I have a tall elongated bowl Crane, water saver toilet. I think it was about $150 three years ago. I see Menards has one for $169. I've been satisfied with mine.

I bought two several years ago. Neither were high-end, but one was a Toto, the brand that's so highly praised online. The saleswoman said, "Your friends will be so impressed that you have a Toto!" She actually said that. I was just impressed that it was on sale.

The other toilet was a Kohler, a model sold by the zillions at Home Depot or Lowe's--I forget which. Both use very little water.

The Toto was a pain for a long time, needing adjustments to the water level. Even now, I occasionally have to jiggle the handle when something gets hung up inside the tank. In contrast, the inexpensive Kohler has always done its job quietly and efficiently, without fuss. I wouldn't hesitate to get another.

Tami, if I was to replace a toilet in a house I owned, I would put a handicapped one in.

My mother in law got one eons ago, and it was expensive, but oh, so worth it.

Everyone ended up using "her bathroom", cause of the ease of getting back up from the taller "throne".

:)

Moni

tall one at lowes is a gem! and not high-priced! we bought one for when my mother moved in, and replaced our other one upstairs...they've been a life saver on the old knees and back! you do have to buy an oval toilet seat...

by law, toilets are all low flush models...i've see a couple of gimic ones on hgtv (and i'm sure carry a price) that have 2 flushes, lol...one for #1 and one #2

it's a hoot around here...you set out an old hi-gallon flush and it's snapped up asap...

We just replaced our toilet with the cheapest toilet you could buy at Lowe's (DH's choice and he is most likely keeping the house in the divorce). I was not looking forward to having a water-efficient toilet. When I saw the small amount of water in it, I was flabbergasted! But, it works really well and we haven't had any problems yet.

Personally, I wanted the Kohler that was on sale. It was around $100 I think, about $25 more than the toilet he bought.

We have a Toto chair height one. We're happy with it.

We have elongated bowl Kohlers but ours are not true water savers. We got them just before they made super low flush the law.

If I were buying a new regular toilet today I would look for a comfort height with an elongated bowl. Comfort height is not quite as tall as handicapped toilets but taller than the standard.

My dream toilet is wall hung with the tank in the wall. Very pricey but it is on my list for when we redo the baths.

With dogs hair is always attracted to the base of the toilet. I don't know how since out r dogs don't hang out in the bathroom but it's there.

My plumber recommended a Toto and put it in 5 years ago. I forgot wht it cost-it may have been around $150. When a part failed, I phoned the company and they sent a free replacement. I was able to fix it myself, and I'm a non-mechanically inclined over 50 female.

state of FL is going to make the dual flush ones code, they are not a gimick LOL. if i were buying a toilet, and i will be getting 2 bathrooms remodeled this yr, i would only get the dual flush. 10 yrs ago when i bought my house we replaced an old toilet and our water useage dropped 8% just from 1 toilet. over 10 yrs our water costs per gallon have doubled but our useage has gone down 50% w/ efficient toilets and appliances (no irrigation it's well).

water useage is the most limiting factor in this country for our future. elite investors have been gobbling up your water rights for over a yr now and as soon as people become aware of their need for water it's too late. it's a big deal in FL, AZ, NV, CA and NM. all around the midwest wells have been drying for for 2 yrs now, partially due to agriculture use. infact FL trumped GA on water rights last yr in the federal court system. most counties around orlando have banned drilling new water wells, you must tap into public or you have nothing when your well dries up or gets infected w/ salt water, a problem in east orlando. we are the most lucky in this country as far as water goes because we have desalination plants already operating with more under construction and there are plans to sell that water to states at of course a premium price. i would try everything i could to make sure my water useage stayed as low as possible and inturn your bill stays low. ~ liz

I have a Toto. Are y'all impressed? I hope so!

It works fine, low water usage. Has clogged maybe 2 times in quite a few years. It's the higher one (ADA?), and that is very good. I think Kohler is good too.

Have you checked on the Bathrooms forum? I'm sure there have been dozens of toilet discussions.

We just replaced one of ours, it's a Kohler and not the taller model but I love the one piece design. It's a whole lot easier to clean which is a major plus in my eyes lol.

When we replace the other one it will be a Kohler too.

Lowes has very good ones in the regular height and the taller ones that are ADA approved for very good prices we were just looking at them last weekend, found a nice Jacuzzi brand one in the taller height with elongated bowl for under $200. I would go online and check the reviews of them, I was surprised to find so many that were negative for some of the name brand ones like Kohler. We will be replacing 2 soon because I really need the taller ones now.
American Standard is always a good brand to look for too.

If you happen to need a high toilet for handicap purposes and have a good toilet, they make a riser platform that fits between the toilet and the floor, comes as a full kit. We have been looking at those also. They bring them up even higher than the ADA toilets at lowes.

I bought a tall Jacuzzi brand a couple of years ago. It was around $120. I like it because I never have to flush twice. It has stopped up a couple of times. I enjoy the savings on my water bill.

