Why, Oh Why ...

[Cracked]

...is there this ¾" gap at the base? Leaking flange recently changed and it appeared behind the wall, so I don't understand the gap. Is there more than one possible reason?
It turns out the toilet will be replaced. Is there a way to eliminate having this gap with the next toilet?

 

[hj]

Unless you cut the tile around the toilet, it will HAVE to set the thickness of the tile away from the wall.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Cracked]

Thanks for the thought, HJ. I will make a point of having a tile cutter on hand just in case.

Recently, when the toilet was pulled away for a flange replacement, I wasn't seeing the tile extending into the opening. I will definitely look at that possibity again in a week or two when the toilet gets replaced.

Another possibility that is occurring to me now that you bring up the tile, is the floor bolts may play a role in having been placed >12" from the wall. I have a feeling it may be the bolts placement in the tile below. I'll let you know in a few weeks.

In addition to the tile cutter, I suppose I should / will get several replacement tiles and associated materials now.

HJ, thanks so much for responding. When something isn't visually correct, I can't ignore it.

Would a plumber correct the "tile" problem as part of toilet removal and installation of a new toilet?
Or, should I get a tiler?
Any idea how much time is involved with such repairs?

Either way, The toilet is secured to the floor with thin-set because the floor bolts were rusted and cut to floor level by a recent plumber. I think I need to start trying to remove all the thin-set while waiting for the toilet to be available.

 

[Michael Young]

Looks like you have a mess. I would redo all of it. If I needed to move the flange and buy a standard 12" rough toilet, that's what I'd do. Looks like your fighting with a bunch of antiquated bullshit. "Gosh darn golly" that noise. Rip it out and replumb it to current standards and it's fixed and serviceable for the rest of your life.

 

[Cracked]

Discovered the cause.

The escutcheon plate is what is keeping the toilet from the wall, not tile. Fortunately, the Maxwell has a smaller foot print and should fit against the wall next to the escutcheon plate. Fortunately, thinset removal was not the big deal it appeared to be.

The Maxwell doesn't arrive until the end of the week. I won't see the complete tile situation until I can swap out toilets. I won't lose sleep over possible 2 unmatched tiles hidden beneath the toilet for new floor bolts. If the tiles aren't hidden beneath the new toilet, that will be a new visual to correct. In the meantime, fingers are crossed with 2 replacement tiles on standby.

Michael, relocating the wall drain to be a floor drain isn't necessary. Besides, I'm in a high rise and would think cutting into the concrete for a large drain would compromise it structurally. Are you saying water closet plumbing standards have changed since the '80's? I'm thinking whoever plumbed during construction wasn't aware of how large floor mount bowl bases are for rear outlets. I would expect the architect to reflect correct distances. It's anybody's guess who didn't ensure thorough communication back then.

 

[Jadnashua]

Yes, the water use standards for toilets has changed over the years. Early 80's is about when they started regulation and 3.5g flushes became mandatory. Today, the maximum a toilet can use to flush is 1.6g, and there are toilets that work well with even 1g. Hundreds of millions of people in the USA, each, typically flushing 5x or more a day, that's over a billion gallons of potable water that needs to be found, then processed by waste treatment. Billions of anything has an impact that affects everyone.

 

[Cracked]

I probably should have said plumbing code changes associated with the supply line placement to the water closet; gpf irrelavent to the question. Sorry for the poor choice of words in the question to Michael.

 

[Jadnashua]

There is no standard required placement for the water supply line across all toilets. Swapping a toilet can require moving it. Most people do not want it readily visible, so they tuck it in fairly close to the toilet. That can be problematic when you swap to a different style. So, no, there is no code requirement for the water supply line for a toilet, nor, has it changed over time, at least that I'm aware of.