Loading…
27
Warning: A plumber in Boise just gave me flooring advice that actually made sense
I was doing a full bathroom remodel last week and the plumber, a guy named Dave, saw me about to lay tile right up to the toilet flange. He stopped me and said, 'You know, if you tile under that, the next guy has to smash it all out when this wax ring fails in five years.' I'd always just tiled under everything, but he had a point about future repairs. Do you guys leave a cutout or just tile the whole floor and let the next installer deal with it?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
taylor.jordan6mo ago
That's a solid piece of advice from Dave. It feels like a lot of trades and even product design these days ignores future repair work. Everything gets sealed up for a clean look now, but it makes simple fixes a huge pain later. You see it with glued down electronics and cars that need half the dash pulled for a new cabin air filter. Leaving a clean cutout for the flange is just being kind to the next person, who might even be you in a few years. It's a small thing that shows someone actually thought past the install date.
9
hannaho526mo ago
Honestly it makes you wonder what other basic repair shortcuts we all do. Like painting over outlet covers instead of taking them off, or caulking a sink to the counter so tight it has to be cut out. We create these little time bombs for ourselves just to save ten minutes now. That plumber was looking at the whole life of the bathroom, not just his one job.
6
sean_park85mo ago
That "cleaning cutout for the flange" thing rings true. I read a blog post from a master plumber who said most toilet leaks come from guys not leaving themselves room to work in ten years, and now I see it everywhere.
3