Can I replace a toilet?

I’ve been on the plumber’s list for going on two months now. They keep saying next week. Only one other plumber in town but for a good reason I won’t call him. I need a toilet replaced because it froze last winter when the radiator pipe burst and has a crack in the bottom of the tank. Today, I asked my self “How hard could it be to replace a toilet? Maybe I could do this…??” Well, how hard would it be for an older woman who is fairly strong and can get down on her knees and maybe get up? (plus I would have to get it into the house).

They’re not horribly heavy, but they are fairly heavy, not to mention big, bulky and awkward. Also fragile.

I wouldn’t recommend swapping a toilet as a first-ever plumbing project.

Here’s an outline of what’s involved just to replace the porcelain parts. You’ll probably also need to install the flush and fill valves unless you find one that already has these put together.

I’ve done it. I would suggest having a friend help you. A friend of mine and I swapped out the toilet at the barn where we keep our horses. It’s heavy. We both had to lift it down the steps. But other than that it wasn’t hard. We followed the directions that came with it.

Crack in the bottom of your tank?

Then you don’t need to replace the toilet bowl do you?

If you know where the crack in the tank is, empty the tank, clean and dry the inside surface surounding the crack and apply a 5 minute epoxy mix available at your local hardware store.

Sure. Dig a hole!

The toughest part of a full-blown toilet replacement is getting it set properly on the wax ring and the flange. If you don’t get this right, you can get leaking and odors coming back into the house. Plus, they’re heavy and much easier to deal with with two people. But The Flying Dutchman is right if it is just a cracked tank. Now, if you really want to replace the toilet anyway (don’t like the color, want to go low-flow or pressure-assisted, are bootlegging toilets in from Canada, etc.) get some information and probably a helper. And expect it to take at least an hour, maybe more.

I’m pretty much agreeing with everyone else here. I’ve de-installed and re-installed a wobbly toilet, and it was enough of a job for a 30yo man solo, you should have a helper. Seating the toilet on the wax ring requires you to drop it down straight, and right over the bolts. Fairly easy with two people, tough if you’re struggling with the weight alone. You do not want to drop a toilet on a hard floor, it will shatter into dangerously sharp and heavy pieces. You also need to be comfortable with the assembly process of the new toilet, knowing where all the parts go and how to assemble them water tight, and adjusting them so it fills/flushes properly.

It’s not really that hard a job, but if things go wrong, it can take a long time to get right. I would suggest trying to fix the tank first, that sounds like a great idea, cheaper, easier, it’s worth a try.

If repairing the crack in the tank isn’t plausible or doesn’t work, Geberit makes insulated plastic replacement tanks. The tank to bowl mounting is adjustable to match the existing bowl hardware spacing, and comes complete with new ballcock and flush valve. They work out very nicely in cases where the bowl footprint would be smaller with a new fixture, hence making the floor look like shite.

I never thought of that. Now that’s a good idea! I’ll have to look at it closely and see exactly where the crack is. Thanks! :smiley:

Could you clarify a few things?

First and foremost: How old is the plumbing to the toilet? If it is too old, the fittings may not be standard and you may need the plumber to ensure that everything goes back together correctly. My house was c.1918, and had lead fittings. A plumber was definitely required. Your only problem here is that if a plumber calls and the plumbing is considerably out of date, (s)he may require you to update to current codes. A double edged sword.

The following is if your toilet meets current plumbing standards.

Is this an integral bowl and tank, or is the tank a separate piece?

If it is integral, you will need to replace the entire unit. You will need to replace the wax seal; try to get the one with the plastic sleeve, because that will help to align the bowl when you replace it. You may want help with the replacement, because horsing a heavy fixture around will make it difficult to properly align the fixture.

If instead the tank and bowl are separate units, you may not need to remove the bowl from the floor at all (unless the freezing also cracked the bowl as well). Behind the bowl are two or three bolts that attach the tank to the bowl. Those can be loosened and the tank detached. Of course, you will need to buy a matching tank, but used ones are available on-line. And, the nice thing is that only water goes through the tank, so buying used doesn’t have that “ick” factor. Consider replacing the gaskets that the bolts pass through if they seem like they may leak.

Most warehouse style home stores have an entire rack devoted to toilet repairs. You can browse there to see what parts you need.

This house is old, a 100+, but fortunately the plumbing has been updated, mostly with PVC pipe. The toilet is all one unit. I think I’ll try the epoxy thing first and see what happens. Now if I could just get that dang plumber out to fix the radiator I would be fine. I’ve been on his list for 2+ months.

You hit the nail on the head here. Almost all plumbing projects are pretty easy IF everything goes fine. But as soon as you hit a strange fitting, a crack that goes in a bad place, a joint that comes apart, etc they become a royal pain in the bottom.

Replacing a toilet is usually a piece of cake (with the caveats listed above about weight and ackwardness.) But the things that can go wrong are:

  1. Water supply that breaks off when you try to undo it. This can entail requiring a new valve be installed onto pipe of varying types. If all your drains are PVC, odds are pretty good that your water pipes are in good shape and this will not be a problem. If you have a flexible baided stainless steel water supply, you are in good shape.

  2. Toilet flange rusted out/broken. This would involve either a steel repair part to be slid under the flange or a whole new flange. A cracked flange CAN happen to brand new PVC toilet flanges if someone overtightens them, but is pretty easy to overcome. If the flange breaks so much that it needs replaced, that can be a pain involving pulling up floor or breaking into a ceiling below.

And that’s about all the major items that can go wrong with a simple toilet replacement. Might have to try it a couple times to get the wax set, etc, but nothing that can’t be overcome.

I have never been able to get epoxy to stop a leak, but it is cheap and easy to try.

I’m an adult male and would seek the help of a friend for both the transport and also the installation of a toilet (even though I would probably “manhandle” the final installation). I’m going to guess a toilet weighs 50 lbs if it’s 1 piece. Most older models are 2 piece and the tank is bolted on.

The only trick to installing it is to have the right size wax seal for the job and any related connectors you might need. I don’t want to discourage anyone from tackling such a job but it is the unforeseen that usually makes the job harder. If it involves old plumbing fixtures then you should be prepared to replace a bad cutoff valve or at least be prepared to replace the connector to the tank. You’ll also need to be able to fix a broken mounting stud, which often breaks off from rust. Plumbing connections can consist of galvanized pipe, copper pipe or PVC so you’ll need to know how to work with whatever material you have and have access to the tools needed.

This is a relatively easy repair for the do-it-yourselfer. I’m not trying to discourage trying this but I would recommend you seek additional help from someone who’s familiar with plumbing before attempting your own repair. If this is the only toilet in the house you risk losing the proverbial pot to piss in.

If it’s just a tank crack and it does not affect the water path into the toilet then plumbers epoxy is extremely easy to work with and will outlast the toilet, the house, and most of the cockroaches that will inherit the Earth. Good luck.

I missed reading BoringDad’s response so mine was almost an exact re-post. I would add that plumbers epoxy should be applied to a clean dry surface that has been roughed up for better adhesion. It’s a lot harder to stop a leak if there is moisture present. As an example, I had a sewer line rust out in my kitchen ceiling (1/2 inch X 8" hole). It took 5 tubes of plumber’s epoxy to stop the leak which was 4 tubes more than needed to cover the hole. That was the result of not being able to dry the inside of the pipe. It was an active use problem which is different than this application. If a tank can be completely dried on the inside and then properly cleaned then epoxy should work fine.

There’s a distinct possiblity that you’ve been on his list for over 2 months because he has more lucrative things to do. I’ve been on that list before. Find another plumber.