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Standard Toilet Flange Height (Complete Guide)

Leaky toilets are a real mess. Not only do they look hideous sometimes, but it also affects the entire environment of the home.

The wobbling of the water from the toilet is really frustrating. And no wonder, this is the consequence of setting up a toilet flange at an improper height.

Standard toilet flange height

To avoid the watery mess from your bathroom, follow the standard toilet flange height. It is ¼ inch above the floor. This simple measurement can be life-saving for you to prevent leaks. Other than that, this also helps in setting up waxy rings that are highly useful to apply a good seal.

The leaks are often caused by a lack of this practice. As the toilet and the waste line need an accurate connection, an unleveled or wrong flange height can interrupt the lines. Thus, water coming back and leaking is a normal phenomenon.

Apart from that, there are several cases when you might need to change the height of the flange depending on the flooring, tiling, and type of flange. So. without always following the conventional rule, users are welcome to bend it according to their needs.

The place where you trying to install a toilet flange is also a crucial thing. For doing this work properly, an ideal place is the bathroom floor that does not rock.

Again, there are times when the flange height can be lower than the floor. Don’t disappoint! There is still some way to use it.

If it is a quarter inch below the floor, there is nothing to worry about. You can still use it with ease. However, less height than this is terribly discouraged by the experts as this will only create an extra hassle for the users.

Indeed, this is quite an important thing. If not performed properly, this might cause slow drainage, water clogging, and gurgling noise. Plus, get ready to experience damaged toilet flooring.

As you see there is more than one thing to consider, you need to consider a handful of facts to come up with the successful mission of adjusting the toilet flange to the right height.

As there are myriads of flange types available in the market it becomes hard to choose the real ones. Except for the regular ones, there are offset, deep seats, and RV types which can confuse the users.

In that case, take professional help and find out the right type and size for your toilet. This would make the work faster and easier, eliminating every doubt of leakage.

Moreover, having proper maintenance, such as removing worn-out rings and cleaning the flanges time and again would help you to make a durable solution for this. And obviously, try to follow the height of ¼ inch every time you got the chance.

What is the proper toilet flange height code?

Maintaining the proper height code can cause trouble to your home and your mental health. A dirty, watery bathroom will never be going to give you peace; and that is for sure.

Thus, the users must adhere to the heights of the toilet flange as stated in the placement codes.

The code suggests the flange height be ¼ or 0.25 inches from the leveled floor.  This is the most accurate measurement for standard toilet flanges.

For ease of the calculator, the value is nearly 13 to 19 mm from the finished floor. Failure to maintain this can cause several problems besides leakage.

The width is also an important factor according to the placement codes. For instance, the minimum width of 3.75 inches, and the maximum width of 7.24 inches. These values are equally responsible for accurate adjustment.

Again, there are length values that are mentioned. These values are approximately six inches from top to bottom. The opening sizes of 19 x 11 mm and 23 x 11 mm are also some of scrutinizing factors.

The placement codes are essential and are included for the homeowners. Adjusting your toilet flanges with these conventional heights and having these types of flanges can make all of your work a lot easier.

Thus, without exceptions, not following these codes are surely not a good idea. 

3 factors that affect the toilet flange height

Though the placement codes have a lot of height obligations, users often need to modify them. According to the needs and the best performance, there remains no chance rather than forgetting the long lines of codes.

There are several factors that affect the toilet flange height. Knowing them can help you to understand when to follow the rule and when to bend the rules according to your ease.

Type:

The type of toilet flange is essential. Not all types can be adjusted to the same height.

For this reason, the users need to be open to the necessary changes that your bathroom demands.

Size:

Varying with the type, there are lots of sizes of toilet flanges available. Each type of flange may have five to ten sizes. And even sometimes more!

So, take help from a professional to know which size might be the best for your bathroom. Just don’t choose something with a height of one-quarter less than the floor.

Flooring:

Some of the floorings may demand different types and heights of the flanges. To make proper maintenance, it is necessary to check the flooring and act accordingly.

Not all flooring types will satisfy the users. Therefore, choose floors that won’t rock and have a stable ability to withstand pressure.

Again, some people choose to change the flooring before installing the right type of toilet flange. If you want you can do that too. Although, that seems a lot of work, the fruits of the results are really sweet.

What to do if the toilet flange height is too low?

One of the major problems that users face is when the toilet flange height becomes too low. No wonder this happens due to the retiling or replacement of the floors. This can be miserably bad and have to fix right.

To be precise, there are several ways by which you can raise the toilet flange height if it is too low. From retiling or using wax rings to using an extender or spacer are some techniques that you can follow to help you out.

First of all, using wax rings can be a real help. While installing this you need to turn off the water supply and dissemble all the parts of it. After that, use the wax rings to fix the problem.

If you don’t like this solution, you can also use a toilet flange extender to get the job done. Don’t worry, the process is also quite simple and easy. Just detach all the parts and then use the extender in place of the wax ring.

Lastly, if all the other options failed, you can go with retiling. As this work is laborious as well as expensive, experts often do not suggest it firsthand. Use this as the last straw if everything else fails.

How to properly set a toilet flange?

When you have decided on a toilet flange for your home, now is time to properly install it at the place at the right height. As the work looks messy and slobby, most of the users rely on professionals and plumbers to get this done.

Nonetheless, the reality is this work is not that hard. You can easily accomplish it with simple tips and hacks. If you want to get this over with, the following steps are going to help you.

Turn the water supply off:

The main goal of the users is to remove the toilet. And for doing this, you need to turn off the water supply first. Turn off the valve to 360 degrees to do this.

Disconnect the hose:

Now is the time to disconnect the hose from the toilet. Try to remove this by hand or pliers. But remember to flush the water before to avoid any mess.

Remove the nuts:

As the toilet has been disconnected from the lines, now the task is simple – detach it. By doing this, you will need to remove the nuts from the toilet. And with this, the toilet will be removed.

Clean and Remove:

Now clean the previous flanges properly. Otherwise, the same problems can rise again. Then remove the flange from the place with a mere screwdriver.

Install a new flange:

As the other things are done, you need to push the flange in the place with care. Having the wax ring set up too, screw it, and attach the toilet in place again.

Final Thoughts

As the toilet flange height matters a lot to stop unwanted leakage and slow drainage, it is recommended to use a height of at least ¼ inch above the floor. Despite that, users are also allowed to apply modifications in this measurement depending on the type and size of the toilet flange.