And End To My Low Flow (Toilet) Woes

[rp2813]

Many thanks to Eddie for his Whink recommendation!  I'm a fan!  I just got a bottle of it today at OSH and was amazed at how little effort with the bowl brush was required to remove the stubborn mineral ring (see picture -- the worst area was toward the front of the bowl).  Instructions said to apply and flush, but I hit it with the brush for good measure before flushing.  That ring had been there a while.

 

OSH also had Whink rust and mineral inhibitor tablets, so I got a 2-pack of those and dropped one in the tank.  If the ring doesn't form again, I'll be buying the tablets regularly.  From what I read on the package, they won't harm my new Korky flapper.

 

On the Whink bottle was a form for a $2 rebate with purchase of two Whink products.  Woo hoo!

 

[ea56]

Hey Ralph, I'm so glad the Whink worked out for you. I thought if anything would get this mineral deposit off Whink would. If you could have seen how our well water used to stain our toilets and how just squirting Whink on the stain would almost is if by magic remove the stain you would understand why. It was just like watching one of those bogus Kaabbam commercials on TV now.
Eddie

 

[panthera]

We replaced all our low-water flush toilets with

1950s toilets. What a difference! A thousand times less cleaning, no sewer back ups, no flushing thrice, no jamming no problems.

A friend's house, built in 1938 recently had a low-water flusher installed in the master bath. It is a million-billion times better than the trash we were stuck with from the '90s. Not as good as the 1938 American Standard Cadet in another bathroom, but, pretty darn close.

 

As to keeping things clean - when we've had an evening dinner or party and I have tons of co'cola left over (does anybody ever finish pouring out the already opened can in the pantry? No. A fresh can for each new glass.) I pour them all into one of the toilets and leave overnight.

It's not much H₃PO₄ but it does a great job of cleaning and I don't get quite as frustrated over the million half-empty cans.

 

[rp2813]

1938? Pfffff!

How about 1908?  OK, I'm just guessing, but the force of gravity from this thing will clear the bowl every time!

 

That is, if you can stand looking at that baroque bowl.

 

 

 

 

http://https//sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/app/6121456018.html

 

[vacerator]

I think

that baroque style bowl fits in any antique bath design. If not, it makes a nice garden planter.
My step son is the only one who has ever backed up the toilet. He either used way too much tissue or pinched off huge turds. Lets just say he had to learn to shut off the water supply fast and use a plunger by age 14.

 

[ken]

The office where I work is in an old house built 1928-1929. It was a fancy place considering the area and time period in that it has five bathrooms. Four of the six bedrooms have their own bath and a powder room on the first floor tucked under the staircase. They all still have their original Standard "Devoro" toilets dated Oct 1929. When those babies flush they flush. It would take a lot to clog one.

 

[sudsmaster]

Well, Ralph, I have to apologize. My scientific view was that pumice, being essentially volcanic glass, would scratch a porcelain toilet bowl, which also has a glass (glazed) surface. But I guess I was wrong, because over the weekend when loitering in Home Depot, I spotted a pumice product called "Pumie", specifically made for cleaning toilet bowls.

The instructions did warn to be careful with "some" tinted bowls, didn't say which, only that they might be damaged. But it was news to me that there are actually pumice products out there specifically for cleaning hard water deposits off toilet bowls.

Meanwhile, it seems you found a solution, "Whink", that works just as well without danger of damaging the porcelain (we hope).

http://https//www.amazon.com/Pumie-...00BPRDCW/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_sims?ie=UTF8

 

[sudsmaster]

I see that Whink has Oxalic acid in it. Be a little careful with that, don't let it sit too long.

Some years ago I used a product called Zud!, which is an oxalic acid based cleanser, to clean an old bathtub in a rental house. Well it cleaned the tub well enough, but I left a damp sponge full of it on the tub ledge and didn't find it again until the next day. The Zud! in the sponge ate holes in the glaze, leaving a pockmarked finish. Not all the way to the iron or steel underneath, but you could tell by touch it was rather damaged. Oh well. That was my last rental house, lol.

 

[rp2813]

Oh yeah, Rich.  Even the 99c Only Store has "Lady's Helper" brand pumice blocks in the household cleaners aisle.  That's where I buy 'em for my other two toilets.

 

[askolover]

Too bad we can't still buy Sani-flush or crystal Vanish (not that new oxy crap out now).  They had acid in them and would dissolve minerals well.

 

[artcurus]

about to redo my front bathroom. And yes, I'm pulling the POS low flow and putting in a nice, 1950's toilet I pulled out of a house that was being demolished. Also going to tile the walls in black and white tile.

 

[vacerator]

black and white

tile is timeless. Never out dated. Posh NY, etc. properties have had it since at least the 1920's.
often accented with grey or white marble pencil edging.
I like it done on a floor in a herringbone pattern, or a Greek key with the black squares in the center.

 

[sudsmaster]

Ralph,

After cleaning one of my Waterridge toilets the other day, I noticed a rough surface towards the front of the bowl. There is no stain, but it appears to be a mineral buildup there.

