Fixes for flange being set too high?

[flyfalcons]

Hey everyone, new guy here.

We closed on our house on 9/12, and after moving in noticed that the downstairs toilet in the half-bath was loose and rocking front-to-back, with about a half-inch of space between the base and floor at either end. When flushed, a small bead of water would leak out around the base, but nothing major, and there was no wood damage to the wood floors. A plumber was called through our home warranty company (American Home Shield), and when he took the toilet off, he said that the flange was set too high, probably buy the original plumber during construction(2005). He said the only way to fix the problem was to pull up the wood flooring in the bathroom, jackhammer out the concrete slab around the flange/pipe, reset the pipe lower, fix the concrete, and relay the floor. Within 10 minutes of him knocking on my door I had an estimate of $2300 worth of work.

Shocked. He called AHS, and, of course, it wouldn't be covered because it's considered "improper installation or repair". I asked him if there was any simpler way to fix the spacing problem and he said categorically NO, his license wouldn't allow him to do anything other than exactly what he described. He was more than happy to tell me about their financing options, and within 30 minutes of leaving, his girl back at the office was calling to see if I wanted to go ahead with the credit check for the repair financing.

After taking a breather, I started googling, thinking there had to be some kind of spacer or riser that could be a much easier fix to this problem. It seems like there are products out there - I am just wondering if any of you had experience with them or had tips/suggestions?

Thanks so much, sorry for the long-winded synopsis!

 

[havasu]

I've dealt with AHS in the past, and they are out only to make a buck. I once called them to replace a cracked toilet tank, and they chose to only replace the tank, even though it was a special order item, took 3 weeks to deliver, and put that bathroom out of commission for 3 weeks. I finally called their supervisor, along with the realtor who sold me that junk, and the next day, they replaced the entire toilet...all the while upset that this cost them an additional $35. Morale of the story is to call their supervisors and rattle some cages.

 

[johnjh2o]

What type pipe is the flange connected to? If it's ABS or PVS a inside cutter could be used to cut the pipe and lower the flange. It's a simple repair. If it's cast iron pipe it would still be possible to make the repair without taking up the floor.
I just reread your post and see that the house was built in 2005. Piping should be ABS or PVC.
It's beginning to look like someone is trying to make a weeks pay on a simple repair.

John

 

[phishfood]

If it is ABS or PVC with an inside the pipe flange, the whole job start to finish would take me maybe two hours. If it is an outside flange on 4" pipe it would take me maybe 1/2 an hour longer.