Plumber San Diego: Types and Styles of Toilets

Types and Styles of Toilets

January 23, 2020 2pm Above and Beyond

In 1840, indoor plumbing swept the British Isles and became one of the best innovations since the agricultural revolution. Now, we no longer had to leave the house to get water or go to the restroom. Instead, we could just go indoors. Now, indoor bathrooms had been in style for some time, as Hampton Court was equipped with an impressive array of indoor toilets. There was even one in the waiting room where Henry VIII would make his courtiers wait for him to rise and start petitioning him with requests. Toilets have come very far since then, and thankfully, they’re nothing close to the fixtures in Hampton’s Court water closets any longer. In fact, there’s quite a variety of toilets available, although, perhaps you wouldn’t know it. After all, a toilet is a toilet. Perhaps you’re familiar with the difference between a residential and industrial toilet, but past that, it’s understandable for your knowledge on the subject to be limited. Don’t fret, if you’re shopping for a new toilet, Above and Beyond is here to introduce you to your options and help you determine what will fit your needs best.

One-Piece Toilets

There are two popular types of toilets and if you pay attention, you’ve likely seen them in multiple different settings. A one-piece toilet is self-explanatory, it’s a toilet that’s only one piece. The tank, bowl, piping underneath and all the rest of the components are connected. One-piece toilets are known for how easy they are to clean, how sleek they look and how simple they are to install. If you install it with the same flushing system as a two-piece toilet, you’ll find that they use the same amount of water. They tend to be well-suited to smaller bathrooms, as they’re more compact and sit closer to the ground. This helps the space feel larger and prevents the toilet from becoming the most permanent and dominating fixture in a room.

Two-Piece Toilets

The other most common type of toilet, as we stated before, is the two-piece toilet. It’s by far the most common type of toilet in the U.S. and is defined by its separate tank and bowl construction. The main downside to a two-piece toilet set is that they’re hard to install simply because of the size and weight of them. They’re also known to be moderately more difficult to clean than their one-piece counterparts. However, they’re excellent for people who are on the taller side, as the seat is at a higher height and will sit more comfortably for people with more height than others. They’re also the least expensive model of toilet available, as they’re the most common and have been around for the longest amount of time. Unlike one-piece toilets, two-piece toilets are easy to repair. You can fix and replace almost every single part in a two-piece toilet, where that is very difficult to do in a one-piece.

Wall Hung Toilets

If you don’t have enough room for a one-piece toilet, a wall hung toilet is an excellent alternative. You’ll know them because they’re mounted on the wall and have no visible tank, as the tank is within the wall. All you’ll see is the bowl and the flush plate, rather than the tank in the back with them. They’re known for their very modern design and can be placed nearly anywhere in a bathroom as long as they’re close to a water source of some kind. This alleviates the largest issue of toilet installation: where to put it. These toilets are known for making it much easier to do a bathroom redesign using them because they conserve so much space. They offer far more versatility than other toilets, but for that reason, they are more expensive than other toilets. They often require more repairs and are more complex to install, as the tank has to go into the wall, which is more of a renovation than a simple installation. For every small repair on the toilet to be done, you’ll need to invest in a professional plumber to complete the project. This can add up over the years and make this toilet cost far more than expected.

Smart Toilets

Since everything is becoming some form of a smart home appliance at the moment, it makes sense that toilets should join the fray. Smart toilets can be customized in a similar way to how everything with the word “smart” tacked in front of it can be customized. You can choose to have heated seats to make the toilet more comfortable to sit on. You can get automatic flushers, and enhance the functionality of the toilet in ways you likely haven’t even thought of. There are slow close lids, motion-activated bowl lighting, bidets, hands-free flushing mechanisms, self-cleaning toilet bowls, dual flush systems, deodorizing seat, and even little warm air dryers. You can make sitting on a toilet a much more enjoyable experience, but of course, that benefit comes with a price tag and potentially more complex repair costs as the previously mentioned models also do.

Contact Above and Beyond in San Diego Now

If you’re looking for a new toilet or a reliable toilet repair company, you’ve found it. We specialize in comprehensive plumbing and drain maintenance and we’re always happy to lend a bit of expertise if you’re unsure about how to proceed. We can offer buying support, repair advice and more. Reach out to us if you’re curious about the cost and details of toilet installation or maintenance today.