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Toilet flange

Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 7:59 pm
by blluebear
I have to repair a sagging floor under my toilet. The mobil is a Fuqua Homes, manufactured Jan. 1979. I do not know if the flange has ever been replaced/repaired. If it has never been touched, would I have to replace it or could I just make the repairs and put a new toilet in place?

Posted: Thu Nov 13, 2008 12:10 am
by Jim from Canada
Unless cracked or otherwise broken, it should be OK. The only thing is, you will have to put a seam in the floor because all the plumbing should be glued together and the floor has to fit under the flange. Best bet is to buy a new flange, because they are only a few bucks, and can be returned if you end up not needing it. Might as well get a bit of pipe too, glue for it and a few other odds and ends for plumbing. There is nothing like having something torn apart and you lack a small part and all the stores are closed.
That's the long answer.
The short one is....yes

Jim

RE: Toilet flange

Posted: Thu Nov 13, 2008 9:58 am
by oldfart
Well now Bear I'll give ye the "short version" of what I'd bring to rip out an old toilet/replace the sagging floor and make it all work again in 1 day. First off..have a lot of patience..and buy a 5gal. bucket. Just in case. Next item....a large sponge. Not some twiddling little kitchen-sink sponge! A biggun'..like they use to warsh cars with! Use it to soak up the water in the old toilet tank after shutting the water off.. and mop up the never-ending drips that yer about to encounter for the next several hours..or possibly days. Buy 2 wax-rings..the heavy duty ones..with the plastic cones built into the wax-rings! And pick up a new toilet flange. And a "toilet-repair-flange"..that's a metal ring that ya screw to the floor over top of the old toilet flange if it's not usable and might help if the new toilet flange is the wrong size/shape or whatever. Buy a can of cleaner/solvent for ABS/CPVC/PVC fittings!! Tearing out an old toilet is like a box of chocklates..ya just never know what yer gonna find! Buy a can of glue that works on ABS/CPVC/PVC pipe....for the same reason! Now it'd help if ya knew what for extry pipe to buy... but will it be 3in. or 4in.? Schedule 30 or 40? There's a difference and they won't interchange! Bring lots of wrenches and a flat-bar..and a pair of Vise-Grips. Pick up an extry set of them brass "hold-down bolts" for when ya drop one down the hooter hole. Trust me..just do it. And bring along a coupl'a 2x4's..some 2x4 joist hanger brackets and a 6ft. chunk'a 1x4 just in case. And lot'sa drywall screws from 1 1/2in. to 3 inchers! And a sawzall..a hacksaw...a jig-saw and a circular saw. And a good pair of saw-horses. And if there's no shut-off valve.....one of those to fit yer incoming water line and a flexible line to connect the incoming line/shut-off valve to the toilet. And a big roll of Brawny paper towels! A few friends and a case of beer on ice is always an excellent asset. No..you won't do this in "an hour or so." It will take ALL day and then some IF God smiles on you! If The ++++Fairy is present..and waves her wand..it could take weeks! Trust me my friend..been there..done that. The simple act of replacing a toilet might/has turned out to be gutting an entire bathroom...and starting from the under-belly and working my way up to the ceiling. JMHO of course...Audie...friend of The Fairy....! ;)

Posted: Thu Nov 13, 2008 12:40 pm
by Brenda OH reregister
https://www.mobilehomerepair.com/phpbb/v ... ght=flange

this is the link to a post that Audie put up and JD answered with a great diagram of how to frame out the joists etc for repairing the floor around an existing toilet flange.

I used it as a starting point for a floor I fixed. only thing was, I had the vanity at the side of the floor, and had to split the flooring in the opposite direction from the picture to be able to slide it under the existing flange. I also ended up making an additional cut in the flooring, making it three pieces, but since I had plenty of joists to screw to , it all worked well.

I especially found helpful the idea of checking to see if the center of the flange is 12 inches out from the back wall a time saver. This measurement was checked to see if a regular toilet could be used to replace the old one that was a mobile home toilet that had a plastic tank on it. (I still am amazed at the speciality stuff you find when repairing these homes) apparently, some mh manufacturers had a smaller toilet and set the flange at 11 inches, which will cause problems with a store bought toilet, I think was the idea.

if the link did not work, search for toilet flange, joists, etc. and you should find it.

