wax rings

hi everyone,

i'm finishing up my bathroom floor, the closet flange is 1/4" above the finished floor ( i used a flange extension ) the old wax ring from the toilet was wax only, at the big stores there are so many types of rings to use, should i use the same as before, wax only no black seal or wax ring w/seal, any certain types? does it make a diffrence what wax ring to use w/ flange extensions? thanks for any advice, tony.........

All you need is a standard wax ring. FIrst, though, set the toilet in place to check that it sets level. If not, figure out where you might need shims. Any toilet that rocks after installation, will eventiually leak if there is a blockage.

That extra 1/4" could cause problems, so make sure you can set the toilet so that it doesn't rock. I'd avoid wax rings with the plastic horns, they seem to cause problems sometimes. I there anyway you can lower the flange to set flush on the floor the way it is supposed to?

i thought the closet flange should be just above the finished floor,( screwed into the subfloor,sitting just above the finished floor, correct)?

The flange should be installed on top of the finished floor and anchored to it. A typical flange is around 3/16-1/4" high, I think you'll be fine. But, that is another reason to trial set the toilet in place. If it won't sit flat on the floor without the wax, then there'd be no room FOR the wax. My guess is that it will fit. Using a wax ring with the horn is, in my opinion, a waste and because it has some thickness, could cause the wax seal to fail because the added thickness of the horn's rim just squeezes out all of the wax when you seat the toilet.

thanks for the info, i'll see what happens.....tony

As Jim noted, you probably will be OK with that 1/4" space, but to be totally proper, a flange is supposed to rest on top of the finished floor, not above it. It is then anchored through the finished floor and into the sub floor. I prefer to use several #12 stainless steel screws for strength and rust resistance.

hi guy's, thanks for the advice on the wax rings, i have another question, need one more piece of advice, i lost a couple days of working on the floor, if i leave the 1/2" flange extension on, it will be 1/4" above the tile, if i put the 1/4" on, i'll be flush with the tile, which one should i use? i've read threads where the flange sits on top of the finished floor and where it should be flush. so the way i'm thinking of it as if i leave the 1/2" extension on, i'll have 1/4" above the tile, wouldn't that be the same as being mounted on top of the finished floor, i hope i'm making sense, i want to have the correct flange extension on before i put on the wax ring & toilet. thanks for any info, tony.......

I don't think you read on this forum that the flange should be anything but on top of the finished floor. Now granted, the wax ring will make up of a little extra space and will compress if the flange is a bit off of the floor, but a properly set flange rests on top of the finished floor, is anchored with screws through the finished floor and into the sub floor. The wax ring may seal the toilet just fine with the flange above the floor 1/4", but you lose the support that the floor would provide to the flange. All of the weight and stress will be on the flange connection.

I don't think Gary is reading the responses well...a normal flange is around 1/4" thick and that flange sits on top of the floor with no gap under it. If yours, with the extension is there, you should be fine. It is better to have it above the surrounding floor and it is best if it is raised, so you don't use extensions. Then, the finished floor also becomes part of the support. It sounds like yours is supported by the original subflooring, and you tiled around it.

yes, correct-- i'm mounted to the original subfloor, i'm going to put the extension on that leaves me 1/4" above the finished tile. thanks for all of your help, when i install the toilet, i'm going to use a regular wax ring and i'll see how it goes, if i have any issues, i'll be back... thanks again, tony........