• ArbitraryValue@sh.itjust.works
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    75
    arrow-down
    3
    ·
    edit-2
    9 months ago

    Toilets are relatively affordable (about $100 for a cheap but perfectly functional one) and actually quite easy to install. Unless there’s deliberate damage that’s not visible in the photo, this should take a trip to the hardware store and less than an hour of work to fix.

    (A really malicious ex would have taken one of the kitchen cabinet doors. A matching replacement would probably have to be custom-made.)

    • ryathal@sh.itjust.works
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      26
      arrow-down
      2
      ·
      9 months ago

      Toilets are heavy, I’d be more concerned about physical danger from anyone willing to carry a toilet out of a house.

      • rekabis@lemmy.ca
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        16
        arrow-down
        4
        ·
        9 months ago

        Toilets are heavy

        …since when? It’s only ceramic, not cast iron.

        And yes, the integrated jobbies aren’t light, but they are just unwieldy due to their size. The rest of them (at least 90+% of all residential toilets) you can just disconnect the tank from the seat and take each part out separately.

          • rekabis@lemmy.ca
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            5
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            edit-2
            9 months ago

            Tip for next time - when having to lift a toilet, and you have at least a fingertip gap between the tank and the wall, you can do a vertical lift in the following manner:

            1. Take the tank lid off, disconnect the water feed.
            2. Drain the water from both the tank and the bowl. Bowl can be done by taking a large sponge or plunger and just ramming those down to push the water through the S-bend.
            3. Stick one hand down into the bowl’s drain hole, curl fingers up into that S-bend to hold it like a pail handle. Use a small face towel (don’t know the English term) if you need padding.
            4. Hold the back side of the tank with your other hand to stabilize the entire toilet.
            5. Lift with the hand that is in the drain hole.

            The weight of the tank should balance out the weight of the front part of the bowl, giving you a reasonably balanced object, albeit not a light one. By lifting from the drain hole, you are putting the lifting motion close to the centre of gravity, making it a lot less awkward. If that is still too much weight, unhook the tank from the bowl and move separately, just be aware this will make the bowl quite front-heavy, you will need to switch hands and stabilize from the front of the bowl.

            But still lift from the drain hole, it will still be easier than most any other method.

            Source: not a plumber, but have done my fair share of toilet swaps in my time. Blue-collar jack-of-all-trades father who worked as head of maintenance at a large hotel showed me that trick.

    • HappycamperNZ@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      10
      ·
      9 months ago

      I had to help parents replace a hinge on some that were made 15 years ago.

      Company out of business, all stickers faded, different sizes in different places.

      Happy to say after 3 trips to hammer barn, 3 days of trying different things and pulling my back twice (fucking low corners) we finally…

      Gave up.

      • ArbitraryValue@sh.itjust.works
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        2
        ·
        edit-2
        9 months ago

        I bought a house built in 1979 and never renovated – drop ceilings in every room, wallpaper, and carpet that used to be pink. I replaced everything - ceilings, walls, and floors. I even had to replace structural elements because the termite damage turned out to have been “repaired”.

        I dared not touch a single thing in the kitchen.

    • AwkwardLookMonkeyPuppet@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      7
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      9 months ago

      When was the last time you priced toilets? I was just looking at them at Lowe’s and they’re all $500ish. Maybe they have some cheap ones in the back?