lowering toilet flange on copper pipe plumbing

[philly89]

Hi everyone!

I recently bought a home in NJ and am renovating my master bathroom. I'm unsure about how to lower the closet flange. After demoing the mud bed floor, the closet flange is about 1.25-1.5” above the subfloor. I plan on replacing the subfloor and want to avoid building up the floor so that the tile will transition as close to even with the wood floor at the threshold.

I think my options are:

1) Try to use what I have and sweat off the brass toilet flange and cut off as much of the copper pipe in the top part of the closet bend. My concern is that it wont lower the flange enough since there only appears to be 1/2" of space between the top of closet bend and bottom of the flange. There doesn't see to be many options for replacing brass toilet flanges so I do not think i can get a slimmer profile one and I mostly see modern pvc/abs flanges which isn't compatible with my current plumbing. Also it seems that this forum does not encourage the use of side inlets for closet bends.

2) Cut off a section of the 3"copper waste pipe and closet bend and convert it to PVC. There appears to be more options for closet flanges with this route. I would think that I would need a couple mission couplings to transition the copper pipe to PVC but I’m not sure how to attach the pipe from the lavatory drain to the main 3” pipe. Would a horizontal wye be acceptable?

Any advice on the best approach to lower the toilet flange would be greatly appreciated!

The lavatory drain and venting and location of the toilet


The closet flange and bend is connected to 3" copper waste pipe. Vent pipe in the back around shower area.


The lavatory waste line is tied in with the side inlet of the closet bend




The closet bend in relation with the subfloor. The flange is 1.25"-1.5" above the subfloor. There's about 1/2" of space between the bottom of the flange and the top of the closet bend.


I would like to transition the tile floor with the hardwood (3/8" thick)


The previous mud bed and tile had two transition pieces and was awkwardly high so that's why I would like to avoid building up the floor if possible

 

[Geofd]

Try a copper street flange or get a Charlotte fitting book and see what the dimensions of a pvc closet bend is and a pvc street flange

 

[dmmsr]

You have the floor out, I would replace as much copper as possible with pvc. If you were tight and had to put like for like I would've said the closet bend with side inlet. But you have plenty of room. But a wye in and tie the lavey in. Now if you are tight on space for a pvc 90 and flange you could cheat a bit. Put a street 90 in with the street side facing up, obviously. Trim the street side down and even the flange a bit. Not too keen on doing this but had to a few times when space is tight.

 

[frontporch]

There’s the easy way and the right way. Not sure what the right way is but couldn’t you go this route after cutting the flange “flush with the floor?
With its rubber gasket it fits into a 3” pipe. You twist to drive the flange into the gasket and make it expand and seal the pipe as it grabs hold

I guess the concern is that you still have an acceptable elbow below to carry away effluent

 

[arctic bill]

I would try to find a copper toilet flange that is fit , in other word it fitsinside the 90 degree bend without any pipe.