Modern housing is simply impossible to imagine without plumbing equipment such as a toilet. Like any household item, it tends to age and fail, so sooner or later every homeowner is faced with the need to replace it.
Since the fastening of the toilet to the floor should be carried out in strict accordance with certain rules, many owners do not dare to undertake such work and prefer to entrust the matter to professionals whose services are not cheap.
In fact, this process does not require any special knowledge, and even a beginner can afford it. But how to properly perform such work with your own hands, and what features this procedure has, we will consider in the article.
Fixing Methods
Modern toilets have several varieties. Some are attached to the floor, others to the back wall of the room. The location of the barrel, the shape of the bowl and the way the water drains may also differ.
It will be very difficult to talk about each type in detail, so we will consider the most popular option - a toilet bowl compact. It is this type that is most often found today in apartments and various public places, which means that issues relating to its installation are as urgent as possible.
You should immediately pay attention to the fact that the toilet is attached to the floor in several ways, which differ in the method of fixing the ceramic product. Namely:
• using a standard mounting kit (which comes with the kit);
• on glue;
• on taffeta;
• on cement.
The choice of one or another option depends on the base material on which the installation of plumbing is planned . But the preparatory work is the same in all cases.
Before installing the toilet, you must correctly assemble the tank (strictly following the instructions) and install it in the right place. After making sure that the water and sewer pipes are correctly connected, you can proceed directly to the installation of the toilet.
Mounting with standard fasteners: necessary materials and tools
To fix the toilet to the floor on a tile or other flat and strong base, you can use the standard set of fasteners. This method can only be used if there are no large differences and irregularities on the floor surface.
This method is considered the simplest, but it is recommended to use it only for fixing light structures, since its reliability is not very high.
The standard toilet mount kit includes the following items:
• four (or two) thick and long self-tapping screws with turnkey heads;
• plastic dowels of the appropriate size;
• plastic washers;
• decorative caps.
How to use this set - everyone will guess. However, there are still some subtleties in this method of fixing a ceramic product. Let's take a closer look at how the toilet is attached to the floor in this case. Let's start with the preparation of the tool.
Tools and materials
Before you start fixing the toilet to the floor on the tile, make sure that you have all the right tools and materials at hand. Namely:
• a perforator with a drill of the appropriate size (depending on the diameter of the dowels);
• drill;
• drill for ceramic tiles (1-2 mm more than a drill);
• 0.5-1 kg of cement;
• silicone sealant;
• plastic corrugation (for connection to a sewer pipe) ;
• pliers, adjustable wrench, screwdriver.
Toilet installation
The technology of mounting the toilet with self-tapping screws implies the following work:
1. The product is installed in a constant place and holes for bolts are marked.
2. Drill holes in the tile with a special drill. Then, using a drill, they are deepened to the length of the plastic dowel.
3. After making sure that the fasteners are drilled without displacement, dowels are driven into them.
4. The sewer hole is cleaned of debris, smeared with silicone, and the corrugation is inserted into it.
This is necessary so that unpleasant odors from the pipe do not leak into the room. In addition, the sealing gum may dry out over time, and then water will begin to ooze at the junction of the pipes.
5. Next, seal the toilet outlet and pull the corrugation over it.
6. Insert fasteners for the toilet into the holes. The product is attracted to the base until it becomes as stable and stationary as possible.
7. A pre-prepared cement mortar (soft clay consistency) fills all the gaps between the tile and the toilet. The absence of gaps will protect the product from cracking and premature failure.
8. Install the tank. A special gasket is placed on the toilet shelf, a ceramic tank is installed and tightened with bolts.
Points to Watch
During the installation of the toilet, tiles cannot be drilled with a perforator working in shock mode. This will inevitably lead to cracks on the tile. Work is carried out using a special drill at low speeds. Both tile and drill periodically need to be moistened with water. This will help prevent overheating of the tile and prevent it from cracking.
The fixing screw should be screwed in very carefully. In order not to split the toilet bowl, the bolts are tightened evenly, no more than half a turn in one movement of the hand.
Do not pull the product to the floor without plastic washers. Their absence will lead to the formation of chips or a complete split of the toilet.
Glue mounting
Fixing the toilet to the floor with glue or cement is considered safer and easier, but in this case, the subsequent dismantling of the earthenware product will be very difficult. If there is a need to eliminate complex blockages in the sewer pipe or simply to change the layout of the bathroom, it will be impossible to quickly and discreetly.
The use of glue requires careful preparation of the substrate. All dirt and dust must be removed from the floor. If the toilet is installed on a tile, it should be cleaned (to roughen) and treat both surfaces (toilet and tile) with a degreasing agent or acetone.
As an adhesive, it is recommended to use a two-component epoxy resin. This composition has been tested for years and can guarantee the most durable fixation of the product.
The prepared mass is applied to the inner side of the toilet bowl legs (with a layer of about 4 mm). The product is installed in its permanent place, pressed tightly and left for at least 12 hours. After the final hardening of the glue, they begin to connect the toilet.
Cement Installation
Consider another alternative method by which you can install floor toilets. Reviews of experts say that if there is no suitable glue at hand, the earthenware can be installed using cement mortar.
To do this, you will need 3-5 kg of cement, sand and a small container. Work is performed in the following order:
• The floor is cleaned of debris. If the toilet will be installed on the tile, a notch is made in it.
• Cement mortar is mixed. If there is sand, both components are taken in a ratio of 1: 1, if there is no sand, you can do only with cement.
• The cement mass is laid out on the floor, and a toilet bowl is placed on top of it. The product is pressed tightly to the floor.
• Surplus cement covers the outlet of the toilet and the place where it joins the cast-iron pipe. If the sewer pipe is made of plastic, use a cuff and silicone sealant.
Taffeta Mounting
This toilet installation method is most often used in rooms with wooden floors. As a taffeta, a lining made of durable varieties of wood is used, which is mounted between the floors and the earthenware product.
The thickness of the substrate should be between 28-32 mm. To taffeta quickly did not become worthless under the influence of dampness, it is impregnated with drying oil. In construction stores you can buy a finished product. Most often on sale you can find taffeta from a thick oak board or from rubber.
The substrate is fixed to the base with thick screws or glue. An anchor can be attached to the rear of the lining for maximum reliability. You can also drive a few nails in a checkerboard pattern. The tips of the nails should protrude at least 3 centimeters.
A niche for installing the toilet is poured with concrete and a wooden lining is installed there so that it is on the same level with the floors.
A toilet is placed on a fixed substrate. It is pulled together with the base using standard fixing bolts, in the way that we described at the beginning of this article.
The cost of work
In conclusion, I would like to touch on the financial component of this issue. Indeed, for many, repair work seems too troublesome and tedious to do, so they prefer to trust this business to true professionals. In this case, all that needs to be done is to find a company that provides services such as installing a toilet. The price for the work of experienced craftsmen depends on the methods of fixing plumbing.
Most companies install toilet bowls only using standard fasteners. The cost of this service (depending on the city of residence) starts from 1200 rubles and reaches 3000 rubles.
Novice private masters can offer a cheaper price tag, but in this case the quality of the work will be in question. Therefore, if you can not afford such expenses, the best solution would be to install a toilet yourself. The price for the work in this case will be absent, and the purchase of the necessary materials will not require large expenditures from you.
We hope that in this article you have found all the answers to your questions. Quick and easy repair for you!