Ok I have 2 upstairs toilets that are giving me fits. As far as I know, they have aluminum flanges, I'm assuming original to the house, which is about 50 years old. They are connected to cast iron lines that appear to be in very good condition and flow very freely. These flanges aren't what I'm used to seeing. I guess they are not really bolted to the floor in anyway that I can see, but are set in the probably 3/4 inch of concrete that is the subfloor for the upstairs bathrooms. Then there is about 1/2 inch of the flange folded over on top of the tile. So there is no slot in the flange for a toilet bolt. Rather, the bolts screw down into the floor, into an anchor I'm assuming. Well one bolt on one toilet broke off, halfway down into the anchor..nice. The other bolt/anchor just came completely out of the floor. Do you think I'm better off just getting new toilet flanges installed? Would this be a very complex and expensive job? Obviously a little sheetrock would need cutout to access underneath. Any ideas are appreciated.
Aluminum flanges
- Thread starter jod78
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I guess maybe I should clarify. I guess there is no flange at all. Basically the lead/aluminum? pipe just comes up to the floor and the top 1/4 inch or so of the pipe is "folded over". Then you have anchors into the concrete/wood on either side of the pipe to secure the toilet bolts to the floor. So...my question is, is there a flange that I can purchase that can extend into the existing pipe and create a seal down in the pipe? If so, how is the seal made? And I am assuming this piece would need to be also screwed down into the floor to secure it. Then I would be able to use standard slot-type bolts to secure the toilet to the flange. Thanks.
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Markts30
Commercial Plumber
If you have lead piping under the toilet and not cast, then you might have a problem - I have no idea how to fix the lead pipes...
If the lead is only for the seal and there is a cast iron pipe under the flange, you can just attach a new flange to that one...
We still use lead and oakum to seal flanges to cast iron pipes for WC's at work - it seems to be a stronger joint than some of the new technology and is fairly easy to do...
They do make ones that slip over cast iron pipes and bolt on from the top allowing you to do the repair without cuttling the ceiling below...
It all depends on how far down below the floor the cast iron is...
Look under "torque set closet flange"
http://zurn.com/pages/catalog.asp?ProductGroupID=75&OperationID=7
If the lead is only for the seal and there is a cast iron pipe under the flange, you can just attach a new flange to that one...
We still use lead and oakum to seal flanges to cast iron pipes for WC's at work - it seems to be a stronger joint than some of the new technology and is fairly easy to do...
They do make ones that slip over cast iron pipes and bolt on from the top allowing you to do the repair without cuttling the ceiling below...
It all depends on how far down below the floor the cast iron is...
Look under "torque set closet flange"
http://zurn.com/pages/catalog.asp?ProductGroupID=75&OperationID=7
Thanks. Well, I believe the aluminum does not join to cast iron until well underneath the floor. What I see above the ceiling is basically a semi-bowl/horn shaped piece that extends down from the floor above. I believe this entire piece is all aluminum. It then joins to cast iron probably a good 6" or so below the floor.
Jadnashua
Retired Defense Industry Engineer xxx
It is probably lead, not aluminum. You'd need to take the lead pipe out, convert to probably pvc from where it connects to the cast iron, and attach a new flange. If you scratch it, you should be able to tell one from the other...the lead will be quite soft, the aluminum, while soft, is much harder. The lead could probably be scratched by a fingernail.
