Boca Raton, FL · Member since 2018 · 18 posts · 6 votes
Hi everyone, anyone recommend a good brand for toilets. I'm a landlord of a 2/2 condo that I've owned for almost 20 years
and it's time I to replace both toilets. I spoke with a handyman a friend recommended to install it. Also how much is average install cost I should pay? But when I went to the local HomeDpt, there are so many toilet brands I simply can't tell which is a good one to buy in the 100 to 200 dollar range? I do know I want white and elongated. Any suggestions are highly appreciated.
If you want a cheap toilet that still has quaility and is easy to work on buy a gerber. You won't get Gerber at a box store but its much better quality than the crap that they sell in box stores.
Kohler is pretty good across the whole line. If you want something a little nicer Toto makes some toilets that have a nice flush and are mid range. American standard isnt horrible either just not my first choice of brand.
I'm a plumber and install countless toilets a year. For price to quaility I have the least amount of issues with Gerber.
Coming from a college student who rented an older house with 10 others... don’t skimp on the toilet. Cheap ones clog a lot and it’s not pretty (especially if you have 10 college guys in the house). Will save you future headaches woth plumbers and what not. My father has been a contractor his entire life and I have always helped him out. American standard, Kohler, and check out TOTO. These seem to be the most popular. Best of luck!!
Thank you everyone. To @Nick Gargiulo that's pretty funny! Thankfully, my tenants are a couple with two lovely little girls. They've been my tenants now for 6 years. Best tenants! Have a great Saturday :)
Toto for sure! For a while I bought American Standard Champion 4 Max (flushes golf balls), but I have had two of the tanks fail with hairline cracks. Switched to Toto a few years ago.
As a self-installer I like one-piecers. Have had many fail at the tank-to-bowl gasket, screws, screw gaskets, etc. Too easy to lift and maneuver the thing by the tank or not assemble from the box correctly.
I installed 5 Costco dual flush 1-piece Water ridge toilets last year. No issues yet, but still new.
if your rental is child-friendly, I wouldn't install taller height toilets unless in the master bath.
Elongated and slow close lids are a nice touch in mid-grade + rentals. I'm all-in for $120 for my Costco dual flush 1 piece toilet with all accessories included.
I use the ultra high efficiency Niagara toilets, the stealth model.
I live in Arizona and things like high water efficiency are big buzz words that seem to really attract more attention.
Never had a problem with the toilets. They’re more expensive but I feel like tenets appreciate all the high water efficiency fixtures and products. This sentiment may be different in states with fewer water concerns.
@Ramona Huot I worked for Home Depot for some time as the plumbing and bath supervisor at my store. I sold more Kohler Highline Arc and Cimarron's than any other toilet. Most of my contractors I sold to bought those as well and no one ever had a negative word about them. I personally never installed one, but I sold A LOT of those. Hope that helps!
I was told by a plumber that the American Standard Cadet is the way to go. It’s only $160. The box even says plumbers number one go to toilet. Most toilets have 2 inch trapway. The cadet has a 2 1/8 trapway, which significantly decreases risk for clogs. The cadet also scrubs the bowl clean with every flush, reducing mold buildup. He also said Kohler is a good brand.
He said if you buy a cheap toilet you better buy the plunger to go with it......he told us this after we already bought the aquasource Colby ($89) from Lowe’s. It clogged twice in the first week. The plumber said that it’s very hard to find replacement parts for these toilets, so when something goes bad it makes it challenging.
Do not go with the cheapest brand that equals service calls ,flippers may do this dump a problem on some one down the line . I buy middle of the road at the BIG box ,American Standard ,Kohler .
My go to toilet has been the Waterridge by American Standard dual flush from Costco. They are inexpensive and I haven't had a single issue with them in the last 5 years.
@Patrick Harrington Toto is my preference as well, you’ll see them in lots of commercial installs. And to add to what others have said: don’t cheap out on the toilet, you’ll just end up spending more in plumbing bills. And headaches.
@Ramona Huot Speaking purely from the point of view based on having just replaced all 3 toilets in my own house, I can say these new low flush toilets are horrendous. They advertise that they can flush X amount of golf balls, but what they don’t tell you is that’s if you stand there and hold the flapper open and empty all of the contents in the water tank. There are somewhat lesser known ways of increasing the amount of water that’s flushed without having to hold it open (which I ended up doing with all 3 of my American Standard toilets) but this depends on brand and they don’t advertise their ability to be customized because that usually means they’re no longer abiding by the low water requirements. At the end of the day though, it’s your toilet to flush how you want it too.
I cannot tell you how many of the $89/99 Home Depot Glacier Bay toilets I have installed in flips, rentals, customers homes, and have 2 in my own home, along with 1 Kohler. Never had a single issue with the Home Depot toilets, and my wife likes the look of them better than the $200+ kohler I installed in our master bathroom (oh wait, I’m not allowed to call it that anymore).
Asking what's the best toilet is about the same as asking what restaurant makes the best hamburger? You ask 20 people and you'll get 27 opinions.
I'll throw my two cents in, early on, most of the water saver toilets were pretty terrible. In recent years, I haven't found any toilets that don't flush well. (there's probably some out there, somewhere)
I personally use whatever I can find cheap ($100ish for complete kit) and have had 100% success.
Yes the price caught my attention at first then saw the dual flush action and was hooked to try and save on water bill. Luckily we have a base and habe never gone over that bytrying to be as conservative with water as possible.
If you want a cheap toilet that still has quaility and is easy to work on buy a gerber. You won't get Gerber at a box store but its much better quality than the crap that they sell in box stores.
Kohler is pretty good across the whole line. If you want something a little nicer Toto makes some toilets that have a nice flush and are mid range. American standard isnt horrible either just not my first choice of brand.
I'm a plumber and install countless toilets a year. For price to quaility I have the least amount of issues with Gerber.
I agree. A part of my family-owned plumbing business for 30+ years and Gerber is great for quality and price, and TOTO for a bit higher end applications but with great quality as well!