Making improvements to your home? Nothing feels better than to update a room and have everything shiny and brand new.
We enjoy updating a refrigerator, increasing the technology in our appliances, even having a modernized fixture with all the bells and whistles. But a new toilet? It might not have a high placement on your list of home improvement tasks.
A toilet is a toilet. Right?
Toilets go through thousands of gallons of water each year. Every flush puts stress on rubber seals, pipes, and the porcelain bowl. And while toilets do have a long lifespan, there can telltale signs that it’s time for a replacement.
Your toilet has never been replaced
Owned your home for years? Living with the original toilet installed when it was first built? A lot has changed over the years. Even if you aren’t living with that chocolate brown or avocado green toilet once popular decades ago, it still may be time for an update. Not only are old toilets more prone to cracks and leaks, they are also water hogs as well. Today’s toilets use a fraction of the water with each flush when compared to toilets made a few years ago. And with today’s technology, they make less noise with every flush.
Your toilet uses too much water
Today’s high efficiency toilets have improved flushing power and use only 1.3 gallons of water per flush. Under the Energy Policy Act of 1992, all toilets produced from this point forward must have a standard flush level of 1.6 gallons of water. Prior to this, most toilets used 3.4 gallons. If your toilet is from the original construction, you can be using almost three times the amount of water per flush; that’s a substantial amount of water usage over the course of a year.
Your toilet shifts and moves
Ever touched the toilet and had it shift positions on you? It can be caused by a variety of things. Loose mounting bolts, a degraded wax ring underneath the toilet, or a rotten subfloor can all cause a toilet to shift. While loose mounting bolts may be able to be tightened to provide a toilet more useful life, they can easily crack the porcelain if stripped or tightened too much. If water has seeped into the subfloor, a professional repair is in order.
Your toilet is damaged
Older toilets begin showing their age gradually. You may notice chips in the finish or cracks along the curves. You may hear a slight water drip even when not in use. Even a small leak can lead to hundreds, even thousands of gallons of water waste every year. And if the water seeps into your home, it can cause you thousands of dollars of damage in the process. At worst, you may also have to deal with biological growth.
Although an experienced DIYer may attempt to install a new toilet on their own, most homeowners should rely on a professional to ensure your new toilet is installed correctly without leaks in place. Need help? Give us a call today.