3 inch toilet flange question

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AlexanderTheDIYer

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I am installing a toilet on a slab and I cut the 3 inch pipe flush with the floor. I bought an ID 3 inch flange but it has a bevel on the bottom that keeps it from flushing up with the floor. I have looked at 3 different big box stores and it seems all the brands have it. Any idea how I should do this?

toilet flange.JPG
 
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wwhitney

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James Henry

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Good luck finding one. Shove a towel down the drain pipe to catch debris and use a Dremel to cut a 1/2" off the inside of the pipe or like most plumbers that don't have a Dremel on hand use a sharp wood chisel to score and cut the pipe. It doesn't have to be a clean cut.
 

Jadnashua

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IMHO, a 3", inside fit flange is asking for problems. Yes, the OD of the toilet is probably less than the ID of a 3" ID flange (about 2.5" - 1/4" per side of the pipe), but it leaves little room for some toilets to turn that corner down into it. Some toilets try to turn a nearly 90-degree turn, some have already turned the waste and go straight down...those should work well unless it's something like a Corona, that has a 3" ID trapway.
 

Jeff H Young

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cut 3 inch pipe on an angle a sharp angle with a saws all . take a rasp or something to knock a little more off . but the bevel should go down beneath floor some. quick and easy
 

Jeff H Young

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I've tried the sawzall bevel and file thing. It wasn't deep enough. Had to chip the concrete and cut deeper.
yea doesn't always get it deep enough . if its new work we usually put rings on before flooring at rough inspection its required not that many inspectors care or its going to cause a correction notice but I've failed for it (rings not installed)
 

AlexanderTheDIYer

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I measured the gap it is approximately 3/8th an inch. I was originally going to leave the bathroom concrete (specially since I just sealed it) but the flooring I have going everywhere else is LVP that is 7mm thick. That is pretty close to that 3/8th inch gap. I think if I just put the flooring in the bathroom it will be pretty level if I cut out for that bevel. I was going to cut out part of the pipe but even if I did it wouldnt sit flush without chiseling concrete because of how wide the bevel is.

Is there any problem with screwing the flange right through the lvp into the concrete? The flooring is free floating.
 

wwhitney

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Is there any problem with screwing the flange right through the lvp into the concrete? The flooring is free floating.
The question of floating floors in bathrooms has come up before, but I'm not sure I've seen a definite answer. Here are my initial thoughts:

Seems like the weight of the toilet will pin the floor in place, in which case adding screws through the flooring under the toilet is not a problem, flooring wise. So the only question is whether the flooring is sufficiently stiff to properly support the flange; if it has a foam backing, it's too crushable to support the flange. In that case you could use an annulus of some more rigid material (suitable for use on concrete) to support the flange, and butt the flooring up to the flange.

Another question is whether anything else is going to pin the flooring in place, like a vanity cabinet on top of the flooring. It seems to me that it's fine to pin a floating floor in one place; then any expansion and contraction happens relative to that fixed location. So if one wall is 4' from the toilet, and another is 8' away, the observed expansion would be twice as large at the farther wall.

But you don't want to pin the flooring in two places. If you had a toilet pinning it one place, and a vanity cabinet pinning it in another place at some distance, I would certainly expect the flooring to buckle between the two if it ever had to expand.

Cheers, Wayne
 

James Henry

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The question of floating floors in bathrooms has come up before, but I'm not sure I've seen a definite answer. Here are my initial thoughts:

Seems like the weight of the toilet will pin the floor in place, in which case adding screws through the flooring under the toilet is not a problem, flooring wise. So the only question is whether the flooring is sufficiently stiff to properly support the flange; if it has a foam backing, it's too crushable to support the flange. In that case you could use an annulus of some more rigid material (suitable for use on concrete) to support the flange, and butt the flooring up to the flange.

Another question is whether anything else is going to pin the flooring in place, like a vanity cabinet on top of the flooring. It seems to me that it's fine to pin a floating floor in one place; then any expansion and contraction happens relative to that fixed location. So if one wall is 4' from the toilet, and another is 8' away, the observed expansion would be twice as large at the farther wall.

