Installing 12" toilet in 14" rough-in

**pos1** · 06-15-2010, 06:30 PM

I am replacing an existing toilet with a new dual-flush toilet. The rough-in is 14". the toilet I want to install is a 12" rough-in (I'm certain I can't get it in a 14" rough-in). Is the only problem I'll run into cosmetic, in that the tank will sit an add'l 2" from the wall from the existing toilet? it's hard for me to picture what that might look like, but it doesn't seem that big of a deal.

I have no plans to do any other remodeling, i.e. break the concrete floor, etc. I simply intend on replacing the toilet...I want this to be an easy job. Worst case I'll go shopping for a 14" rough-in toilet, but I'd rather not.

Any info would be appreciated.

**jadnashua** · 06-15-2010, 08:06 PM

It will work fine, but as you thought, it will stick out an extra 2" into the room, and from the wall. If that isn't an issue, go for it. It becomes an issue if you have clearance issues. the toilet could sit in the middle of the room, if you liked the look. There are LOTS of toilets installed that have a larger than design gap behind them.

**Terry** · 06-16-2010, 12:02 AM

Any 12" toilet will work for a 14" rough.
If you want to pull the bowl back 2", then there is only one method.

Moving the bowl back 2" information

James demonstrating in an old Seattle home that has a 14" rough-in.
The toilet on the left is a Toto Soiree with 14" Unift, the toilet on the right, is a Cadet 3 elongated bowl.
Both bowls are elongated, but you can see how much leg room is gained by James on the Toto. Several inches!
It's also much easier to use when standing up. His butt doesn't hit the pedestal anymore.
Same bathroom, different bowls.

**pos1** · 06-16-2010, 04:44 AM

Originally Posted by jadnashua

It will work fine, but as you thought, it will stick out an extra 2" into the room, and from the wall.

Is it true that the toilet itself will also stick out an extra 2" or will there only be the extra 2" gap between the tank and the wall? I hadn't thought about the toilet actually sticking out more. I guess I had figured that the 14" offset was for toilets that were larger in the tank area (for some odd reason). I think what you're saying is that it's really just the mounting holes on the toilet that are different and therefore putting in a 12" rough-in toilet would move the entire toilet from the wall 2". If so, I may have to rethink this and just go with a 14" toilet.

**nukeman** · 06-16-2010, 05:16 AM

It depends on the toilet. Many 14" models are really just a 12" bowl with a thicker tank to make up the space between the toilet and the wall. If you got a Toto with a unifit like Terry mentions, the toilet will move back 2" (closing the gap at the wall and giving you an extra 2" in front of the toilet). If you have a smaller bathroom, using the unifit setup will really help.

**jadnashua** · 06-16-2010, 06:58 AM

A 12" rough-in toilet sitting on a 14" actual flange, WILL stick out 2" more than the spec sheet says. Now, as Terry linked to, the only one that actually can pull the whole toilet back to the 'design' gap behind is Toto with their UniFit adapter (which only works on some of their toilets, all of them skirted). Most other manufacturers just substitue a different tank to fill the gap, but the front of the toilet from the bolts on the flange to the front remains the same...so, move them out 2", the front has to move 2" as well.