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Toilet Flange Dilemma (W/ Pics)

14K views 5 replies 3 participants last post by  oh'mike 
#1 ·
Plumbing has never been my strong point. I have a recently tiled bathroom which has a flange that seems to be installed in the wrong direction. I took the old toilet off before the tile job and went in yeaterday to put a new toilet in. That is when I noticed that the holes for the closet bolts on the toilet base did not line up with the holes on the flange. Then it hit me, the flange looks like its sideways! The old toilet was installed sideways on the flange! Any way to fix this with out replacing the whole flange?
 

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#5 ·
I ended up putting a super ring down on top of the old flange and attached it the best I could with some Tapcon screws (there was some eroded concrete around the piping) . Toilet is now sitting stable and appears to be working as advertised. Time will tell, but if I have any trouble I plan on popping up some tile and exploring whether or not a straight flange is possible. Thanks for the advice!
 
#2 · (Edited)
What you've got there is an offset flange. It was used most likely because there's a joist under the floor where the center of the toilet should be/wants to be (in order to be centered between the walls).

The left side of the flange seems to have a place to "hook" the head of a closet bolt to secure that left side. And, of course, you've got the groove to use on the right side. Just remember, though...that flange is only plastic (PVC) - so don't over-tighten the closet bolts.

But the bigger problem you're going to have is that the flange is supposed to sit on top of the finished flooring. You're going to have to shim it up underneath the rim of the flange somehow, or build-up the height of the flange to the proper elevation.

Whenever I do a bathroom remodel, I always cut off the old flange before the durock and tile goes in, then install a new flange later. The flange also must be secured to the floor, btw...
 
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