I love my Toto. It's twenty years old and working well. I have a five-year old Kohler (Katherine one-piece) that I hate. The handle gets stuck if you're not careful and it has only ONE replacement seat option. All of my toilets are the higher ones. I'm always amazed when I visit someone that has the really low toilets. I can't imagine how anyone with knee or hip problems manage them.

We have had great luck with our Totos. We replaced Kohlers and have not had clogs since.
(That being said, I do like Kohler. I just prefer them for sinks and tubs, not toilets.) I really suggest you check the Bathrooms forum.

We recently got an American Standard Champion 4 - elongated and tall. We haven't had a single clog since it was installed. I *think* it cost around $200 at Home Depot.

My house is 5 years old and I bought it new. I had a handicap stool put in the guest bathroom for my husband. I like it better than the regular one. At first it would make my toes tingle and I figured it was cutting off the circulation. I put one of the soft seats/lids and solved that problem. They put in a Toto. If I built another house I would put them in every bathroom. But I think the lower ones are better for doing "the" job. It puts your lower body in the right position. LOL

I need a new toilet too. I've been looking on line and found a relatively cheap one at Lowe's (under $100). I think it is made by Aquasource or something like that. It had great reviews.

We have the Kohlers that use 1.6 gallon or less to flush. They are so fast and only one flush does it.

Have you ever sat on a Kohler?You haven't lived till you do.My granddaughter Has them in her mansion and they are the last word.High off the floor.You can't take it with you so you might as well enjoy somethings.As for the water level the city will charge you if you used the water and they will charge you if you don't.

We have replaced an old toilet that was soooooo slow with a Kohler from Home Depot. It is one of the tall ones but since my legs are not very long I wish we had gotten the lower one. The only thing I don't like about it is that the water doesn't swirl around the sides to help wash them down.

Wish I had looked at the name brand on the toilets at the Stone Mountain resort in Stone Mountain GA when I stayed there several years ago on a business trip....they were TDF! Seat moulded with all those important dips and curves we ladies need and just the right height! But, now we're both slow to get down and even slower getting up...those bad knees tell on us in a hurry...I want one of those with the nicely molded comfy seats in a handicap model with all the bells and whisles!

I have been doing A LOT of research on this because I have a low water volume toilet that clogs more often than not. I learned way more than I ever wanted to know. I learned that not all Totos are so great - Toto Drake seems to be tried and true model. Some of these toilets have what is referred to as a small water spot - which means material falls above the water line, sticks to the side, and requires brushing after flushing. From what I could tell the American Standard Champion and Cadet are highly rated for flushing and size of water spot is favorable. I have not purchased one yet but mrssmiths' report if consistent with what I've learned. They are not horribly expensive either.

Whatever you get, do not settle for a "short horn" model. These are trouble; they are hard to keep sealed to the waste pipe.

The horn is the projection on the bottom of the bowl that fits into the waste pipe. A "longhorn" sticks down into the waste pipe and if there is not a perfect seal at the waste pipe flange, it will have less tendancy to leak at the seal. A short horn will wet the seal and eventaully leak into the subfloor.

Most hardware stores do not talk about the bottom side of the toilet, but it is critical. It doesn't matter what the price is, or how it works, or gallons per flush, if it leaks and rots the floor, it's a poor choice and eventually costs money.

What an awesome discussion. I feel like I am learning a WHOLE lot.
Looks like one to copy and paste and save for future reference.

Moni

Toto used to (maybe still does) have a video on their website showing golf balls being flushed. That convinced me. I bought two of them almost 10 years ago, and they work great. Wish I'd gotten the comfort height, though.

Our house had been re-done right before we bought it and every toilet replaced so they are all brand new, however we hate them. They are all eljer brand which I thought was a decent brand. They clog very often with no reason to and they are dual flush but they never flush anything with the light flush, you have to keep the handle held down till it finally puts enough water in to flush which is frustrating. The flush levers have broken on 2 of them already which we had to replace. And they are the low ones with the round seat not elongated I absolutely hate round seats.
It is a shame to have to replace such new toilets but we are definitely shopping for at least 2 of them. Looking at the Eljer website shows that the ones in our house are quite expensive ones too.

I have found those molded with the curves toilet seats available in replacement seats so you may want to check around and just replace your seat with one of those.

Thank you all! I totally forgot that we HAD a Bathrooms forum! I will check there. We left for an appt right after I posted yesterday, and then took a road trip. Got to see a beautiful sunset over the frozen lake, then had a 2 hour drive home, plus stopped for dinner, then gone all day today. I'm just catching up. I will definitely take all comments into consideration. I have time, but want it replaced soon.

Tami

We needed a new toilet a few years ago. I researched them with Consumers' Reports and like mrssmith692, bought the American Standard Champion, elongated. LOVE this toilet! Works great, the flush is very powerful and uses little water. It's a nice height, too. Got it at Lowes for about $200, plus another $30 for the matching seat.

Hey - good timing. My plumber was just here and I asked him the same question.

He said to get a power flush, ADA compliant height and to avoid Toto.

He mentioned that all of the power flush toilets have nearly the same mechanism made by Sloan. They're easy to work on, easy to get parts and the only parts to break are the handle and the cartridge. He also said that Toto is hard to work on and he seldom has the parts on the truck so that means another trip.