Adventures With Wax Rings
Last night we replaced the toilet. It was a bit of an adventure. The actual concept is not really hard; you remove the old toilet, scrape off the old wax ring, stand up the closet bolts, put a new wax ring on the new toilet, flip it over, center it over the soil pipe, and pop it over the closet bolts.
The PROCESS is challenging though because you're trying to maneuver a heavy toilet base, get it centered over the soil pipe, get the wax ring seated, AND do this all without tipping over the closet bolts, which are just standing there waiting to fall over.
As Mom says education is expensive and so we went through 3 wax rings before we got it right. Fortunately, wax rings are only $3. We eventually got it done by having the mister hover over the soil pipe with the toilet base, while I laid on the floor holding the closet bolts upright and getting them centered under the holes in the base, and making sure the wax ring was centered on the soil pipe---I got the glamour job this time. We must have made quite a picture.
Once it was on, however, we attached the tank, hooked up the water, and took an inaugural whiz without issue. I went down to check this morning and found no drips or anything so fingers crossed it remains that way!
Tonight I am installing the light fixture and then hopefully the vanity and sink. I truly cannot wait to see it done, it will be so beautiful. It looks so different already. It is actually pleasant and cool and breezy-looking, not a dark, cavelike hole!
We did have some funny hijinks with the very nice and helpful man at the Home Depot. It's hit or miss at the HD. As a woman (who looks like a 17 yo), I get a range of responses to my asking questions about home improvement. Some of the guys that work there are more than happy to help me, treat me like I am competent, explain things to me in language I can understand and not act like they can't wait to get away from me. Other times I get kind of a grudging answer, like they're trying to shut me up so they can get away and help other men instead of this ditzy girl. Over the weekend I asked a question and the guy told the answer to my husband. I must have been working on my ventriloquy skills without even realizing it--he must have just thought that high girly secretary voice came out of my 6 foot tall HUSBAND!
However, this time we got real, good help. The man patiently explained the price differences in toilets, made sure we had all the stuff we needed, and made recommendations without being pushy. He even told us about a sale at the Menards so we could have them price match.
While we were looking one of my main concerns was covering the 'footprint' of the old toilet. I had figured the previous owners, being the jackasses they were, didn't take off the toilet to put down the floor. So I was looking for one with a larger footprint than the old one to cover the bare spot on the floor. One toilet had a HUGE footprint but it was $250. I asked the man what made it different than the $100 one we were looking at, because it looked like it would cover the hole well. He laughed and said "I wouldn't buy a $250 toilet to cover a hole in the floor, this is a toilet you make a STATEMENT with!" A statement with a toilet, huh? Mr. Knittykat says the only statement he makes with toilets is "I don't want poop in my house."
As it turned out, I was utterly surprised when I picked up the old toilet and found they HAD done the floor under the toilet. A little scrubbing and it was good as new. We still liked the toilet we selected (the $100 one; our statement is that $250 is too much for a powder room!) so we still went with that, and it covered the little line on the floor where the old one sat.
So that was my adventurous evening. Hopefully the vanity/sink installation will be....somewhat less adventurous ;-)
The PROCESS is challenging though because you're trying to maneuver a heavy toilet base, get it centered over the soil pipe, get the wax ring seated, AND do this all without tipping over the closet bolts, which are just standing there waiting to fall over.
As Mom says education is expensive and so we went through 3 wax rings before we got it right. Fortunately, wax rings are only $3. We eventually got it done by having the mister hover over the soil pipe with the toilet base, while I laid on the floor holding the closet bolts upright and getting them centered under the holes in the base, and making sure the wax ring was centered on the soil pipe---I got the glamour job this time. We must have made quite a picture.
Once it was on, however, we attached the tank, hooked up the water, and took an inaugural whiz without issue. I went down to check this morning and found no drips or anything so fingers crossed it remains that way!
Tonight I am installing the light fixture and then hopefully the vanity and sink. I truly cannot wait to see it done, it will be so beautiful. It looks so different already. It is actually pleasant and cool and breezy-looking, not a dark, cavelike hole!
We did have some funny hijinks with the very nice and helpful man at the Home Depot. It's hit or miss at the HD. As a woman (who looks like a 17 yo), I get a range of responses to my asking questions about home improvement. Some of the guys that work there are more than happy to help me, treat me like I am competent, explain things to me in language I can understand and not act like they can't wait to get away from me. Other times I get kind of a grudging answer, like they're trying to shut me up so they can get away and help other men instead of this ditzy girl. Over the weekend I asked a question and the guy told the answer to my husband. I must have been working on my ventriloquy skills without even realizing it--he must have just thought that high girly secretary voice came out of my 6 foot tall HUSBAND!
However, this time we got real, good help. The man patiently explained the price differences in toilets, made sure we had all the stuff we needed, and made recommendations without being pushy. He even told us about a sale at the Menards so we could have them price match.
While we were looking one of my main concerns was covering the 'footprint' of the old toilet. I had figured the previous owners, being the jackasses they were, didn't take off the toilet to put down the floor. So I was looking for one with a larger footprint than the old one to cover the bare spot on the floor. One toilet had a HUGE footprint but it was $250. I asked the man what made it different than the $100 one we were looking at, because it looked like it would cover the hole well. He laughed and said "I wouldn't buy a $250 toilet to cover a hole in the floor, this is a toilet you make a STATEMENT with!" A statement with a toilet, huh? Mr. Knittykat says the only statement he makes with toilets is "I don't want poop in my house."
As it turned out, I was utterly surprised when I picked up the old toilet and found they HAD done the floor under the toilet. A little scrubbing and it was good as new. We still liked the toilet we selected (the $100 one; our statement is that $250 is too much for a powder room!) so we still went with that, and it covered the little line on the floor where the old one sat.
So that was my adventurous evening. Hopefully the vanity/sink installation will be....somewhat less adventurous ;-)
posted by knittykat @ 7:48 AM
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