Calling all Plumbers - What's bomb proof and leak proof?

Question

I have a tenant that is using 50 - 600 gallons of water per day.  Their fixtures leak occasionally I bought the place with cheap stuff installed.  The toilets always leak.  My question is, what are the most bomb proof toilet guts (flapper & valve) and kitchen sink faucets?  I am open to commercial grade equipment, if I have to invest more up front to stop the leaks that is fine.  The tenants are Section so they are home all day.

Michael Boyer · Answer

Have you tried the Fluidmaster complete overhaul kits (called complete repair kit)... The first time takes a bit longer, but after you have it down pat, you can replace all the guts in an hour or less and I have some of these rebuilds running strong past 5-7 years. The complete kit includes all the parts (fill, flush, flapper, bowl hardware and gasket/seals, etc)...

Also, maybe make sure the tenants don't put those bleach drop ins in the toilet tank which have corroded my gaskets prematurely. Best of luck!

Max T. · Answer

PEX > copper

cheaper to buy

faster to install

won't burst if it freezes

Jason Emery · Answer

I just replaced my leaky toilets with a new kind called the Korky QuietFull.  Nice thing is that it's easily adjustable.  Although I bet most of them have moved away from those old valves.  Cheap fix.

If your tenant was willing to do a little investigating for you, they could use drops of food coloring to tell you which was leaking.

If it's that much water, did you make sure there isn't a leaky pipe in the walls / in the lawn (coming from the water main or some external valve)?  I've had that happen before and then stop.  Fortunately my HOA is responsible for all in-wall plumbing and damages.

Search for 'low flow shower head'.  Pick one that compliments your bathroom.

Make sure you use the white plumber's tape on any pipe work.  Unless you like mysterious leaks.

Finally, check with your local utilities.  Ours in WA literally gives out low flow shower heads from time to time that are very nice.  All you have to do is fill out a web form.  They also offer 'efficiency packs' that have LED bulbs + shower heads.  I ended up with so many bulbs and shower heads I was just giving them out in bags to friends so they could save money.

Don Meinke · Answer

Good points Max.

Copper seems to develop pinhole leaks here.

Or mass leaks when its stolen

OR it separates at the joints probably from a slight freeze.  Trying to get the pipe dry enough to re sweat in a combustible wall is daunting.

One snap of the crimp tool makes pex bomb proof.  Thinking and planning ahead makes the tight places easier to get to.  Only thing you have to worry about is getting enough support tied to it,,,easiest to over kill that one.  Never know when it may get bounced around.

Edited to add---ONLY use the brass fittings for pex.  The plastic fittings seem cheaper but can crack.  (btdt)

Don Meinke · Answer

Here is my 2 cents worth.  Hope you get your monies worth.  Maybe this is more of a symptom rather than the problem.  Do you have galvanized metal piping in the supply system? Or high cost,high risk, suspect, copper plumbing?  Is your water as hard as a rock?

Maybe your faucets,cartridges,and stool supply is being ground up from the grit that comes from metal pipes.  Maybe a water softener might help. Or a whole house filter for a while and see if improvement is noted.

Pex pipe if allowed by your code,,,is so cheap and easy to do,,,and cures a multitude of problems.

I used to have a house with similar to your problems.  Most have gone away with a pex supply  system.  Wanted to do it for a long time.  Straw that broke the camel was the city turning off the water to fix a street problem,,,and the bubble that caused threw gunk into the shower cartridge.  Taking one of those apart and getting it cleaned out at 11pm at night isnt a cup of tea,,,plus water pipes got in the road of my new electrical panel so had to move anyway...

As said good quality faucets with 1/4 turn shutoffs for every fixture.  Put removable access panel on back side wall of tub faucets.  The more access panels and shutoffs in a system the less you will need them,,,same as drain cleanouts,,,put them everywhere an you will never need them,,,or wish you had, the next time you need one.

Stone Teran · Answer

I agree.  I used to replace single parts but it was all mismatched and had a higher failure rate.  Now I buy the fluidmaster rebuild kit for $20 and even my knuckle head employee can do replace all the guts in 45 minutes.

I don;t think a high dollar rebuild kits buys you anything.  It still boils down to rubber material sealing.

Austin James · Answer

If 600 gallons of water are being used a day, you have a bigger issue than a leaky toilet. So things I have ran into during my years of owning a pluming company.

-Main water line leaking before it gets to the house

-Illegal tie in feeding the neighbors home with free water

-faulty water meter at the street(city issue)

-laundry mat being ran unbeknownst to the owner (daughter trying to make extra money)

And the funniest

Hydroponic marijuana grow o marijuana operation. The owner had no idea it would use so much water.

As far as good product-

Find your nearest plumbing supply house. NOT HOME DEPOT OR LOWES. Go open an account and get wholesale pricing. Plumbing supplies have HUGE mark up.

Suppliers I use

Mountain states plumbing supply

Great western plumbing supply

Standard plumbing supply

My 2 cents

Manolo D. · Answer

@bran Commercial grade huh? You can go Toto, American Standard, or Delta, I buy some from faucetdirect.com . These brands have a high tolerance to beat ups. On 1-2 start motels, some use Seasons line, distributed by hdsupplysolutions.com

Frank S. · Answer

Plumbing fixtures. You get what you pay for.  Chicago faucets are great, but run several hundred dollars.

Consider buying low flow toilets. Look for 1.28 gallons per flush.

Lavatories, buy a good wrist blade faucet and separately get a 0.5 gpm aerator.

Kitchen sink, get a good wrist blade faucet without spray and get a 1.0 gpm aerator.

Faucets, ceramic cartridges are great. Delta has good ones, but you need good water.

Shower:  Get 1.5 gpm shower head. Symmons, Delta.

Most of your money goes down the drain, low flow should help.

Then, lower your water heater temperature, but within reason.

Calling all Plumbers - What's bomb proof and leak proof?

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