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Derek815 · Feb 18, 2010, 10:10 PM

Hello, I'm replacing a 4"x3" metal and ABS toilet flange that was rusted to pieces. The ABS is glued to the outside of a 3" waste pipe. I've removed the metal ring and cut down some of the ABS. I thought I was going to chisel off the rest of the ABS, but based on what I've read here, that doesn't seem feasible. I'm thinking about installing a flange that mounts inside of the 3" waste pipe. I've read that it may not be code, but it might work. I also ran across a product on the web called the Pipe Parana. It claims to do what I need, remove the old ABS from outside of the waste pipe, but I haven't been able to find a single user of the product online so I'm not sure what the results would be. If I cut off the entire old fitting, there would only be about 1" of pipe sticking out of the concrete foundation. Maybe there are some options I'm not considering. At this point, I'm really unsure of the best way to proceed and need some guidance.

massplumber2008 · Feb 19, 2010, 05:41 PM

Hi Derek...

I wish you had gotten to us sooner... had a couple good fixes for that bad metal flange, but at this point we'll proceed as your situation presents... O.K?

If you cut the pipe so it leaves the 1" of pipe....is that 1" above the concrete slab... or are we really talking about a concrete foundation?

Many options here... best if you could post a picture on this.

Let me know...

MARK

Derek815 · Feb 19, 2010, 09:31 PM

Believe me, I'm kicking myself for cutting down that ABS. I'll try to get a hold of a camera. Until then, I took some measurements to better describe the situation. In the bathroom there is tile and then concrete below the tile. There is a hole in the concrete 5" in diameter and 3" deep. At 3" down, it appears to be solid concrete, but I also see a tiny bit of dirt so maybe there is earth nearby. I don't know how deep a concrete foundation normally is. Inside the 5" diameter concrete hole is the waste pipe and what remains of the fitting that is glued to the outside of the waste pipe. I cut down the ABS of the flange to the top of the waste pipe. The top of the ABS is now about 1" below the top of the concrete or 2" up from the bottom of the hole. The outside diameter of the ABS is 4". Could I glue on an outside mount 4" flange? The inside diameter of the ABS appears to be 3", though it may be 1/8" narrower; it was difficult to measure. About 1.5" of the old fitting remains glued to the outside of the waste pipe. If I were to cut away 1.5" of old fitting and waste pipe, there would only be about 0.5" of visible ABS pipe remaining, less than the 1" that I originally thought.

Derek815 · Feb 24, 2010, 11:26 AM

I'm still looking for the best solution to my toilet flange problem. The remnants of a 4" x 3" metal and ABS flange are cemented around the outside of a 3" ABS waste pipe. I removed the metal flange ring which was rusted away and (unfortunately) cut down about an inch or two of the flange ABS. So what's left now is a 3" ABS waste pipe and a layer of ABS around the outside of the pipe that used to be a 4" x 3" flange. Since a 4" x 3" flange normally fits inside a 4" waste pipe or outside a 3" waste pipe, then a 4" outside fitting flange should fit around the outside of my old 4" outside fitting flange should fit around the outside of my old 4" flange, right? I put the two together while I was in a Lowe's this weekend, and they seem to fit. So now I'm leaning toward buying a 4" outside fit flange and fitting it around both layers of ABS. Is there any reason why this wouldn't work? Is there a better solution? All responses are greatly appreciated! Thanks!