Hi all

What type of toilets do you typically get and what is your experience with top flush toilets? They were very popular a few years ago and it was getting harder to find side flush toilets. 

I know I was told that top flush toilets are more reliable and less prone to leaks because it gets rid of the flipper handle and the only point that could leak was the flapper.

Now I see side flush toilets are back and top flush is getting harder to find. Don't know why. Top flush usually has a dual flush option for 1.3/1.6 gpf and side flush is 1.3 only but I am not really concerned with the small difference in water usage. 

I can typically get glacier bay top flush for around $50 when purchasing in bulk and they seem to be working fine so I haven't seen the need to purchase pricier toilets that claim to flush better.

Below is pictures for reference.

With rentals, we seek to buy durable toilets that are priced correctly.  Most of these are side flushes.

I find repairing toilets with side flushes is generally easier.

I would buy the product which are less expensive, and have good reviews. 

I always go with the most durable and cheapest building materials I can find. Be it tiles, laminate wood floors, toilets or light fixtures. And I buy in bulk. Every apt uses the same stuff. That way when a tenent breaks something, it's very easy to replace or fix. I also generally buy product that us easy to sourse for replacement parts, so when there is an issue I can just head to home depot and get a part to fix quickly.

Either is fine as long as the unit is a quality unit overall.  

Side is more common and provides more flat surface for tenant's bath stuff.

Top is easier to keep clean/disinfect. Also neat is the half flush/full flush options.

I would go with the top flush for the water saving feature.