Replacing a Corsyn Crane Toilet

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Jose

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I need to replace an antique Corsyn Crane toilet that has a top feed(?) to the tank. The old toilet tank leaked badly and replacing the tank would require replacing all the tank's plumbing (valve, ballcock, etc.) as well. From what I've found on-line, doing so would be more expensive than buying a whole new toilet. Problem is, I have no idea if new toilets exist that can replace a Corsyn Crane that has a feed that enters from the rear of the tank (more specifically the rear top left corner of the tank). Do modern toilets exist that can replace a Corsyn Crane?

FYI, I cannot afford to tear down the wall and break up the floor to install a standard toilet. Long story short, the concrete slab on the floor is ~4" and the concrete on the wall is probably close to 3" if this bathroom is anything like the bathroom we're doing a full gut & remodel on.

crane-ipswich-02.jpg
 
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Jadnashua

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The fill valve on all modern toilets I'm familiar with has the supply enter from below the tank. The thing you need to check out is where the flange is in relation to the wall (called the rough-in). If you are lucky, it might be standard. If you choose a toilet with say a 10" rough-in on a standard 12" one in the floor, this would give you an extra 2" behind the toilet, and maybe give you enough room to run the supply hose to a new tank. So, measure where the flange is (it is measured from the finished wall to the center of the drain - do not include the baseboard trim). Then, you can see what may fit.

At what height is the supply coming out of the wall? and where in relation to the centerline?
 

Jose

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At what height is the supply coming out of the wall? and where in relation to the centerline?

The height of the supply line is roughly 36". By "centerline", I assume you mean relative to the center of the drain pipe (where the flange is)? If so, that's roughly 6-1/8". We did luck out in that the flange is 12" from the wall. However, the supply line is not copper but "black pipe" and sticks out roughly 2-1/2" from the wall. If it were copper, I could cut it a little closer to the wall and solder an elbow there to keep it out of the way. My understanding is that doing this with "black pipe" is not possible (or at least not easy). I'd have to cut the "black pipe" and thread the pipe to put an elbow on. Not something I've ever done before...

I really, really appreciate the advice! If you have anymore, I can certainly use it.
 
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Gary Swart

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You're doing a full gut and remodel would indicate the wall will be removed where the supply line is. Revamping the supply line location should be a fairly simple task once the wall covering is removed. I'm not sure what kind of pipe you have to work with, but will decent access this is a doable job. Get a Toto Drake and you'll be go to go for many years.
 

Jose

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You're doing a full gut and remodel would indicate the wall will be removed where the supply line is. Revamping the supply line location should be a fairly simple task once the wall covering is removed. I'm not sure what kind of pipe you have to work with, but will decent access this is a doable job. Get a Toto Drake and you'll be go to go for many years.

Actually no. We're doing a full gut & remodel on one bathroom and an in-place remodel on another bathroom (needs a new shower) on the second floor. We need to bring the bathroom on the third floor into (better) working order. That means replacing the toilet.

Sorry if I wasn't clear enough.
 
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Jadnashua

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Black iron pipe should never be used for water supply. Galvanized was used on older homes, but can have problems as it ages. It's likely that the pipe is screwed into a fitting in the wall. You wouldn't have to break much apart to verify this. You could unscrew it, and replace it with a chromed brass nipple shorter than what you have to place it closer to the wall. This shouldn't be a big deal. It looks like this may be an older plaster wall. Harder to repair, but still not a huge issue. If you cut a big enough piece, you can put some blocking behind it, and patch it back and only have to fill in the cut line. Been there and done that at my mother's 60-year old house with plastered walls.
 

Jose

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We're not that lucky. We have tile and it's on a bed of concrete nearly 3" thick. To be honest I'm not 100% sure what type of pipe it is, but the closest thing I can compare it to is black iron pipe. I'll see if i can verify what type of metal it is though.
 

Jose

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We're not that lucky. We have tile and it's on a bed of concrete nearly 3" thick. To be honest I'm not 100% sure what type of pipe it is, but the closest thing I can compare it to is black iron pipe. I'll see if i can verify what type of metal it is though.

Hi guys, this is my first time here, is very interested all the topics you talknig about, to add a comment Black iron pipe should never be used for water supply, i made that mistake a long time ago and was not funny.. if in that moment i will know about this forum i never won't made that mistake..


Well, it's not black pipe... It's non-magnetic so it's not black pipe, but it probably isn't galvanized pipe either. Thing is, it looked like it was because it was covered in something black. I was thinking it might be brass, but I'm not so sure. I haven't had a chance to remove the black stuff coating the pipe. If I get a chance this evening, I'll try and clean it up an d determine what kind of pipe it is. If not, I'll take a photo and attach it.
 

Jadnashua

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If it is copper or brass, you could solder a fitting onto it and do pretty much anything you want. In fact, if it is copper, if you just cleaned it up, you could put a compression valve on. they make some right-angled ones that are fairly low profile. If the OD is 5/8", then any standard 1/2" shutoff would work.
 

Jose

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If it is copper or brass, you could solder a fitting onto it and do pretty much anything you want. In fact, if it is copper, if you just cleaned it up, you could put a compression valve on. they make some right-angled ones that are fairly low profile. If the OD is 5/8", then any standard 1/2" shutoff would work.


Well, my best guess is that the supply line is brass. It looks too yellow and the walls are a bit too thick to be copper. Given I've only ever dealt with brass shut-off valves, I'm going to have to do some research on how to handle brass pipe (and other fittings).

If any of you have additional advice I'll certainly take it. But I wanted to thank everyone here for offering their help. So very many thanks!
 

Marlinman

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If you don't want to replace the ballcock have you thought about servicing with new seals or parts? Many of the old plungers are still available.
 
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