The Essential Plumbing Resource For Homeowners

Should You Replace Your Home's Aging Toilets?

Unlike other forms of home improvement, homeowners often approach plumbing projects in a more piecemeal fashion. While you wouldn't renovate just part of your kitchen, you might consider replacing a single fixture in your bathroom or upgrading a troublesome section of leaky piping. However, replacing multiple pieces of aging plumbing at once can sometimes be a more cost-effective option.

If your home has multiple bathrooms with aging toilets, it may be time to consider replacing them. Although you might not spend much time thinking about these crucial daily fixtures, ditching your old toilets can improve your home and save you money.

Do Toilets Wear Out?

Toilets are not complex plumbing fixtures. Although any residential toilet will contain several different and critical components, the toilet is just two porcelain pieces: the tank and bowl. Everything inside your toilet is a separate part that you can remove and replace as necessary, helping your toilet last for a shockingly long time.

In other words, toilets rarely fail, although aging toilets can begin to experience some serious issues. Cracks are usually the worst problems your toilet will face. Cracks usually occur between the tank and bowl, allowing water to leak from one to the other. External cracks may also allow water to leak onto the floor, resulting in the potential for substantial water damage.

Do You Need to Replace Your Toilets?

The simplest answer is that if your toilets aren't leaking, you do not need to replace them. Still, there are some reasons why you might want to consider a replacement. One common reason for replacement is purely aesthetic. An old and worn toilet won't do your bathroom's appearance any favors. While you can repaint a toilet, the process can be labor-intensive.

Efficiency and performance are arguably more compelling reasons to consider an upgrade. If you have very old toilets, upgrading to modern, water-efficient designs can save you money. On the other hand, you may also want to consider upgrading if you have older low-flow toilets. Modern low-flow toilets offer far more performance, removing most frustrations associated with early efficient designs.

Should You Replace Your Toilets at the Same Time?

If you have a toilet in your home that's leaking, you should focus on replacing that toilet right away. Even if the toilet only leaks from the tank to the bowl, it may develop more severe cracks. But what if your toilets aren't experiencing catastrophic failures? In these cases, replacing your aging toilets together can have some benefits.

Replacing all your old toilets will have the largest possible impact on your home's water usage, bring your bathrooms up-to-date with more modern designs, and potentially save some money since you'll only need to schedule one appointment with your plumber. While replacing aging toilets isn't usually urgent, it is a relatively cost-effective plumbing upgrade worth considering. 

Contact a local plumber to learn more.