Toilet advice

[ChrissyJ]

My husband & I are building a house, & we have a week to pick out toilets. I have been looking at reviews online, but I’m hoping someone here can help us make a final decision. We don’t mind spending a little extra upfront in order to get a quality product, but we don’t need all of the extras. Here are our requirements:


ADA (or universal) height
Elongated seat
Easy to clean
Skirted
Strong flush
Hard to clog (We have two teen sons.)


Choosing a certain brand is not important to us, but we do like the Toto Vespin II & Carlyle II. Of those two, which would be better? I prefer the look of the one-piece (Carlyle), but I’m not sure if the extra cost is justified. Is there a better choice than either of those? If we do choose a Toto, which white (cotton or colonial) will match a white (020) American Standard bathtub?

Like I mentioned before, we would prefer to pay upfront for a quality product, rather than deal with problems later. Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[Reach4]

Toto one piece toilets come with a seat, and 2 piece don't. Factor that in.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Jadnashua]

In theory, while very small, a two-piece toilet, everything else being equal (and that's hard!), will have slightly better flush capability because the separate tank ends up being a little bit taller...height = potential energy that translates to increased flush velocity. Now, I have one of each, and I don't notice a difference. I think the ease of cleaning is better on the one-piece unit.

 

[WJcandee]

We have the Carlyle II and love it. Meets all your criteria, looks great, flushes great. Don't let anyone charge you list price for it. Look at Terry's prices above to see what's fair. And make sure the builder is willing to read the instructions and install it correctly.

 

[ChrissyJ]

Thanks so much for the responses! We will probably go with the Carlyle II. Are there any others we should consider?

Does anyone know which white (cotton or colonial) will match a white (020) American Standard tub? A Toto representative said that he thinks colonial white will match, but he wasn’t positive. He’s sending me paint chips to compare, but he said I wouldn’t receive them for a couple of weeks.

 

[WJcandee]

Sorry I forgot to answer that question. The Toto Colonial White is the one that most-closely-matches AS white. You can't assume an identical match, but nobody's gonna notice unless you have superman-like color comparison skills. It used to be said that Colonial White was intended to match in bathrooms with AS white fixtures. I guess Toto isn't training its people to say that, but that's what we have always heard. Probably smartest for them to send you the chips so you can make your own decision, but it's gonna match as much as anything from two different brands is gonna match (which can be pretty-close, actually). Not to put too fine a point on it with all this verbiage; the bottom line is that it's not going to stand out as being different.

As to which skirted Toto to look at, there are some others but it all depends upon what look you like; the performance of all of them will be excellent. Some people like the looks of the Soiree, some like the looks of the Aquia one-piece (it also comes in a two-piece). It just depends upon your personal preference.

 

[ChrissyJ]

Sorry I forgot to answer that question. The Toto Colonial White is the one that most-closely-matches AS white. You can't assume an identical match, but nobody's gonna notice unless you have superman-like color comparison skills. It used to be said that Colonial White was intended to match in bathrooms with AS white fixtures. I guess Toto isn't training its people to say that, but that's what we have always heard. Probably smartest for them to send you the chips so you can make your own decision, but it's gonna match as much as anything from two different brands is gonna match (which can be pretty-close, actually). Not to put too fine a point on it with all this verbiage; the bottom line is that it's not going to stand out as being different.

As to which skirted Toto to look at, there are some others but it all depends upon what look you like; the performance of all of them will be excellent. Some people like the looks of the Soiree, some like the looks of the Aquia one-piece (it also comes in a two-piece). It just depends upon your personal preference.

Thank you! You have been very helpful!

 

[FullySprinklered]

If you blow it on the toilet selection, they will probably function until you find a better choice. How's the kitchen cabinets working out for you?
Odd question it seems, but not really. I wanted to build cabinets at one time, but changed my mind after working construction for a little while.

 

[jennifer lehrfield]

can i ask a question here. i too am considering all of the above ... if you had the opportunity to reinstall a kohler 2005 san raphael 1.6gal or get a new toto (although i do not like comfort height) what would you do. to me the san raphael is a pc of sculpted, timeless art, but im paying so much money for my reno, not sure i need to keep up with technology, but from what ive learned, nothing can replace the water spot that the government has taken away from us!!

 

[FullySprinklered]

Not a Kohler fan, personally. It's a personal gripe about their tendency to over-engineer everything. The china is good and they put a lot of thought into things, but I'm sure their engineers have never had to assemble and install their toilets on a daily basis. Too may proprietary parts when it comes to service.

 

[jennifer lehrfield]

but if my main concern is "water spot" would you recomend reinstalling or replacing with toto? from what i am hearing the low water spot causes problems even with the sanigloss

 

[Reach4]

but if my main concern is "water spot" would you recomend reinstalling or replacing with toto? from what i am hearing the low water spot causes problems even with the sanigloss

An older toilet probably has a bigger water spot. As long as you put the new floor down first, and put the existing toilet on top of that, changing a toilet later is not that big of a deal. Just make sure the rough-in is the standard 12 inches.

When builders build a house, they usually put in a really cheap toilet called a "builder's grade" toilet. A

Put in a quarter turn ball valve supply stop while you are at it.

 

[WJcandee]

If your Kohler works and you like it, reinstall it. You can still buy 1.6 gpf toilets in most states; it was the transition to 1.6 that everyone but Toto initially botched in the mid-1990s. I like our 1.28 and 1.6gpf Totos, and actually feel a bit guilty when I flush one of our older toilets, which still look nice and are in much-less-used places. The most-used toilets in the house are all 1.6 or 1.28 now. They flush well, and I never feel like we need the giant water spot that we had on the old 3.5gpf toilets.

1.0 gpf toilets are a whole different animal. The Toto ones work well in the sense that they evacuate the bowl well and aren't easy to clog, but I, for one, notice the difference that that loss of a quart makes. It has to come from somewhere, and a lot of it comes from the water spot. A lot of people who have the Toto 1.0gpf toilets just love them and marvel at them, but the reality is that these are people who affirmatively wanted toilets that only use 1 gallon. So having made the decision to get a 1.0, and having assumed that they would sacrifice significant cleanliness and performance, they are pleasantly-surprised. But nobody would affirmatively want to get one except for the fact of the water savings. The 1.6s and 1.28s these days work so well that the 3.5s seem just archaic and wasteful; these days I pretty much expect a toilet to operate like the 1.6/1.28s do. But I think I would be less-satisfied with a 1.0, because going that low really doesn't mean that much to me -- at least now, especially because the water supplies where I live are extremely-robust and should sustain any level of growth that anybody would throw at them. In contrast, systems like those in California, especially when combined with the politics of river water usage, which prioritize a lot of things over providing homes with water, really compel people to think about doing their part and buying a 1.0.