Inspector says: “The toilet is to close to the wallâ€

Dose the 15†side clearance requirement refer to the entire side of the toilet or just the aria beside the toilet bole?

I am installing a 5’ bathtub next to a toilet. The bath room is 5’ 10†wide. The bathtub is offset away from the toilet wall. I framed in a hollow box in the corner so I could install a standard size 1 piece fiberglass tub/shower. The toilet flange is exactly 15†from the tub but only 13 inches from the box in the corner. The 2†violation only affects the toilet in the back near the tank.

Do I have any basis or code to reference if I ask the inspector to re- consider?

Most codes say, it's 15" from center to side.
That means left, and right.
Some inspectors let it slide, and some don't.

Some homes have 30" tubs, so the plumber roughs at 45" from the tub wall, leaving 15" from tub to center of toilet.
That works unless someone upgrades the tub to a jetted or cast 32" wide tub. Then you wind up short on the rough-in side dimension.
Sometimes you can ask for a different inspector and hope for the best.
Doesn't allows work though.

15"

The 15" rule is to give shoulder room for the user, so your situation should be okay, but if the inspector goes by the book, instead of using his head, then you have a problem.

We always get 15" from flange center to closest thing from the toilet from our inspectors so we would be in trouble in your case. They don't even want a thin cabinet. We are told not just for shoulder room, but for working on it. We need 30" of clear space.

is there really a rule for this....???

Usually I will just divide the area that is left
between the tub and the vanity and try to center the
toilet up in the alotted space left.....

in public situatioins you need a 36 inch wide clearance...

but in re-modeling you sometimes you have to work with the space on hand.... you get what you get


15 inches is a little tight but I have seen much worse...

I moved the toilet over, Problem solved.

I think he would have let it go if the wall only stuck out 8" or so but this wall was 10", and it might have been larger than the tank.

In-wall tanks for wall hung toilets.

when the tank is in the wall, the inspector's point of view becomes meaningless.

I am glad you had the space to move the toilet to wherever he wanted it.

The idea that the tank might need space around it, is one I would have told him to knock off his list. That's my approach.

David