Wanting to Replace 3 1980s American Standard with 5 Totos...

Hello,

First time post here on a great informative site. Hopefully you can assist me as well.

I have 3 x 1980's grey American Standard toilets that require replacement. One is turned off due to a leak that I cannot seem to fix & one flushes by itself every so often. To try and save some water, I managed to get a brick into each tank (old school!).

Unfortunately all of these AS toilets are installed under one piece sink/banjo counters, so without replacing those counters the height from the floor to the underneath of the counter is only 28". This has been my dilemma for buying new toilets as I will have to change all of the counters, patch walls, etc. Also these bathrooms are very small and the counters do offer some shelf space.

I find myself thoroughly confused with the different options and specs. The only thing that we know is that that toilets have to be white; elongated; 4 out of 5 to have a higher seat; skirting not required (easier to install?); 12" rough ins; and also reasonably priced would be a bonus. We have 4 - 6 or more adults in the home at any given time, so a couple of dual flushers in the 2 main bathrooms would be environmentally friendly? My son though is concerned about flushing more than once to clear the bowl which would negate the purpose of being environmentally friendly.

I have spent more time trying to figure out toilets than buying my vehicle.

So Option 1 is purchase low clearance Totos. Can you tell me what would be available for the height I have?

Option 2 is to replace the banjo counters, then I could go with any height toilets. I am leaning heavily towards this option as I can then modernize those bathrooms and go with a...? Drake? I hear very good reviews on this one as being an all around Toto winner as well as reasonably priced.

Option 3 is as Option 2 but take some kind of saw to those banjo counters to save the sinks so I have more time to renovate

I also have 2 more bathrooms that are new construction. One is a basement bathroom that my 22 year old son would use. The other is an in-law suite that my 69 year old mother would use. She is 5' tall and would prefer the same toilet height of the AS which is 14" from floor to bowl rim. She could be talked into an inch or so more though. The new construction bathrooms are not getting banjo counters or carpeted flooring! It's amazing what an 80's bathroom used to look like.

I prefer the universal height for all of the other toilets which leads me to another question. What is the difference between ADA height and Universal height?

Also are the dual flush Totos for the 2 main bathrooms worth the hype as compared to a 1.6 g... I mean we have been living with the AS tanks for a long time! The difference from those to the 1.6 would be wonderful I think.

Sorry for the long email and I appreciate all your advice and reading this forum!

Here are the photos of my existing AS toilets and spaces...

You might want take a browse around on the Toto web site.
http://www.totousa.com/Products/Toilets.aspx

Based on your requirements of the higher seat height and lower total height looks to limit you to the Supreme II and the Carolina II
http://www.totousa.com/Default.aspx?TabId=37&SearchId=cc8dd682-e763-418a-994e-d6c1784ed464&page=all

Elongated with the extra seat height = ADA compliant. For low total height you'll need on piece and it looks like th two models I mentioned ar the only ones that fit in 28" or less. If you pull up the web page for a particular model of toilet there is a "downloads and resources" link. Click that and then click the link for the spec sheet to get the details.

Those two models are 1.28 gpf HETs. I would not worry about having to double flush under normal conditions.

Looks like the Lloyd and Soiree will fit too. There maybe others.

Thank you CarlH. Looks like the Supreme model would work well (easier to install) for the low clearances. Too bad there isn't a dual model though. The only one is a wall mount Aquia.

I have noticed that according to Toto's website, the toilets with the SaniGloss seem to be less money. I thought that it was better to have SaniGloss (which means more $$$). Doesn't the toilet clean better with SaniGloss? Or would that be overkill if you have a Double Cyclone flush system?

Thank you.

The pricing by the book has CEFIONTECT as an extra cost item, but in practice, volume, can make a difference. The glaze is smoother and has some other properties that help control the growth of biological crud that can start in the micro-roughness hills and valleys of a normal glaze where it gets trapped. Until you touch a normally glazed surface and then directly compare it to one with this special glaze, you don't appreciate the differences. So, the smoother surface prevents most stuff from sticking, or sticking hard, and it tends to wash off easier. Nothing's perfect, but it definately helps and I think worth it, if available. I have it on my toilets and sinks.

The lower price on the CEFIONTECT models could be typo on the Toto web site. The truth comes when you get the prices from your supplier. Get a price for both. I cannot comment on CEFIONTECT since I don't have any experience with it yet.

Black doesn't come in CEFIONTECT, but it does cost a lot more then white.

You can get CEFIONTECT in White, Beige and Bone.
Those will always be less money then Black.

CEFIONTECT is an easier cleaning surface.