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Try the Toto toilets. Not only do they flush well, but they make great topics of conversation at parties as the guests are blown away by the awesome 2 second flush!
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Toto
*We have three different low flow toilets in our house.The least reliable has been our Kohler Wellworth. It seems to be the most prone to clogging. The blunger is close at hand.We also have an American Standard "Hamilton". I believe that's the model -- it's an elongated, single piece toilet that fits into the space of a round front toilet. In any case, we're very happy with this. It occasionally acts like it is going to clog, but usually self-clears. Occasionally, a second flush is necessary or a plunger once in a blue moon.Our American Standard Cadet (with pressurized flush from Flushmate) has been clog free, but with 2 issues. 1) it's very loud when it flushes. 2) we've never gotten the flush lever to work right. Instead of triggering the flush cleanly, we have to hold the lever down the entire flush time. This is true even after the factory sent us a couple re-engineered parts.
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Check out this article “Fine Tuning Water Closets”. His point is that all 1.6 gallon toilets should work well if they are tuned properly. I am not a plumber but he may be right.
http://www.pmmag.com/colarchives/0299ballanco.html
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James,
The federal plumbing standards issue returns every year to Congress like swallows to Capistrano. This year it's HR 623, Congressman Knollenberg's bill to repeal the federal
plumbing efficiency standards. Republicans feel pretty sure they can swing it this session. The manufacturers would have to retool. The Wall Street Journal ran a real negative editorial about low-flows on January 18, a few days ago. Out here in California, we really save allot of valuable water in urban areas using the 1.6 GPF units. We will face an uncertain construction future out here without reliable water supplies. Therefore, I do not support Mr. Knowlenberg's bill.
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Just a side note,
I like what I've seen in Europe; the toilet has two knobs - one for a low volume flush and the other for a full blast (to be used at you discretion). Seems to be the best compromise between conservation and function. Has anyone seen anything similar here?
Jerry
*Thanks Steve,I'll be keeping my eye on this House Resolution.James DuHamel
*I was curious as to the vintage of your Wellworth. Like Rob, we have had excellent performance from the Wellworth but it is the redesigned 1.6 unit - with the larger trap. Kohler didn't even change the part number as best I can tell - just increased trap diameter.
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Looking for a low flow toilet. Is there one that is above the rest in performance.Customers are afraid of bad preformance.Compression assist fears are that it will be too loud. My fears, it's an old house(80-90yrs) with cast iron. I know thw new low-flows work w/ new plumbing, but what about old, roughed-up stuff? Any advice? I found one 1.6gal. where the customer at his and/or her own discression could change the flapper to convert into a 3.5gal. after I left the house and didn't know about it.And that's the story I'm sticking to!Jeff,er..uh..Bob.
*There's a school of thought that screwing with the water in a 1.6 gallon toilet will actually hinder, not help, the flush. In the one you mention, it has a large tank, to provide a pressure head, but the flapper closes after only 1.6 gallons have gone through. Increasing the water amount will likely have an adverse effect on the siphoning action and stall the flush.Go to for a review. I believe that the Gerber UltraFlush without the Flushmate has been a solid performer. Even better with the Flushmate.As to old plumbing, toilets must not only empty the bowl but move it on down the line. This is why the Consumer Reports test is no good -- it only looks at bowl emptying. Hell, design a toilet with a three inch trap that justs dumps into the pipe, and you'd rate high with CR. Never mind that it doesn't move any further. The industry tests with plastic balls seems to be a better approach, as it measures movement down the waste line. As we reduce water flow, we may well reach the point of too little water for the older waste systems to operate properly.
*JeffI have 4 of the 1.6 gallon Eljer Patriots in my house ($69 at HD). All have worked flawlessly for a year now. They are mentioned in the website Steve posted as "good flush".jim
*Try the Toto toilets. Not only do they flush well, but they make great topics of conversation at parties as the guests are blown away by the awesome 2 second flush!
*I've installed the American Standard 1.6 gal i Hydrafor a customer, and later in my own house. Three years and counting with no problems. The one in my own house is in a 1st floor Lav. that gets used a lot, especially by kids who like to use too(oo) much T/p. . . still no probs!!!-pm
*I read an article in the paper (Associated Press release) that said Congress has repealed the law governing "low flow" toilets. Has anyone else heard anything about this? They didn't say very much at all, but it sure peaked my interest. I can't find anything else about it though.If in fact they DID repeal it, how do you think it will affect the manufacture of toilets? Will they go back to the 3 gallon flush toilet (even after all the retooling of the plants to make the low flows)?Just curious...James DuHamel
*Toto is great! Have one on 50 year old cast iron, no problems with not clearing the bowl. Got it FREE from the Water dept. Kinda like Alladins' "New lamps for old!" deal, only with toilets. I do have one complaint with that mighty flush Gene L. mentions. It tends to spray tiny drops of water UP as it flushes. This is not a pleasant feature, I have noticed it on some other low flows also. Anybody else seen this? Joe H
*All toilets will send an aerosol when they flush, which is why the lid should always be dropped before flushing and why one might wish to move away when using public toilets without lids. My daughters, perfect foils to the concept of men never lowering the seat, will leave the lid up when flushing. Rationale? "But, Dad, like, you know, we'll just, you know, have to, like, raise it again when, you know, we have to, like, use it again." Like, how do you spell, you know, intestinal virus?
*TOTO TOILETS:Who makes this toilet, how much does it cost, and where can I buy one ?
*Tryi [email protected]:}-pm
*Arrowshooter, shoot on over here --> http://www.thefactoryoutlet.com/toilet.htmI think they are made in Indonesia?Joe H
*I've had the best luck with Kohler wellworth. Around $100.00 at HD
*TOTO has a Web site -- guess what its URL might be -- that provides access to sources. Nobody in my town sells it, but then, I live in the state where they make Kohler.
*We've had that problem (splash-back) with our 2 American Standard "Deco" models. They clear the bowl very, very well, but tend to send up a splash which can be a problem sometimes... The trick is to pull the flush handle up slowly- that helps a lot.