I'm installing a new toilet on a basement floor. I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete floor.
I can remove small amounts of the concrete with a Dremmel tool. Is
there an easier way than trial-and-error to determine the high points?
How is this usually done? I'm guessing that this rocking has to be
eliminated before I can proceed with the install? TIA

Phisherman wrote:

I'm installing a new toilet on a basement floor. I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete floor.
I can remove small amounts of the concrete with a Dremmel tool. Is
there an easier way than trial-and-error to determine the high points?
How is this usually done? I'm guessing that this rocking has to be
eliminated before I can proceed with the install? TIA

I'm sure there are a lot of ways to level it, but personally I'd cut a
gasket for it from a roll of sheet gasket material you can get at an
auto parts store. If the out of level is slight as you indicate it
should accommodate it. If there is really a high spot you will need to
knock it down and an angle grinder with a masonry wheel will be 10,000X
faster than a dremel.

On Oct 13, 8:56*am, Phisherman wrote:
I'm installing *a new toilet on a basement floor. *I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. * When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete floor.
I can remove small amounts of the concrete with a Dremmel tool. *Is
there an easier way than trial-and-error to determine the high points?
How is this usually done? * I'm guessing that this rocking has to be
eliminated before I can proceed with the install? *TIA

Go to the hardware store and ask for white toilet shims. Lowe's
usually has them.

On Oct 13, 9:24*am, mike wrote:
On Oct 13, 8:56*am, Phisherman wrote:

I'm installing *a new toilet on a basement floor. *I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. * When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete floor..
I can remove small amounts of the concrete with a Dremmel tool. *Is
there an easier way than trial-and-error to determine the high points?
How is this usually done? * I'm guessing that this rocking has to be
eliminated before I can proceed with the install? *TIA

Go to the hardware store and ask for white toilet shims. *Lowe's
usually has them.

For example:
http://www.google.com/products?q=toilet+shims&hl=en

To find the high spots use a straightedge on the floor and mark where it
hits. Another method uses old fashioned carbon paper, carbon side down on
the floor and lower the toilet and twist and jiggle it to leave marks on the
high spots. It will take several attempts to find all the high spots. Also
one can cover the entire toilet bottom with tape and lay some thinset mortar
on the floor. Press the toilet into the thinset, and clean up what squeezes
out. Let it set overnight before moving the toilet. Then do the final
install with the seal and bolts. The tape will prevent the thinset from
bonding the toilet permanently to the floor.


"Phisherman" wrote in message
...
I'm installing a new toilet on a basement floor. I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete floor.
I can remove small amounts of the concrete with a Dremmel tool. Is
there an easier way than trial-and-error to determine the high points?
How is this usually done? I'm guessing that this rocking has to be
eliminated before I can proceed with the install? TIA

On Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:04:34 -0500, Pete C. wrote:


Phisherman wrote:

I'm installing a new toilet on a basement floor. I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete floor.
I can remove small amounts of the concrete with a Dremmel tool. Is
there an easier way than trial-and-error to determine the high points?
How is this usually done? I'm guessing that this rocking has to be
eliminated before I can proceed with the install? TIA

I'm sure there are a lot of ways to level it, but personally I'd cut a
gasket for it from a roll of sheet gasket material you can get at an
auto parts store. If the out of level is slight as you indicate it
should accommodate it. If there is really a high spot you will need to
knock it down and an angle grinder with a masonry wheel will be 10,000X
faster than a dremel.

I would dry fit it leaving the wax ring off and a rag in the drain to keep
sewer gas out. Mount bowl and put wooden wedges under edge of bowl and
level the toilet. Put the nuts on the flange bolts finger tight. Get grout
and pack it around the base of the bowl and around wedges. Let grout dry
over night. Remove bowl, install wax ring, remove leveling wedges,
remove rag in drain, reinstall bowl. Bolt down and grout in holes left
where wedges were.

The grout forms a level base for the toilet.

On Oct 13, 12:35*pm, RLM wrote:
On Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:04:34 -0500, Pete C. wrote:

Phisherman wrote:

I'm installing *a new toilet on a basement floor. *I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. * When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete floor.

On Oct 13, 9:30*am, "EXT" wrote:

install with the seal and bolts. The tape will prevent the thinset from
bonding the toilet permanently to the floor.


If I was looking to buy a house and I saw that somone had thinset/
mortar/grout under the toilet, I'd knock $1000 off the price of the
house or look at another house.

On Mon, 13 Oct 2008 09:40:09 -0700, beecrofter wrote:

On Oct 13, 12:35Â*pm, RLM wrote:
On Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:04:34 -0500, Pete C. wrote:

Phisherman wrote:

I'm installing Â*a new toilet on a basement floor. Â*I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. Â* When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete floor.
I can remove small amounts of the concrete with a Dremmel tool. Â*Is
there an easier way than trial-and-error to determine the high points?
How is this usually done? Â* I'm guessing that this rocking has to be
eliminated before I can proceed with the install? Â*TIA

I'm sure there are a lot of ways to level it, but personally I'd cut a
gasket for it from a roll of sheet gasket material you can get at an
auto parts store. If the out of level is slight as you indicate it
should accommodate it. If there is really a high spot you will need to
knock it down and an angle grinder with a masonry wheel will be 10,000X
faster than a dremel.

