$300.00 - $100.00 toilet

Frank Fusco

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12,782
Location
Mountain Home, Arkansas
Our house is about 13 years old. It had the old style 5 gal. (or whatever) toilets. One of them started giving problems and instead of repairing, I did what I thought was the right thing. I replaced with a fancy new Jacuzzi Perfecta 1.6 gal. model. Being on a well and septic, I wanted to cut down on water consumption to save running the well and putting unneeded water into the septic field.
This make and model had been recommended by several people, including my plumber who sells a different brand and could have pushed one of those on me at a considerably higher price. The Jacuzzi has an extra large 'throat' or whatever to allow passage of 'stuff' without plugging. Or it's supposed to.
Since installing, every few months it stops up. I have a home style auger but that doesn't do the job. So, I call the plumber at $50.00 a trip. It will stop up with an extra large.....uh....'deposit'.
So far, this $100.00 toilet has cost us, at least, $300.00. I ain't happy.
I'm going to pop for a professional style auger to do the clearing myself. :(
 
Sorry to hear about your problems, Frank. That Jacuzzi model is supposed to be a good one. Maybe your is defective - mold flash, no glaze, or some other problem with the flush channel.

We've replaced our older toilets with new Kohler 'comfort height' models - at about $250 each - and have been really happy with them. No problems at all.

Like you, I was concerned with the water use of the old ones, and the potential effect on my septic system. I had also heard some nasty stories about the reliability of the low-flush models, abd was a bit leary about them, but so far my concerns have been unfounded.

If your $100 toilet has cost you so much in plumber's fees, maybe you should bite the bullet and replace the toilet with whatever the plumber recommends - or use the Kohlers like I did. I do recommend the model we've got, for sure.
 
I used to have problems with a toilet that kept clogging, I found that this was the easiest way to clear it. A LOT cheaper than a plumber! :thumb:

Another thought, could ther be some small obstruction in the pipe that snares debris until it finally clogs?
 
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My septic guy say the biggest problem with the low water flush is that there is not enough water to float the stuff to the tank. :thumb:
So he recommends every house in town should have one just so he can have a full time cleaning guy.:thumb:
 
If it's clogging in the toilet itself, I'd recommend a Toto toilet. It's made in Japan and was one of the first low water usage toilets. I have two in my house and no problems at all.

Mike
 
My septic guy say the biggest problem with the low water flush is that there is not enough water to float the stuff to the tank.

Yup. If you don't have water drain that is used fairly regular upstream of the toilet the solids can get left behind and lead to a dam and a few of the other kinds of dam too.

Walked into my basement bath and couldn't figure out why there was tissue all over my bath floor..... then I figure it out! :eek:

This will become one of you most used tools! Solved 99.9% of the clogs.

plumber.gif
 
I'll just comment that here in CA we have low flow everything (toilet, shower, faucets - and the water pressure is low) and the drains work fine. You might look beyond the toilet to see what the problem is (if the clog is not happening in the toilet itself).

Mike
 
Over the years friends, relatives and motels have had low useage toilets that I found lacking. They plugged or didn't get clean flushes. If you have to flush 3 -4 times, the low useage is now using as much as the old type. Most of these were ones that converted when they first started marketing the low useage toilet.

When I remodeled our main bath last summer, I bought a American Standard low useage toilet ...Champion 4 IIRC......comfort height model. I shopped looking for one with the biggest orfices....on the tank and the bowl. It was more expensive but has performed flawlessly.

I notice it discharges at the point of desposit as well as around the rim. The two point discharge system and the larger openings seems to have overcome some of the problems I saw when they first came out years ago.
 
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Did somebody say low flow toilet?

[Edit to add...]

Looks like that site didn't want their pics linked on other forums... So I'll use another one. :p

outhouse.jpg

OUthouse.gif
 
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I have heard this story repeatedly everytime someone changes over to an Al Gore Potty... Kiddy Poop doesn't need much flow but Manly deposits require more. I asked my Plumber if I should change out and he said "only if you want me to come by on a regular basis"; "nothing but trouble with the newer low flow toilets". So, I replaced the guts and now have a new toilet that will send my business down the road. I still send my plumber a Christmas card but no monthly checks. :thumb:
 
We bought a Jacuzzi toilet a few months ago... maybe the same one you got. I know it cost more than the one I would've picked if I was in charge. :dunno: I've had to plunge it three or four times, replace the seat because the cheap plastic broke, and have to fiddle with the flapper chain several times a week. All these things I could do with/to a $75 bowl/tank 'special' model from HomeDepot or Lowes... so I'm not impressed.
 
We bought a Jacuzzi toilet a few months ago... maybe the same one you got. I know it cost more than the one I would've picked if I was in charge. :dunno: I've had to plunge it three or four times, replace the seat because the cheap plastic broke, and have to fiddle with the flapper chain several times a week. All these things I could do with/to a $75 bowl/tank 'special' model from HomeDepot or Lowes... so I'm not impressed.

Man, it doesn't get much worse than having a crappy crapper. :eek::doh::rofl::rofl::rofl:
 
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