Toilet Buying Tips

1. Gallons per flush (gpf): This is the amount of water flushed down the drain after the toilet is flushed. There are four main types of toilets:

a. Regular: 1.6 gallons per flush. This your standard toilet.
b. High Efficiency Toilet (HET): This toilet uses 1.28 gallons per flush, which is  a little bit less then the average toilet. I have heard that this toilet is very "streaky."
c. Composting toilet: This toilet is not connected to a sewage system, therefore the waste is broken down by bio-degradation. The main purpose of the this toilet is conserve water and to prevent harmful pathogens from being released into the environment.
d. Dual Flush Toilet: Has two flushes 1.6 gallons per flush for solid waste and 0.8 gallons per flush for liquid waste. This type of toilet conserves a considerable amount of water per year. Dual flush toilets are common in Europe, Australia and Asia. They are finally becoming more prevalent in the US.
When it comes to choosing the amount of water per flush keep in mind your sewer and water bills. Dual flush toilets can save the average household up to 20,000 gallons of water per year. My suggestion is to put up the extra money for a water saving toilet today. You will save money in the long run and you will also be helping the environment.

2. Rough in: Before you go toilet shopping I recommend  measuring the old toilet for the, "rough in."  To calculate your rough in, measure the center of the drain pipe to the finished wall. It is usually 12 inches.

3. One piece versus Two Piece:

a. Two piece toilets are usually less expensive than the one piece toilet. Most of the time two piece toilets are sold with the tank, seat bowl separately.
b. One piece are less likely to leak because the tank and bowl are connected. One piece toilets typically come with all the necessary parts, which are the tank, lid, bowl, toilet seat, wax   ring with sleeve, two flange bolts and two bolt caps. One piece toilets have less crevasses than the two piece toilet, which makes the one piece easier to clean.

4. Space constraints: If you have limited space in your bathroom consider a corner toilet or a wall mount toilet. Corner toilets have an angled tank allowing placement in the corner of the bathroom. A wall mount toilet's tank is installed into the wall, eliminating the tank space of a regular toilet. If you decide on a wall mounted toilet, make sure your wall can support the tank.

5. Elongated bowl versus Round bowl:  An elongated toilet is about 2 inches larger than the regular round bowl toilet. Elongated toilets are more comfortable.

6. Height: The average height of a regular toilet ranges between 14-15 inches. However taller toilets are available and they range from 16 - 18 inches. These higher toilets are ADA toilets for the handicapped. The handicapped toilets are easier to get up and down, which is helping them gain popularity in the US market.