I would dry fit it leaving the wax ring off and a rag in the drain to keep
sewer gas out. Mount bowl and put wooden wedges under edge of bowl and
level the toilet. Put the nuts on the flange bolts finger tight. Get grout
and pack it around the base of the bowl and around wedges. Let grout dry
over night. Remove bowl, install wax ring, remove leveling wedges,
remove rag in drain, reinstall bowl. Bolt down and grout in holes left
where wedges were.

The grout forms a level base for the toilet.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Put a piece of saran wrap on the toilet base lest you cement it to the
floor

You're right! I should proof read better. Thanks.

"mike" wrote in message
...
On Oct 13, 9:30 am, "EXT" wrote:

install with the seal and bolts. The tape will prevent the thinset from
bonding the toilet permanently to the floor.


If I was looking to buy a house and I saw that somone had thinset/
mortar/grout under the toilet, I'd knock $1000 off the price of the
house or look at another house.

When buying a house a $1000.00 is nothing, unless you live somewhere real
cheap where it can make or break a deal. Read the original post, he is
installing a basement toilet on top or rough concrete. I wouldn't want that
either for myself. But, adding a layer of thinset under the toilet and
cleaning up the edges would not look any worse than any other part of the
concrete floor. The trick is to avoid bonding the toilet to the floor and
doing a neat cleanup around the toilet. If you do that you would never know
there was a thin leveling layer of thinset under the toilet.

On Mon, 13 Oct 2008 09:41:38 -0700, mike wrote:

On Oct 13, 9:30Â*am, "EXT" wrote:

install with the seal and bolts. The tape will prevent the thinset from
bonding the toilet permanently to the floor.


If I was looking to buy a house and I saw that somone had thinset/
mortar/grout under the toilet, I'd knock $1000 off the price of the
house or look at another house.

I have ceramic tile floors that the toilets are set this way with the
same color grout.

I would show you the door and tell you to look further down the road.

On Oct 13, 10:04*am, "EXT" wrote:
"mike" wrote in message

...
On Oct 13, 9:30 am, "EXT" wrote:

install with the seal and bolts. The tape will prevent the thinset from
bonding the toilet permanently to the floor.

If I was looking to buy a house and I saw that somone had thinset/
mortar/grout under the toilet, I'd knock $1000 off the price of the
house or look at another house.

When buying a house a $1000.00 is nothing, unless you live somewhere real

Great. Gimme $1000.

On Oct 13, 1:04*pm, "EXT" wrote:
"mike" wrote in message

...
On Oct 13, 9:30 am, "EXT" wrote:

install with the seal and bolts. The tape will prevent the thinset from
bonding the toilet permanently to the floor.

If I was looking to buy a house and I saw that somone had thinset/
mortar/grout under the toilet, I'd knock $1000 off the price of the
house or look at another house.

When buying a house a $1000.00 is nothing, unless you live somewhere real
cheap where it can make or break a deal. Read the original post, he is
installing a basement toilet on top or rough concrete. I wouldn't want that
either for myself. But, adding a layer of thinset under the toilet and
cleaning up the edges would not look any worse than any other part of the
concrete floor. The trick is to avoid bonding the toilet to the floor and
doing a neat cleanup around the toilet. If you do that you would never know
there was a thin leveling layer of thinset under the toilet.

would not look any worse than any other part of the concrete
floor.

It sounds like you are assuming that the floor will be left
unfinished, not something I am able to gleen from the OP.

When I was installing a toilet on a concrete slab, I found that it
rocked. I used enough leveling compound to bring up the low spots and
then feathered the edges out way from the toilet. A sheet of linoleum,
extended under the toilet, covers all...

On Mon, 13 Oct 2008 16:46:20 -0400, Blattus Slafaly
wrote:

Phisherman wrote:
I'm installing a new toilet on a basement floor. I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete floor.
I can remove small amounts of the concrete with a Dremmel tool. Is
there an easier way than trial-and-error to determine the high points?
How is this usually done? I'm guessing that this rocking has to be
eliminated before I can proceed with the install? TIA

Set the toilet down, draw a line around the base. Remove the toilet and
tile around the drain and extend beyond the edge of the base and level
the tiles by taping them. After it's dry, put on the wax ring and toilet
and bolt it down. Later on you can tile the rest of the floor.


I want to leave the floor as is--concrete sealed with sealed epoxy for
easy cleaning. The floor is smooth, but there is a floor crack
(1/8" wide) running right through the middle of the PVC toilet drain,
causing the unevenness. I tried temporarily leveling the toilet with
a roof shingle near the rear of the base (that worked). I'm leaning
toward the toilet shims (if I can find these) since I don't have an
easy way to grind the floor level.

"Phisherman" wrote in message
...
I'm leaning toward the toilet shims (if I can find these) since I don't
have an
easy way to grind the floor level.

