Toto Eco Drake 1.28 standard height elongated bowl inlet defect?

[bionictony]

There seems to be a piece baked and glazed to the toilet inlet area. I bought a Kohler Highline elongated toilet and had to exchange it because of 2 smaller parts stuck in that area. The exchanged Kohler toilet had nothing in there. I changed my mind again and didn't want the ADA height. I finally happened to exchange that for a special order TOTO Eco Drake standard height elongated toilet. this one is made in Mexico. I thought all TOTO's were made in the USA.

Should i return this or install as is? Should I use a wax ring with flange or the Fluidmaster better than wax blue seal?

 

[Terry]

That looks fine. There are several places on all bowls that have locations for patches. The first time you see them, it looks odd. After a few hundred you quit seeing them.

What you use for a seal is dependent on several factors. If the flange is lower than the finished floor, and you're using wax, then I stack a standard wax on the flange first, and then drop a horn wax on top of that. I then drop the bowl down onto them.
Before any setting, I set the bowl in place to see if it will need shimming. I shim if needed, then lift the bowl, drop the wax rings down and install the bowl.
If you are using a non-wax method, make sure it's the proper depth. They may or may not work for you. Good luck on those.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Jadnashua]

FWIW, Toto is a huge, international company with factories in many places. They do make some toilets in Georgia, but depending on sales and supply, and the model, they can show up from many different places. Their QA/QC is quite good, and you might even have a tank from one country and a bowl from another and they'll fit.