I visited the local OSH today. It was with some difficulty I located the two Whink products they carry. One was the two tablet package you mentioned, which is what Whink recommends for colored toilets. It says it's a lime scale and rust stain remover. It contains a sodium sulfite as its main active ingredient. You're supposed to add one tab per month to keep the bowl clean.

The other product was labeled only as a rust stain remover, and for white bowls only. This one has hydrofluoric acid in it, and recommends near immediate flushing after application. I assume it's because hydrofluoric acid is what is used to etch glass (as in frosted glass designs). Is this the product you used?

I notice on Whink's web site they also list a liquid product that is recommended for both lime scale and rust removal. It contains a complicated organic acid, nothing simple like HCl or HFl. But I didn't see that product at OSH.

In any case, I didn't buy any Whink product today at OSH. I have some Lime-Away stashed away from years back, as well as some phosphoric acid based lime remover that I'll try first. And of course I have a Pumie too, just in case.

 

[sudsmaster]

Well, since I turned this weekend into a four day (taking a vacation day Tuesday), decided finally to tackle the rough patch on the Waterridge in the master bath.

First tried the Whink rust remover in the bottle from OSH. No change. Then I tried the phophoric acid based lime/scale/scum remover from Smart and Final. No change.

Finally broke out the Pumie, and after a bit of scrubbing got back a nice smooth surface. The lime had hardened almost to like rock, and it took more scrubbing with the Pumie than I expected. But I kept it up and got the desired result.

Anyway, a shout out to Ralph if you're listening, thanks a bunch. Live and learn. I had thought pumice would be too abrasive. Doesn't seem to be, and it solved the problem without any toxic chemicals. That's always a win.

Also have the Whink tablets which I might toss in there at some point, but I'm not too thrilled about having to replenish them on a monthly basis. We'll see.

 

[rp2813]

Rich, I checked my bottle of Whink and I'm pretty sure it's the same as what you have. 

 

I agree that the tablets are kind of expensive for only lasting a month, but they do seem to be effective.  I started this thread in late April and haven't even replaced the tablet I dropped in the tank back then.  It's probably time.  The ring is trying to return.

 

I have the same issue as you with build-up on the 3-year old wall mount toilet in the master bath.  I have to use pumice on it under the rim because it turns dark on a regular basis.   The upstairs toilet is the oldest in the house, dating to 1960.  Since moving it upstairs, it develops a ring and gets streaks in the bowl.  It sees little use which may have something to do with it, but it takes a pumice stone to get it back to normal.  I need to hit the 99c Only Store and pick up another couple of "Pumies."

 

Maybe I'll splurge and buy tablets for wall mount and upstairs toilets.  If they work, it will be worth it to spare myself the scouring.

 

[robbinsandmyers]

I've bought a few of those flappers for me krapper and they seem to blow up like a balloon in six months. Maybe the chlorine in the water??

 

[rp2813]

Blowing up

Only the plastic Fluidmaster with the opaque ring has done that to me.  My experience with the one piece rubberized flappers from other makers is that they keep working for years until they finally start to disintegrate.

 

[sudsmaster]

Ralph,

I'll probably hold off on dropping a tab in the tank.

One reason is the expense. The other is that in case of big quake and water shutoff, what's in the tank(s) is basically safe to drink if it hasn't been adulterated with cleaners.

Besides, Pumie works quite well. Don't know how often it will need to be done, but this is the first time I've had to address a hard water deposit in that toilet since it got it about 12 years ago... Of course I didn't notice it was there until quite recently. Might have shown up in the drought, when local muni water seemed to get quite a bit harder than before.

Speaking flappers... this older Waterridge has an occasional habit of not sealing shut after a flush, and running on until one opens it up and gives the proprietary flush/float assembly a shake. This was a known problem with these units. I could call Waterridge and supposedly they have a fix. One post I saw was that there's a sharp edge in there somewhere on the plastic works that sometimes catches. My solution has been to listen for the "clunk" when the valve slams shut, which is a good indication it hasn't failed to seal. Not the greatest solution but If I can dig up Waterridge's customer support number maybe they'll offer a fix for a 12 year old product...?

The newer unit in the guest bath has a Fluidmaster float/valve assembly and it never seems to fail. But it doesn't seem to flush as well as the older one. C'est la vie treous.

 

[retro-man]

I was using those bleach tablets that you put in the tanks. They seem to work well enough on the bowl from flushing, but what I have found is that they eat the brass screws that hold the tank and bowl together. I guess I could replace them with stainless steel but never did. After repairing and replacing numerous parts I no longer use them.

Jon

 

[sudsmaster]

Chlorine is very hard on metals, and is actually the Achilles heel for stainless anyway. It strips away the protective chromium oxide layer on SS and can cause pitting. Some types of stainless are more resistant (like 316) but if it were me, I'd just forgo dosing a toilet tank with chlorine.