Toilets and Vanities

Have ready

Clear the floor around the toilet and under the vanity, and have the new fixture or vanity on site if you bought it. Empty the cabinet so the stop is reachable. The first three checks are the rough-in measurement from the finished wall to the closet bolt center, the condition of the flange and whether it sits above or below the tile, and the shutoff valve at the wall. We also look at the supply stub height and the drain arm, because a vanity with a drawer bank can foul a stop that sits high.

• Flange repair
• New toilet
• Vanity and top
• Shutoffs

The visit

The flange is the job. If it is broken below the finished floor, we repair it before the new toilet goes down, on a new wax or the seal the flange repair requires. The vanity is leveled even when the floor dips, and the top is sealed at the wall. Shutoffs that do not hold get replaced while the water is off.

A rocking toilet has been leaking at the wax for a while. The subfloor around the flange is the thing we probe. Setting a new toilet on a soft spot just punches the flange deeper.

Permit

A straight toilet or vanity swap in a single-family home normally needs no permit in New Jersey. No new pipe, no new drain, no inspection. A permit is normally required when the drain or vent is moved, when a new fixture is added to a line that never served one, or when a wall is opened for a re-pipe. If the flange or the drain below the floor is being cut and reworked, we check with the town before we start. We never guess at the scope.

On the Shore

A bathroom on the Shore runs damp most of the year, and that is what kills this assembly. Humidity keeps the tank sweating, so the tank-to-bowl gasket and the bolts rust from the inside. Salt air pits the chrome and eats the steel closet bolts, which is why a toilet that sat for years can snap a bolt when it is pulled. Winter freeze in an unheated shore house can split a supply line at the stop. Brass and stainless fasteners and a solid brass flange hold up better here.

When we leave

Before we leave, the toilet is flushed three times with the tank lid off so we can watch the fill level against the overflow tube. We check the base for rock with a hand on the bowl and weight on the floor, and run a finger around the wax line. The vanity is filled and drained, and the trap and stop are wiped dry and rechecked after the water runs. We leave the shutoffs on and show you where they are. Caulk at the base needs a day before scrubbing.

Built with

Most toilets here get a wax ring or a wax-free sealing ring, a solid brass or plastic flange repair ring where the original is cracked, and a braided stainless supply line with a quarter-turn stop. Vanities get a plywood or solid-wood cabinet, a stone or composite top, and a molded or vitreous basin set in plumber's putty or silicone. We use brass closet bolts rather than steel, and a flexible supply in braided stainless rather than a plastic tube that hardens and cracks.