still trying to tweek the old designs to make them compliant. Toto completely redesigned their toilets so all models perform well even with the small amount of water requirement. Toto is now the largest toilet manufacturer in the world largely because of this.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Jadnashua]

Note, in a gravity flush toilet (the majority out there), as long as there's enough pressure to open the fill valve, your incoming water pressure has no effect on the flush, only the time it takes to refill. If you were to choose a pressure assisted flush valve, then really low pressure might be an issue. Personally, I wouldn't have a pressure assisted toilet in my home.

 

[Gary Swart]

I re-read your question and now I have one. Were you serious that the toilet is only 18" from the floor to the top of the tank and is that a requirement? If the toilet is recessed under a ledge that limits the height, then I don't know what you can do without remodeling the bathroom. I know of no toilets regardless of price that are less than 23-3/4" and you probably don't want to know the price of that one. You will probably be in for some sticker shock if you haven't priced toilets recently, but try to remember this is a purchase that can last 70 years or more. My suggestion is that you go to the Home Page of this site, click on SHOPPING, then click on TOTO. Peruse the many options available as well the the specs for them. You should seriously consider ADA height. Remember too, these are the prices Terry Love sell them for and is not necessarily what other dealer may charge. Come back here if you still have questions, you'll find lots of us willing to advise you, perhaps with some bias, but sincere.

 

[hj]

toilet

That toilet, and others of the same genre, are among the BEST ones ever made, although many plumbers do not like to service them or do not know how to service them. Parts are available for most of them, although they have always been expensive, even when they were new. How about a picture of the tank's insides and we might be able to tell you which part numbers you need. Such as, if you have the large canister flush valve, the replacement is a "conventional" type, but specialized for your type of toilet.