Brooks Plumbing Co. Blog: Posts Tagged ‘Toilets’

Is It Time to Replace A Toilet?

Monday, March 6th, 2023
two-small-children-looking-at-toilet

There’s a reason why the toilet is commonly referred to as “the throne.” The toilet is an essential plumbing fixture in your home. You need your home’s toilets to function properly because their failure to do so can result in worst-case scenarios such as an overflowing or leaking toilet.

The nickname “throne” conveys durability and stability, but just like any other household fixture or appliance, toilets don’t last forever and will need to be replaced. The question to be answered isn’t, “Does my toilet need to be replaced,” but “When does my toilet need to be replaced.” How do you know when it’s time to take this step with your bathroom plumbing in Tumwater, WA? Let’s take a deep dive into the answer.

Continue Reading

Benefits of Low-Flow Toilets

Monday, January 4th, 2016

If you’re considering a bathroom upgrade, whether small or large, a low-flow toilet is something you should seriously think about. They’re designed to reduce the amount of water you use with each flush, and qualified plumbers here in Olympia, WA can fill you in on all of the details. The benefits of such a system are numerous, with very few drawbacks attached to them. Replacing an older toilet with a low-flow system just makes a lot of sense. Here are 3 things to think about when contemplating such a decision.

Continue Reading

Benefits of a Low-Flow Toilet

Monday, April 6th, 2015

If you’ve been looking for ways to save water in your Olympia, WA, home, we may have a very easy solution for you: consider the installation of a low-flow toilet. Why? It all comes down to water usage, and if you have a toilet or toilets that aren’t low-flow, then these toilets comprise over 25% of your home’s total water usage. Putting this another way, if you have a toilet that is a 5 or 7 gallon toilet, and you average 5 flushes a day, your toilet uses between 9,000-12,000 gallons of water per year. Low-flow toilets use a maximum of 1.6 gallons, cutting this amount down to just over 2,900 gallons of water per year – an amount 3-4 times less that of 5-6 gallon toilets.

How do low-flow toilets manage this? First, they have some simple yet key design differences from higher-flow toilets, starting with the bowl outlet hole. In a regular toilet bowl, the outlet hole is located toward the back of the bowl; in a low-flow toilet, the outlet hole is located in the center of the bowl so that waste can more easily and directly exit the bowl. Another modification that you’ll find with a low-flow toilet is that the balance of the water in the bowl is toward the front of the bowl; this helps move waste quickly and effectively. The last difference you’ll find between a low-flow toilet and a regular one is that the flush valve is larger. Having a larger flush valve creates a stronger flush, which helps push waste out of the bowl and into the outlet pipe.

Now that you know the differences between a low-flow toilet and a regular one, let’s take a look at the benefits:

  • Water conservation – as we discussed in the top paragraph, you can save a great deal of water by switching to a low-flow toilet
  • Space-saving – because low-flow toilets use less water, most are smaller in size, particularly the tank area
  • Easier installation – a smaller toilet means a less cumbersome toilet, so low-flow toilets can be easier to install

Interested to see what a low-flow toilet can do for your home? Call the plumbing experts at Brooks Plumbing today!

Continue Reading

Plumber’s Guide: Quick Tips on Toilets

Wednesday, January 4th, 2012

Quite simply, everyone needs to have a working toilet in their Olympia home. Of course, when we do, we tend to take it for granted. Most people really do not know much about how their toilets work and how much water they use, and acquiring that information can be beneficial to you for several reasons. Toilet tips can help you save money, catch problems early and generally get the most out of your toilet.

Water-saving devices are always useful on toilets. Even if you did not buy a water-saver toilet to begin with, you can convert your regular toilet into one by installing a toilet cycle diverter. These great gadgets actually direct some of the water from each flush back into the tank rather than allowing it to run into the toilet bowl itself.

What this does is allow the tank to fill up faster. Less water goes down with each flush and less water is needed to fill up the tank. These devices are relatively easy to install yourself and they can save you a ton in the long run. In fact, the average toilet cycle diverter can conserve up to a gallon of water per flush.

You will also benefit from learning about how your toilet works because it can enable you to catch problems early when they are easy to correct. You may or may not be able to do the corrective work yourself, but at least you can call out an Olympia plumber earlier rather than later.

Fixing toilet problems early hopefully means that you will not have to go without a toilet for very long, if at all. And the repairs that you need should be relatively minor and inexpensive. When toilet issues are allowed to persist, they can turn into a much bigger plumbing problem and cause a great deal of inconvenience to you and your family.

One of the most common toilet problems is leaks. A leaky toilet can have all kinds of symptoms, but the bottom line is that it is probably costing you money on your water bill each month. Also, leaks will only get bigger as time goes on, so you will be much better off if you fix them early. Phantom flushing and continuous running are both signs that your toilet is leaking, and the earlier you do something about it, the better off you will be.

Continue Reading

How to Install a Toilet

Wednesday, November 23rd, 2011

A toilet is a relatively basic piece of plumbing equipment, but that does not mean that installing it is easy. This is certainly a job that many people can do on their own, without the help of a Lacey plumber,  but you should be prepared to devoting the majority of your day to the project. While the installation itself is not terribly complicated, it is quite important that you get it right, so make sure you have all of the necessary materials, equipment and tools before you begin.

The first thing to remember is that you need to install your toilet in an appropriate place relative to the rest of your bathroom plumbing. Especially if you are installing your toilet along a branch drain, make sure that the sink, shower and any other plumbing fixtures are upstream of the spot where you will be installing the toilet.

You will also need to make sure that you install the toilet an appropriate distance from the wall. You need to be able to get around the toilet, and you also want to leave space so that work can be performed on the unit later. Putting your toilet too close to the wall can cause all kinds of complications in the way the unit functions and there is also a possibility of condensation build-up. For all of these reasons, it is important to make sure you are allowing an adequate amount of space on all sides.

The procedure you will have to follow when installing a toilet will be slightly different depending on whether you are installing it in a new spot or simply replacing an existing unit. When replacing an old toilet, you need to remove everything involved in the previous installation. That means taking the old bolts out of the floor and scraping away any residue to ensure that you have a clean and even surface to begin your installation on.

You should also make sure that you are aware of all applicable local codes before you begin your work. Even if you technically install your toilet correctly, you could run into trouble later on if your installation is not actually up to code. It is also important to remember to level all of your fixtures before you complete the installation process and to make sure you use a dielectric or brass fitting when attaching galvanized steel and copper to each other. And if you have any questions, talk to your Lacey plumber.

Continue Reading