Children in the household?

Is the basement toilet the same model as used in other parts of the house? Low flow toilets in particular can be cantankerous, and vary widely in performance. I'm in a relatively new house and have 2 toilets that just aren't dependable. I've replaced them with high quality toilets (Toto brand), and haven't had them clog once.

I agree with kudzu9. In fact I did what he did...bought a Toto Drake. I think its a toilet problem not a location problem. How old is the problem toilet? Early 90's?

I believe the toilet is the original (house built in the 70's), everything inside the tank looked pretty old when I rebuilt it and the house was rehabed just before I moved in. After talking to my neighbor some more he said the house was vacant for about 5 years, but I would think after two years any plumbing bugs would have worked themselves out. No kids yet. I got the flapper inside adjusted to the max amount of flush pressure according to the instructions set on 9. Does Lowe's or Homedepot sell the Toto brand toilet??

Upstairs toilet is an American Standard with 1.6lpf/1.6gpf underneath it. Whatever that means and downstairs toilet is also an American Standard with PLEBE underneath it.

?????

Toto is not available at Lowes or HD, but American Standard makes a know off of the Drake. Its called a Cadet 3. Make sure its the Cadet 3. Its alot cheaper and sounds like it works just as good.......WHOOOOSH!!!!

Time, again, for Pinoke to assert that there is no such thing as a bad toilet. Apologies to Father Flanagan. While there are some premium fixtures, the least of them is still good. When a toilet performs as Âdoorguy describes, the solution is not to put in a duck-dog (Toto Drake.) That is a good product for two reasons:
1. There is no such thing as a bad toilet; and
2. Some are better than others.

OP thinks he rebuilt the toilet. But like most people he overlooked the most critical part of the flushing action: the bowl rim outlets. Most normal people  and, I am not one of them  never realize that the rim is perforated with any number of holes, which, like a showerhead, distribute the available water.

The most-basic toilet flushes entirely because the tank contents flow into the rim and both rinse the bowl and provide flush volume. When the rate of flow is slowed by clogged rim holes, the flush fails to occur.

There are scadzillions of toilets in the world. Some are so old that they cannot be dated by their owners. But because clean water conditions allow them to operate like new they simply work.

Any fixture that used to work can be made to work like new. The problem is you need to get upside down and work on the rim holes. (In case you wondered: thatÂs why these things are affectionately referred to as a Âhead. At sea, they arenÂt allowed to not work. Junior sailors are said to have to stand on their head to do their work.)

Nose Grows

Thanks guys,

I will look into seeing what the bowl rim looks like. ( Not looking forward to it, I know what has been in there and it is not good )

I will also look into the newer toilets and see what the wife thinks.

Again thank you guys I have learned a great deal about toilets here in the past couple of days.

Once a problem...always a problem. Quit dinkin around and throw it out. Toto Drake...WHOOSH....all gone...no more problems!

Learning is good, ZeroSix. I think you are overlooking that the rim holes are frequently being drained, which has the effect of making them lots cleaner than you might expect. The issue is that they can become partially clogged with both minerals and water-borne organic growth (slime.)

Using a simple brush, with the aid of a mirror will allow a thorough cleaning of the multiple passages. The combined effect of clearing the holes will have a great effect on the flow rate of the flush water.

I like this one, "I will also look into the newer toilets and see what the wife thinks." It might depend on where those toilets are. You could end up in court.

Which reminds me. Have you ever been in the bath fixtures department of a store and seen people shopping for toilets? And they always look into the depths of the bowl, lifting a cover, if necessary? What do you suppose they are looking for?

Maybe they know other people are watching and they just want to demonstrate some Âexpertise. After all itÂs the worst place to look like a complete ass.

Pinoke

If your toilet flushes fine when empty, and clogs when you have "material" in it. I would say you have either a partial obstruction in the trap (e.g. a small armyman) or you have a cheap builders grade toilet with no glazing in the trap.

I'd pull the toilet and check the trap. If I didn't find anything I'd replace the toilet with an AS C3 or TD. I proudly flush my TDs with confidence after years of experiencing cheap builders grade toilets.

The clogged rim holes are a reality and do cause problems. Testing for that problem is really easy. A bucket of water poured directly into the bowl is the test. If it "flushes" well that way, then the water is not flowing properly from the tank- and clogged rim holes is one possible cause. If pouring the bucket of water into the bowl does not flush properly, clogged rim holes is not the primary cause of the problem at the moment. The problem would be a clogged toilet trapway or drain.