But you don't want to pin the flooring in two places. If you had a toilet pinning it one place, and a vanity cabinet pinning it in another place at some distance, I would certainly expect the flooring to buckle between the two if it ever had to expand.

Cheers, Wayne

I'm pretty sure your concerns are unwarranted.
 

wwhitney

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I'm pretty sure your concerns are unwarranted.
If you're referring to buckling when a floating floor is pinned in two places, I agree that it's a theoretical concern that may not happen much in practice. It would depend on how much differential expansion the floating floor actually undergoes due to temperature and humidity fluctuations. So some actual experience would be informative; as I mentioned, those are just my initial thoughts.

Cheers, Wayne
 

Reach4

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Is there any problem with screwing the flange right through the lvp into the concrete? The flooring is free floating.
I will treat that question separately from your question as to how to get the closet flange to not sit too high. My simple answer would be no, but....

How big is the floating floor from the toilet in its maximum dimension? I don't have a number where I would start worrying, but if the floor only extends from the toilet by only 6 ft, I would not worry. I would make sure the gap is fairly easily distributed, with making sure that the gap in the longest dimension is sufficient.

If you said 40 ft, then I would worry that pinning the floor would work out. But as was pointed out, if you set the toilet on the LVT anyway, it will be pinned whether the flange is on the LVT or not.

On the upside, a basement floor typically does not go through big temperature changes. A slab floor that does not have radiant heating may not change that much.

I will say that you should not glue in the flange and not get it perfect the first time. If in doubt, consider a non-glue flange such as inside compression or a PushTite. And while usually I would like to have a stainless steel ring on a flange, a non-glued flange that had to be replaced is not that big of a deal.
888-gpm-1.jpg
Sioux Chief 888-GPM or 888-GAM Note PVC vs ABS does not matter when using a gasket. Make sure the vertical part is long enough.

The 3-inch Oatey Twist N Set may be good for you. https://www.oatey.com/products/oatey-twistnset-replacement-closet-flange-1098867162
https://www.homedepot.com/p/OATEY-3-in-PVC-Twist-N-Set-Open-Toilet-Flange-436542/203944835 https://www.supplyhouse.com/Oatey-43655-3-ABS-Twist-N-Set-Closet-Flange https://www.supplyhouse.com/Oatey-43654-OATEY-3-Twist-N-Set-Closet-Flange-PVC
43654-oatey-2.jpg

I don't know the fillet/bevel size on that.

There is https://www.amazon.com/3-O-Ring-Closet-Flange-PVC/dp/B00FAT903E tho I am not familiar with anybody having tried that.

There used to be a 3-inch PushTite with a stainless ring. No longer available, but I did take measurements of one in a store before they disappeared. The current one with the plastic ring may be similar. Still got a bevel to deal with.
https://terrylove.com/forums/index....drain-pipe-on-3-steel-pipe.60569/#post-449676
 
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James Henry

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Kitchens and bathrooms usually have tile floors for a reason, water gets spilled on them. I would reconsider a floating floor.
 

Reach4

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Kitchens and bathrooms usually have tile floors for a reason, water gets spilled on them. I would reconsider a floating floor.
He is looking at vinyl (LVT), so that should resist water too.
 

Jeff H Young

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the flooring is likely safe with some water on top but if there is space under floor it allows standing water that's never good
 
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AlexanderTheDIYer

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I have LVT in bathrooms and have had no issues with water. They are locked together so no water gets between them. So what I did was lay the entire floor, marked where the flange was going to go and went back with a 5.5 inch whole saw. This was the outer dimension of the bevel that I couldn't get to go in. I used a twist lock flange that someone mentioned. It worked well. I twisted it down and then screwed it with tap cons. I set the toilet and it was pretty level. Once the wax ring was on and bolts tightened it felt solid. Doesn't move at all. I will let you know Thursday if/when it flushes and if there are leaks.

240504259_10104549392463082_8476134305381443223_n.jpg
 
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