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Sam Brugato · Feb 6, 2008, 09:07 AM

I'm getting a gurgling/choking sound from my toilet along with a poor flush.

A new toilet was replaced and moved to another location in my 2nd floor bathroom (6-7 feet from an outside wall to an inside wall). Should this 2nd floor toilet have its own vent stack to work properly? The toilet is approximately 6-7 feet from the outside wall vent stack and the pipes from the toilet for both the waste and dry venting are in the floor until they meet the original placement of the old toilet.

massplumber2008 · Feb 6, 2008, 10:17 AM

This toilet should have its own vent or wet vent... If this toilet was piped properly the lavatory drain pipe should be 2 inches (has 1.5" trap to lavatory) and should continue full size 2" into the attic and exit roof 2"...OR connect into a vent that enters the attic (should be 2") and connects to the vent that goes out the roof. That would be a wetted vent --->> The toilet vent acts as the waste line for the lavatory.

If toilet is individually vented then there should be a 2" pipe coming into the attic near toilet area....and probably an 1.5" vent for the lavatory... unless, of course, they connect at the bathroom battery behind the wall at the bathroom with itself. Anyway, look for the clues I gave you...

1) looking for 2" pipe behind lavatory or up in attic near where lavatory would be underneath)

2) looking for 2" pipe anywhere in the attic that is near the bathroom underneath...

Get back to us with your thoughts/observations.

Sam Brugato · Feb 6, 2008, 10:40 AM

Thank you for your help. What I know in my situation is that the toilet, sink and shower all tie into a vent stack against the outside wall. Also, the same configuration in a bathroom below ties into the same vent stack. The toilet is vented horizonally below the floor for about 7 feet untl it meets the stack.

Before I remodeled, the existing high-Flow toilet was within inches of the vent stack and I was not having any problems with the flush or gurgling sounds.

So, you believe that my toilet and sink (which are next to each other) should have been vented together to the roof?

Would it be possilbe to repair this by cutting into the sink drain or the toilet drain and then adding a vent to the roof. This is a 2nd floor bathroom.

Thanks again!

massplumber2008 · Feb 6, 2008, 10:53 AM

I assumed some things... It sounds like toilet is vented properly if pipe runs under floor and connects into vent stack.

I am now wondering if toilet was installed properly... did it just get installed?

Sam Brugato · Feb 6, 2008, 11:16 AM

Originally Posted by massplumber2008

I assumed some things...It sounds like toilet is vented properly if pipe runs under floor and connects into vent stack.

I am now wondering if toilet was installed properly....did it just get installed??

The toilet was installed last winter by a contractor, the gurgling, poor flush was there from the beginning. This is a high-end TOTO toilet with a 3" trap.

So you are saying it's ok to vent under the floor and then connect to the vent stack even though the toilet is at the end of the waste pipe? My bathroom configuration is like this, toilet, sink and then shower. I was reading the plumbing code which I think it says that the vent must go at lease 6" vertically above the highest fixture in the bathroom before it can go horizonally? Correct?

massplumber2008 · Feb 6, 2008, 11:24 AM

Kind of... but does not have to go vertical first. Here, vent must roll above the centerline of the waste line (under floor ) and can run a pretty good distance away to vent stack AS LONG AS IT CONNECTS AT LEAST 6" ABOVE FLOOD LEVEL OF THE HIGHEST FIXTURE IN BATHROOM (in your case, toilet vent must connect 6 inches higher then the top of the sink). It is about height off floor before connects into vent more so than about horizontal distance. So.. all sounds good. Back to improper installation... I would lift the toilet and have a look at the wax gasket... see if some squeezed out into pipe/flange and is effectively blocking the drain pipe some.

Make sure to look at flange AND the underside of toilet. That is my thoughts at this point. Let me know if you need help on lifting/re-installing toilet!

Sam Brugato · Feb 6, 2008, 11:53 AM

Originally Posted by massplumber2008

Kinda...but does not have to go vertical first. Here, vent must roll above the centerline of the waste line (under floor ) and can run a pretty good distance away to vent stack AS LONG AS IT CONNECTS AT LEAST 6" ABOVE FLOOD LEVEL OF THE HIGHEST FIXTURE IN BATHROOM (in your case, toilet vent must connect 6 inches higher then the top of the sink). It is about height off floor before connects into vent moreso than about horizontal distance. So..all sounds good. Back to improper installation...I would lift the toilet and have a look at the wax gasket...see if some squeezed out into pipe/flange and is effectively blocking the drain pipe some.

Make sure to look at flange AND the underside of toilet. That is my thoughts at this point. Let me know if you need help on lifting/re-installing toilet!!

So you are saying that the vent pipe must connect to the vent stack in the wall at lease 40 or so inches in order for it to work propertly and that a toilet does not need to be vented by itselfl?

massplumber2008 · Feb 6, 2008, 03:48 PM

No... I am saying that the toilet vent can run under the floor by itself and connect into the vent stack around 46"-48+ off the floor (this means that if the sink were to overflow due to blockage... then the sink would actually overflow the sink rim (and onto floor) BEFORE it would back up and flow down the toilet vent ---> Because toilet vent is tied 6 inches higher than the sink rim). So like you suggested, toilet vent runs under floor... that is good. Then it most likely connects at the height we have been discussing.

The lavatory and toilet wet vent is another way to pipe it as well... but do not be too concerned about that as it does not sound like your situation.

Check the toilet base/wax ring and let me know what you find.

iamgrowler · Feb 6, 2008, 04:14 PM

Originally Posted by massplumber2008

Kinda...but does not have to go vertical first. Here, vent must roll above the centerline of the waste line (under floor ) and can run a pretty good distance away to vent stack AS LONG AS IT CONNECTS AT LEAST 6" ABOVE FLOOD LEVEL OF THE HIGHEST FIXTURE IN BATHROOM

And make sure the horizontal portion of the vent has 1/4" per foot of fall back to the drain, right?

I was sitting here trying to recall the last time I had to flat-vent a plumbing fixture -- If memory serves, it was about 2 years ago during a ground work and I was about 4 inches too long on my trap-arm.

The basement flooded during a major rain storm back in November and filled the flat portion of the vent with silt, fortunately I had installed a clean out on the vent and was able to flush it out.