Cast Iron Toilet Flange too High


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Old 04-28-14, 10:35 AM
Kristy Otten's Avatar
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Question Cast Iron Toilet Flange too High

I am replacing an old toilet and tiling in an upstairs bathroom. I removed a layer of ceramic tile and a few layers of cement backerboard (not sure why they used so much, but it was a pain to remove) Now I am down to the subfloor.

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Here is the measurement of the flange from the subfloor. 1 & 1/8 inch looks like.

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I planned on putting down .25 Hardiebacker and penny rounds with about a .2 inch height. I don't believe the thinset will add much height either so I'm looking at a rather large gap for my flange. I do not want to build the floor back up to the old height because you had to step up into the bathroom from the hallway and it just looked silly. I have not finished tiling yet, but I estimate maybe 5/8 inch flange different from my finished flooring.

Should I go ahead with my tile install? And what is my best course of action from here? I believe this is a cast iron flange and pipe.

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Thank you for any advice you could provide and let me know if you need more info!
 
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Old 04-28-14, 12:03 PM
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I think you answered your own question as to why they built up the previous floor. The Flange was originally set to the height of a cement mud bed with tile on top. Proper rebuild should have been to add 3/4" Advantech on top of the ply you have down, then add your 1/4" Hardi backer set in thinset mortar and finally tile on top of that. Your plywood as it stands is not a sufficient base on which to build a tile floor.
 
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Old 04-28-14, 12:19 PM
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I guess it might not be cast iron as I originally thought. Maybe I'll just cut the pipe under the flange with a sawzall to the proper length and put in one of those closet flanges.
 
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Old 04-28-14, 12:52 PM
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Not sure you followed my last post, you need to stiffen up the floor before you tile. Properly done, the flange is at the correct height.
 
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Old 04-28-14, 01:45 PM
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Thanks for the reply.

I am not installing a mortar bed. It will be from bottom to top:

Subfloor
Thinset
Hardibacker
Thinset
Thin light weight porcelain penny round tiles/grout

Otherwise I will keep tripping over a floor that is too high from my hallway. There is no reason as far as I know to build the floor up to match the flange.
 
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Old 04-28-14, 02:02 PM
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I guess I'll try one more time.....

Subfloor <---Not Thick Enough or Strong Enough for Tile
+3/4" Advantech <----Need to Add to Stiffen Floor
Thinset
Hardibacker
Thinset
Thin light weight porcelain penny round tiles/grout

Never said you need to install a mortar bed, just telling you what was there initially when the house was built and why the flange is at its current height.

Hardibacker helps the tiles stick to the floor, it does not add any strength. Your single layer of plywood (1/2") is not a sufficient subfloor. For a successful long term tile installation, it needs to have an additional layer. Most tile floors sit higher than surrounding floors, nothing unusual about that.
 
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Old 04-29-14, 04:45 AM
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Czizzi is correct. How much of a difference is the bath floor from the hallway or adjourning room? With the proper threshold transition the difference should not be a problem.
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