I know I have purchased them at Lowes and I bet HD has them also. Any real
plumbing supply house will have them.

Colbyt

"Phisherman" wrote in message
...
I'm installing a new toilet on a basement floor. I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete floor.
I can remove small amounts of the concrete with a Dremmel tool. Is
there an easier way than trial-and-error to determine the high points?
How is this usually done? I'm guessing that this rocking has to be
eliminated before I can proceed with the install? TIA

Haven't read all the other posts but I can tell you what I did for a shower
base that had gaps all around it causing it to rock a bit on a concrete
floor. Got a couple of can of expandable foam, you know, the stuff used for
insulating in odd places. Went around the base and sprayed the foam until
it finally started oozing out from under the base. Let it harden over night
and then trimmed to fit. Worked like a charm, the base is rock solid. In
your case don't know what would happen if you ever wanted to lift the toilet
off the floor.
MLD

On Oct 13, 6:39*pm, Phisherman wrote:
On Mon, 13 Oct 2008 16:46:20 -0400, Blattus Slafaly

wrote:
Phisherman wrote:
I'm installing *a new toilet on a basement floor. *I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. * When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete floor.

"EXT" wrote in
anews.com:


"mike" wrote in message
..
. On Oct 13, 9:30 am, "EXT" wrote:

install with the seal and bolts. The tape will prevent the thinset
from bonding the toilet permanently to the floor.


If I was looking to buy a house and I saw that somone had thinset/
mortar/grout under the toilet, I'd knock $1000 off the price of the
house or look at another house.

When buying a house a $1000.00 is nothing, unless you live somewhere
real cheap where it can make or break a deal. Read the original post,
he is installing a basement toilet on top or rough concrete. I
wouldn't want that either for myself. But, adding a layer of thinset
under the toilet and cleaning up the edges would not look any worse
than any other part of the concrete floor. The trick is to avoid
bonding the toilet to the floor

I often use waxed paper for "no-stick but shape" applications.

and doing a neat cleanup around the
toilet. If you do that you would never know there was a thin leveling
layer of thinset under the toilet.

"MLD" wrote in :


"Phisherman" wrote in message
...
I'm installing a new toilet on a basement floor. I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete
floor. I can remove small amounts of the concrete with a Dremmel
tool. Is there an easier way than trial-and-error to determine the
high points? How is this usually done? I'm guessing that this
rocking has to be eliminated before I can proceed with the install?
TIA

Haven't read all the other posts but I can tell you what I did for a
shower base that had gaps all around it causing it to rock a bit on a
concrete floor. Got a couple of can of expandable foam, you know, the
stuff used for insulating in odd places. Went around the base and
sprayed the foam until it finally started oozing out from under the
base. Let it harden over night and then trimmed to fit. Worked like
a charm, the base is rock solid. In your case don't know what would
happen if you ever wanted to lift the toilet off the floor.
MLD


What happens when you flush the first time and nothing at all goes down
because foam has oozed and filled the drain pipe? Maybe some went up the
toilet trap too huh?

I've set stools with a very "slight" sobble on dry fit with no shims.
Once the wax ring and Johnny bolts are in place, the wobble was gone.
Could it leak? Maybe. Could it break the porcelain? I suppose. But
I've had neither. Remember, I'm talking about a very slight wobble.

On occasions I had to shim and used shingles (improvising on
construction sites).

I would shim it with something like the plastic shims available at HD
or Lowes. Thin set might give you issues when replacing the toilet in
the future. I don't think the foam would be solid enough long term
and you do run the risk of "lifting" the toilet from the wax seal if
you use too much.

Michael B wrote:
On Oct 13, 6:39 pm, Phisherman wrote:
On Mon, 13 Oct 2008 16:46:20 -0400, Blattus Slafaly

wrote:
Phisherman wrote:
I'm installing a new toilet on a basement floor. I lined up the
flange slots with the bowl holes and traced around the perimeter of
the toilet. When dry-fitted It slightly rocks on the concrete floor.
I can remove small amounts of the concrete with a Dremmel tool. Is
there an easier way than trial-and-error to determine the high points?
How is this usually done? I'm guessing that this rocking has to be
eliminated before I can proceed with the install? TIA
Set the toilet down, draw a line around the base. Remove the toilet and
tile around the drain and extend beyond the edge of the base and level
the tiles by taping them. After it's dry, put on the wax ring and toilet
and bolt it down. Later on you can tile the rest of the floor.
I want to leave the floor as is--concrete sealed with sealed epoxy for
easy cleaning. The floor is smooth, but there is a floor crack
(1/8" wide) running right through the middle of the PVC toilet drain,
causing the unevenness. I tried temporarily leveling the toilet with
a roof shingle near the rear of the base (that worked). I'm leaning
toward the toilet shims (if I can find these) since I don't have an
easy way to grind the floor level.

An angle grinder can be such an excellent tool for so many things.
I once had a similar situation, I used a cheap lipstick from the
dollar
store on the bottom, then ground down the high spots that were
readily apparent.

When the other guys saw the lipstick in your toolbox?..........

TDD