TOTO Neorest 500 toilet product review and comments

[Sinjinn]

Humm, if the supply line before the new stuff was copper, if you'd used copper, it might have worked better. CPVC ID is smaller, closer to 3/8" copper, and is restricting the max flow.

Thanks Jim...quite right and when we remodel our bathroom next year, we'll use all copper. I didn't have the necessary copper pipe/flux/solder/torch at hand, so I opted for an install using the shark connectors and PEX (about 6" length). The flow was adequate for a complete flush in almost all cases. However, as it turns out we had a problem with the flushes getting increasingly weak. I contacted Toto and after a bit of troubleshooting we determined that the flush valve solenoid was faulty. As a result the flush time was reduced and the jet did not operate for a sufficient length of time to clear the bottom of the bowl. Toto has very good customer service and they are sending me a replacement flush valve next week.

[Sinjinn]

Replaced the flush valve unit and toilet now flushes fine! I may take the old one apart to see if there is any adjustment that could be made on the time of the second stage of the flush. While I was at the repair I decide to replace the 6" section of PEX (I.D. of less than 0.4") with soft annealed copper pipe (I.D. of roughly 0.5") to see if it made much difference. Perhaps a little more volume...significant? Not sure.

[jten]

I just got my 500 installed a few days ago and cannot convey just how good it is. We were into the install when I ran across this forum (thank god) and someone was discussing 1/2 inch pex being undersized. If you are running pex, be sure to run 3/4. It doesn't say it anywhere in the manuals, but Toto will confirm that they are getting calls that the 1/2 inch pex might not work out so well but 1/2 copper probably will. We had to re-run the pex, but the wall was still open and nothing else was hooked up. 1 post on this forum was the only confirmation that I could find anywhere on the net. thanks!

[Faux Plumber]

I went ahead and ordered the Neorest 500.

Going to try with an offset flange adapter, hopefully everything will work out...

I'll try to take pictures of the install as it happens.

Hope I am back in a few weeks with a positive story to tell.

xucchini: I have a similar problem about the rough-in distance, it is less than 12 inches, close to 11 1/2 inches. Toto's tech support people say that anything less than 12 inches will not work. I, too, wondered if an offset flange adapter could be used. You have not posted since December 2009. Did your installation work? Would you, please, post pictures of your installation? Thanks.

Instructions

[Terry]

I think you have a little leeway. The 500's that I have installed did not touch the wall.
Also, the outlet of the adapter is about 2", dropping into a 3" drain.
You can fudge the adapter forward a little bit if needed. That would be much, much better then installing a needless offset.

I believe this was about 11.5" from the wall.

[Faux Plumber]

Thanks, Terry. That helps a lot.

[Faux Plumber]

Thanks to Terry's encouragement (that an 11.5 inch rough-in would be sufficient) we ordered a Neorest 500 for a bathroom we are re-doing and which I had already closed and tiled with large (13 in. x 26 in.) tiles. We hadn't decided on the Neorest before I closed the wall and tiled it, so we had concerns about the rough-in, which was just a bit shy of 11.5 inches, and the supply line which was six inches from the center of the toilet.

I measured the horizontal distance between the back of the washlet after it has been installed on the toilet, and the center line of the bolt holes at the bottom, and found that that distance was about 3 1/8inches. I measured and re-measured the distance between the bolt holes in the gray outlet connection when installed over the waste flange, and the back wall. That was 3 1/4 inches. So, I went ahead and drilled the holes for the gray outlet connection in the green marble tile I had laid, and then my wife and I carefully lowered the toilet over the gray outlet connection. We were relieved to find that the fit was perfect, and the clearances looked very much as in the picture in Terry's first post.
The water supply had to be moved over, and I did that with a few elbows and nipples (which I threaded manually from stainless steel pipe stock, hence my chosen name Faux Plumber.)

The result is as in the picture.

Thanks, Terry, for your encouragement and your wonderful Forum.

[msr12077]

nyc6035,
just curious how long it took to install the 1st unit and the 2nd unit? thanks!

[msr12077]

Terry,
If you had only 9 1/2 " to work would based on the existing pipe below to the septic, would you move the pipe 2" away from the wall and this means re-doing the hole into the tile and the pipe below going into the septic? or would you not do so, knowing 9 1/2 works just fine?

Also, how long does it take to install from beginning to finish? I am planning on installing 2 units, but I have one bathroom, which is smaller and more space restrictions.

Thanks!

[Terry]

Hello, just up the long street from me,

It takes me 4 hours to install a Neorest 500, so it would take a homeowner longer.
It's not that it's hard, it's that there are more things to do.
You need at least 11.5" from the center of the drain to the wall.
For the neorest, you will need to move the drain.
The water supply should be 11.5" to the left of center. Toto supplies a shutoff valve that you must use with the Neorest.
Terry

[jjwbhca]

Terry,

I would like to get a Neorest 500 or 600 for my bathroom. The water supply line is 9.5" to the left of the center of where the toilet is. I have a Toto toilet there already, so the 12" rough-in is there already. It seems the only issue is the water supply line. The existing line is affixed through marble baseboard, and my water closet is venetian plastered, so I don't want to do any demo work. I have electrical on the rear wall behind the toilet as well.

I am curious to hear of any suggestions or recommendations you may have to make this work. I would much rather purchase a Neorest 500 or 600 than a simple washlet.

Thank you,
jjwbhca

[Terry]

9.5" will work.
6" needs to be moved out though.
With the unit on hand, you can get an idea for what can be done without kinking the braided connector.

[denverboz]

Hey Terry, great site and great information on the Toto neorest.

Got a quick question about the electrical requirements. Do you know how much power the Neorest uses, and if it requires a dedicated circuit?
I can't seem to find anything about it. TIA for any help.

BTW I can't get the links to the owners manual in this thread to work, don't know if it's me or they're just bad links.

OK I did find this about the Neorest it says: Power Rating 120V 60 Hz 1281W.
But honestly, even after googling it, I'm not sure what that means. I don't think it means it uses 1281W, just not sure. Maybe I'll post in electrical.

[Furd]

I suspect that it does indeed mean that it requires 1281 watts under some circumstances. That pretty much means a dedicated 15 ampere circuit or a lightly loaded 20 ampere circuit. While it might pass code being on the required 20 ampere bathroom circuit I would feel better about it being on a different circuit.

[Stu L.]

I currently have an ultramax and an S300 washlet. Would the neorest offer an advantage in washing down my bunghole? It definitely has the edge in the looks department, but when it comes to toilets the proof is in the pudding (no pun intended). Is the motorized flush superior? The Ultramax has been a hell of a toilet, and the washlet handles things pretty well when my poopy is soupy. Maybe the Neorest offers a better blow dry/style? If there are real advantages I would go for it. Thanks.