Replacement Toilet Tank?

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Jadnashua

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To flush a toilet with a small amount of water, you need a spurt of water fast. There are basically three ways to do that: larger flapper, pressure assist, and larger pipe (generally only used in commercial units because the average home doesn't have the water pipe size required). The goal is to get the water moving fast enough to create a siphon so it can carry the waste efficiently out of the bowl and then shut the water use off so that it stays within the mandated max. Older toilets may have used as much as 8 gallons or more and took their time about it. Getting it from that outlet point to the rest of the drain is important, too, since the shape of that trapway will affect the velocity and whether things need to slow down as they exit. This is where smoother curves are better - for less restrictions to keep the speed up, and for minimizing clogs in case you're trying to flush brick hard logs. The size of the trapway is important, too, but since most people's waste is at least moderately pliable, you can get by with a less optimized design most of the time. To get a super large trapway, you need just that much more initial water velocity (assuming the same amount of water is used) to get it to siphon and clear the bowl. One reason the Caroma may splash a little (flush after you get up!). Getting all of the pieces right and making a reliably good product points to the winners in this race. Some get it right on a regular basis, some don't. Since everyone's different, what works for one may not work for another. There is no one toilet that will work for everyone because their priorities are different: style, color, size, performance, cost. The experience here, and mine personally, is that for me anyway, Toto both performs well, and fit my needs. That may not be true for you. But from a reliable viewpoint, and parts availability and ease of eventual repair, unless you get one of their exotics that can cost into the thousands of dollars, they are easily serviced with readily available and inexpensive parts. This isn't necessarily true for others (it varies from easy like the Toto, to a major pain on some others). Any time someone comes up with a new design on a flapper or fill valve and it's proprietary, or not common, you're asking for at least an annoyance, if not plain trouble and maybe excessive costs.
 

WJcandee

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In your experience are these larger flush valves as reliable as the standard size ones? I ask because the sales guy is recommending the larger flush valves because of the added flush power but on the net there posts of the seals leaking/getting soft plus the repair parts are less common.

Toto Drake CST744E is a good value. It has a 3" flapper, which is made by Korky in the US. Many stores carry that exact flapper. Those that don't usually do carry the Korky universal 3" flapper, which will readily fit the Drake. Seems like most people need to replace this flapper in a period of like 4-6 years. But it varies a lot because different jurisdictions have different compositions of water, which makes a difference. Changing a flapper is a simple, one-minute task. Not a big deal and shouldn't affect your purchasing decision.

Some other proprietary seal designs, like the AS Champion, may be a little more hit-or-miss in terms of replacement part availability and ease of repair.

When I bought our two Drakes, I also bought a replacement flapper which I put in the tool drawer for whenever it is needed. Haven't needed it yet.
 

gretchen

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So during the World Cup game, I thought I would replace the old gasket on my kohler and flush mechanisms and be able to see replays and exciting stuff in the other room when they occurred And they did occur, (just not enough for US)
But when looking away, my tank tipped over and EXPLODED. Way too much excitement there. $:/!!. So now I need a new tank. Will any kohler tank fit on my 1991 bowl?
 

Terry

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So during the World Cup game, I thought I would replace the old gasket on my kohler and flush mechanisms and be able to see replays and exciting stuff in the other room when they occurred And they did occur, (just not enough for US)
But when looking away, my tank tipped over and EXPLODED. Way too much excitement there. $:/!!. So now I need a new tank. Will any kohler tank fit on my 1991 bowl?

If you can find a tank to fit the three bolt pattern Kohler, you will also need to modify it to flush 3.5 gallons. The new tanks use 1.6 gallons or 1.28 gallons.
 
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gretchen

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So during the World Cup game, I thought I would replace the old gasket on my kohler and flush mechanisms and be able to see replays and exciting stuff in the other room when they occurred And they did occur, (just not enough for US)
But when looking away, my tank tipped over and EXPLODED. Way too much excitement there. $:/!!. So now I need a new tank. Will any kohler tank fit on my 1991 bowl?
Thanks. This one is 1.6gpf/6lpf per the shard I have left. :(. So hopefully I can find a tank a bit easier. I appreciate your help.
 
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Terry

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Will any kohler tank fit on my 1991 bowl?
Will any kohler tank fit on my 1991 bowl?

1991? For some reason I was reading 1981.
I would replace the bowl while I was at it. If you can pick up a new Kohler tank, you can also pick up their new bowl for it. The new bowls are head and shoulders better than their 91 versions. And while you are at it, you might think elongated.
 
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