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Lots of fun at our house this week. We discovered that our downstairs toilet has been leaking water into the basement. We’re not sure how long it’s been leaking, but we noticed water dripping out of the furnace ducts earlier this summer and thought it was condensation from the very humid weather. On further inspection, we found it was the toilet, whose drain is directly over the duct.
The plumber told us that the flange, the connector between the toilet and the drain, did not rise up far enough to get a good seal – this is because the person who put in our vinyl floor raised the floor by about ¼”, but did not raise the flange, or suggest we do so. Because of this, the toilet had a minimal connection to the flange. The eventual breakdown of the wax ring on this minimal seal caused water to leak, which soaked the plywood floor and caused it to buckle, which made the leak even worse.
The plumber had more bad news: when the house was built, the builders put a floor joist directly under the spot where the toilet drain was supposed to be. To get around this, the plumber carved out a notch in the joist (not allowed by code) and installed a funnel-like adapter to the flange to allow the water to move a few inches to the side, then go down into the rest of the drain. Even a non-plumber like me can see this is not a very good setup. The plumber and carpenter are getting around this by installing a toilet that has a 10” rough-in instead of the standard 12”, which will give them a straight drain without any funnels and without having to cut into floor supports. I’m sorry the people who built the house and plumbed it did not have the patience or skill to see what they were doing was against code and reason.
The floor was replaced by the carpenter, and we had enough vinyl flooring left from the original installation that he could cover the new floor. The plumber installed a new drain and toilet, so now we’re all set again with a bathroom that works and a floor that isn’t rotting.
Next step: Cleaning out the ducts that had toilet water dripping on them. I think a blowtorch is in order, but it’s possible that a member of the duct-cleaning trade will have other options available.
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2 comments:
1. I'll go anywhere, do anything, but caves give me the heebeejeebies too (bit of claustrophobia there--also, I believe, common sense!). Come to think of it, am not too keen about looking over railings on tall buildings either.
2. Noah Genda makes my boat name honor list.
3. Sympathies about your bathroom leak. But I learned stuff about building & plumbing & correcting from your explanation.
4. Sorry about the rude kids (another funny caption) but glad your Tigers game was such a success!
5. Do you ever see these comments??
Yes, I see the comments.
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