Brenda (OH)

Posted: Thu Nov 13, 2008 6:28 pm
by blluebear
Thank you everyone for the fast feedback!!

Jim ... I can understand about having all of the small parts that I might need for the project. For me to drive to town, get the parts and return is about an hour and a half (if you don't get sidetracked by something else).

Oldfart ... I would love to hear the long version! You sound very detail minded as I try to be. Alot of the items you mentioned, I have around the house. Those that I do not, I will get. If I was repairing it in a site built, I would know exactly what to do. I am learning about the MH repairs. Please keep the fairy away from my place when I embark on this repair. :)

Brenda ... thank you for the link. I had found it once before, but could not find it when I looked last night. I LIKE pictures, helps me visualize what people are talking about. The toilet I want to buy has a 12" rough in. If the center of the flange is to the center of the hold down bolt ... then mine measures 13 1/8" from the back wall.

My toilet is in kind of a cubby in the bathroom measuring 30 1/8 X 28 1/8". On the right side is the heater accessed from the hallway and on the left is a closet for the second bedroom.

I will try and get my wife to take ALOT of pics so that they can be posted on the site for future reference.

Question time:
Is the flange the same as a site built or is it a special one for MHs?

How do I tell the difference between Schedule 30 and 40?

RE: Toilet flange

Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2008 10:57 am
by oldfart
EGADS!! Bear..try this. Lay a carpeneters square against the back wall behind the existing toilet and tell me....is it really 13+ inches from the back wall to the hold-down bolts of the existing toilet? If it is..you have a problem. Any standard toilet (12in. to center of flange) is going to give ya fits. What happens is the tank is going to be over an inch away from the wall and it's gonn'a flop around every time ye sit down and lean against it. Eventually it'll crack or leak profuselly! There is a way around this however! :) It ain't puddy... but you can attach a piece of lumber to the wall behind the toilet tank to give it (the tank) a solid place to rest against. A piece of 2x4 might work...double-check yer measurements. Plane or sand it down as needed. And keep it (the board) below the tank lid!! Otherwise the lid won't fit correct on the tank. It doesn't have to be full-width...just wide enough to keep the tank from flopping back 1 1/8 inch. A 12in. long/wide piece would do it. Now, how to tell sch. 40 from sch30 pipe. Bear, the easiest way is to look for the information printed on the pipe when you rip out the floor. Or crawl under the home and try to find some writing stamped on the pipe where it exits the underbelly before you begin the job. Home Depot, Menards and Lowes should all have adapters to accomadate any situations. And don't be surprised if the flange is more than just a simple toilet flange! Mine had 2 incoming pipes just below floor level! One for the kitchen sink/tub/bathroom sink and the other for washing machine drain... and that was also the vent to the roof! Like I said..it's a box'a chocklates! :) Audie..the Oldfart!

RE: Toilet flange

Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2008 11:59 am
by Robert
One of those small hand held wet/dry vacs works excellent for removing water and does away with needing a sponge.

Fernco waxless toilet seals removes the messy wax problems.


Take care and best wishes,
Robert

Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2008 6:18 pm
by Jim from Canada
I used the waxless toilet seals and never had a problem. They are great when you have to take the toilet off the flange a second time too lol.

Jim

RE: Toilet flange

Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2008 6:59 pm
by blluebear
I stand corrected. Just laid a carpenters square against the back wall (just above the base moulding) and the measurements came back as 11 1/2 on one side and 11 3/8 on the other. Mental note to self ... don't always rely on a tape measure!

Audie ... you not helping and helping in the same breath. :) I really need all of the information but I don't have all the time in the world to convert all the piping. I have one pooper and two females in the house.

Sounds like I'm just gunna have to make all of the preparations that I can, wait for a three day weekend and dive in! One way or the other, I WILL get it fixed.

Posted: Sun Nov 16, 2008 3:45 am
by yourpcguy73
do it monday when there at work.
they sell flange movers im not sure how far they move it tho.
is a flange thats angled back to give you more room.
i had to redo all of my plumbing because it was too close to the wall and i had a nice new house toilet to put in.
all of the pluming that you have in your MH goes to your toilet btw
so there alot of moving if you have to move the flange.
i had my floor ripped up so it was ez for me to do.
some of the flanges unscrew too.
unscrew it cut the floor out put some more 2x4 up and cut a new piece.