Recommendation for quiet Toto

[Jard]

First off, thanks for all the incredible information already here. I have been reading reviews and comments on the various Totos since that's what our architect prefers.

The situation: We are doing an addition on my in-laws home and the design has a master bathroom and a kids bathroom above the in-laws bedroom.

I am considering the Toto CST412MF Dual Flush for our master bathroom (directly above the in-laws) and a Toto MS854114ELG for the kid's bathroom (not directly above their sleeping space, but close enough).

The builder has already said they will do some special insulation on the vertical plumbing and consider cast iron to cut down on noise.

Are there similar toilet choices that will be quieter? I like the aesthetic to fit with our design of both I've chosen so far.

I thought I should also consider the MS604114CEFG for the kid's bathroom but I'm afraid the cyclone flush adds more noise.

Thanks in advance!

 

[WJcandee]

The double-cyclone flush doesn't add noise. It just affects how the water flows into and through the bowl. All the toilets you mentioned are "gravity" toilets; in other words, no pressure assist. Accordingly, they are all going to be within the same range as to flush sound level. The running-water sound on refill is going to be louder than the flush (meaning that the flush isn't particularly loud, not that the refill is loud), and can be ameliorated by using the Korky Quietfill MaxPerformance fill valve, or the Toto version of the Quietfill, in the toilet if it doesn't come preinstalled. (Toto uses 3 different valves interchangeably, including the Toto version of the Korky Quietfill.) An easy and inexpensive revision to the toilet if refill noise is an issue.

I am assuming that you guys have super-sensitive hearing for this to be an issue at all. I actually do have this blessing/curse, so I get it. But our multiple Totos are really no noisier than the old-style water hogs they replaced.

PS Smart architect!!!!

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Jard]

Thank you! The architect and builder are aware they need to do what they can to mitigate the noise and they are planning ahead. I think we are all just a bit concerned since the master bathroom toilet will be directly over my MiL's sleeping space and she's a light sleeper. It's just another one of many issues to think about in our upcoming multi-generational living adventure.

 

[Jadnashua]

Many modern toilets tend to make a 'gulp' during the flush when the siphon is broken. This is a result of the requirement for doing everything with less water...to get things to flush, you have to move it faster, then you cut off the flow as opposed to the old ones that slowly filled the bowl, things swirled around, then slowly ran out. The older ones could make that 'gulp', too, and often more than one. The newer ones don't have as much water left, so it tends to be quieter. No toilet is totally silent when flushing. Gravity flush ones are quieter than pressure assisted ones, though.

CI pipes are still an upgrade over plastic ones...much quieter, and, you don't get the creaks like can happen with plastic if you drain hot water in and they expand...creaks again when it cools off, too.

 

[Terry]

Here is a recent email I sent
Hi Dave,
It's pretty quiet. When I started selling TOTO, one of the worries was that they weren't noisey enough. That being said, the water does whoosh through, and they are not silent.
Still, I consider them quiet when you look at all the modern toilets.
Kohler had one in the 70's that used 9.5 gallons but very slowly.

I sell a lot of the Ultramax II, and have one in the Master bath.
http://terrylove.biz/toilets/10-toto-ultramax-ii.html
Seattle and Eastside

I installed the Ultramax II in his home this afternoon.
His quote:
"You're a lifesaver! That is way quieter than what we had."

 

[WJcandee]

When I started selling TOTO, one of the worries was that they weren't noisey enough.

The Toto Power Gravity toilets that I have used (but don't have) really ARE quieter; less rush of water to the point on flush that you actually wonder whether it will get all that stuff out of the bowl. I like how ours work and sound; the Power Gravity ones are almost-disconcerting.

Accordingly, the member might consider a Power Gravity model, some of which Toto still makes. I think the GMax ones work a smidge beter, but the Power Gravity ones do work well.

For the Upstairs/Downstairs situation, I think the rush of falling water in the pipes may be an issue. Our stack to a upstairs bathroom runs in the walls between the kitchen and breakfast room. Old-timey CI pipes. In that bathroom is the toilet most-often used in the house. It is a Toto Drake GMax 1.6. When in the breakfast room, if everything is quiet, you can indeed hear the water rushing down the stack when the Toto is flushed (as you would with any toilet; the less water flowing the better in this case). You have to listen, but you can. With the ambient noise in the kitchen (fridge, fans, dishwasher, whatever), you really can't. If the downstairs room was a bedroom, I would wonder about whether I could route the drainage horizontally for a ways and drop it down somewhere else, because the falling water noise is the loudest. That's what s fun about building from scratch.

 

[Wallijonn]

We are doing an addition on my in-laws home and the design has a master bathroom and a kids bathroom above the in-laws bedroom.

I am considering the Toto CST412MF Dual Flush for our master bathroom (directly above the in-laws) and a Toto MS854114ELG for the kid's bathroom (not directly above their sleeping space, but close enough).

The builder has already said they will do some special insulation on the vertical plumbing and consider cast iron to cut down on noise.

I take it that they will be spraying polyurethane insulation in the pipe area, but chances are that you will need to do the same for the floor over the in-laws' bedroom because kids make a lot of noise - running around the house like they are wont to, running up and down stairs, shouting out windows to their friends, shouting down to mom and dad downstairs when they are upstairs, playing their music too loud, etc. Yep, you are going to need a lot of sound damping. You might as well forget framing with 2"x4"s and go to 2"x6", 2"x8", 2"x10" or 2"x12"s. The 12" wide beams should allow a greater amount of insulation to be used, but it would probably be exorbitantly expensive if you use poly-urethane foam.

 

[Jadnashua]

There are ways to reduce sound penetration on both walls and floors. Very careful blocking any voids is critical. The type of flooring makes a difference as does how it is installed. At least one company makes a neat sound absorbing thinset - it has a lot of ground up rubber in it, if you are thinking tile on the floor. Rather than a two or three step prep for the floor, you can solve the sound issue with just the process of installing the tile. In the walls, a double-layer of drywall with the special clips to hold the second layer off the first, or bonding them together with an elastomeric sealant can work quite well.