Toilet flush power

[octonuddle]

i know nothing about loos.

Our current bathroom and downstairs toilet loos have been a source of frustration since we moved in. Often requiring flushing three or four times before waste is fully gone. We are not particularly unusual in our bathroom habits and never flush sanitary wear or baby wipes down there…just the classic wee poo and paper (sorry I promise I am not a poo troll)

we had the water pressured checked and it was fine and the mechanics all seem ok, no blockages in the pipes. We are soon renovating and I’d like to get new loos…but I’d like to make sure they have a bit more oomph if you know what I mean.

What should I be looking/asking for?

We just replaced the toilets in our house due to renovation work. Both are rimless ones and have amazingly powerful flushes - one is a Gerberit hidden cistern one, and the other is a basic Villeroy Boch (sp?) one with a cistern behind....

Oooh rimless….I had to google….this appeals on so many levels! I didn’t know it was a thing… thank you!

I guess I’m confused if it is the toilet unit itself that determines the power of the flush, or is it our pipe work and water pressure of the house?

My plumber told me sometimes too much power can be a problem as it can send the water rushing past the object, rather than taking it away. But I am not expert enough to know if he was talking sense or not!

Please take the lid off the cistern and photograph the components inside

Look at the water level. Does it match the line on the back wall of the cistern marked "water level?"

Now flush it. Does it fully empty?

Oh thanks v much!

Ok so upstairs toilet is encased in a unit and it is beyond me how I would get into it…but downstairs loo photo attached.

there is a line along the back of the cistern and the water level sits about 1.5 inches below it (you might need to zoom in on the pic to see the line better). When I flush it, it empties to about the 1.5 inches level (so not completely empty).

any easy fixes?

Also anything to ask for/avoid when picking new loo units?

thanks!

you can start by adjusting the water to be deeper. this will give more volume in the flush. Observe that the end of the float arm, by the pivot, presses against a sort of white plastic piston on the valve, to shut off the water supply. After loosening the locknut, you can screw these further apart so the water does not stop until the float has risen further. Use the locknut to hold it firm after adjustment.

if you want to get a plumber in, you could have a Flapper Valve fitted to replace the syphon. It is far simpler and smaller, basically just a trapdoor which allows the water to gush out with the maximum possible speed and force. To do this the cistern has to come off. the fixing bolts are usually rusted solid so some experience is useful.

If it is coming apart, have a new doughnut washer and a new fill valve fitted at the same time. preferably a modern Fluidmaster fill valve with brass shank. It is very reliable. Those should make a striking improvement. the plumber will know what they are and why you want them. do not be talked into accepting substitutes that might cost a few pounds less.

If you can get the plumber to fit new stainless steel fixing bolts and nuts, and greasing the threads, you will not suffer the extra time and effort to saw through rusted bolts in future.

We have just got an Ideal Standard Tesi wall hung with Geberit cistern. Rimless and perfect flush. Also a surprisingly comfortable seat!

@PigletJohn many thanks…will give it a go!

I feel like this might become the favoured poo loo if it works (@Parsnippity that has already caught on in this house 😂)

@Subbaxeo will check it out thanks!

I've previously been told that the angle of the waste pipe makes all the difference

if you mean the shape of the bend in the WC pan, it can do. Some unbranded imports have fundamentally poor fluid design. I have much more faith in the well established UK makers.

the soil pipe beyond the WC should not affect the flush, unless it is so poor that blockages occur, as sometimes happen when an extra bathroom is squeezed in during an extension.