PVC Toilet Flange Removal - How to Remove Glued in Flange
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- čas přidán 23. 08. 2024
- Reciprocating Saw: www.amazon.com...
Saw Blades: www.amazon.com...
Wood Chisel : www.amazon.com...
Flange: www.amazon.com...
This video shows how to remove a PVC toilet flange. The flange in this video was installed incorrectly, and glued in to place. Removal of the glued-in flange can be done easily with minimal tools.
Love the no nonsense delivery of information. No begging for likes and subscribes, no dumb intro segment describing how you got an unlevel flange. Direct. thanks.
Thanks, glad you like my style, Matt! Be sure to like, subscribe, follow, share, admire, promote, invite, wash, smell, pet, feed, and water my ego...... HAHAHAHA! I hope you find all of my videos to be serving instead of 'self-serving'. Take care my brother!
@@PhilCrockett nothing wrong with self serving bud. My wife just went to sleep resulting in me self serving for 3.37 seconds. Make sure to like and subscribe!!!
Gotta second that comment, thanks for the quick and to the point video! Our flange is not so clean and new, how can we tell if the flange is on the outside of the pipe?
@@PhilCrockettthat was very humble to not suggest stroking your ego 😂. Great video btw. I just bought a super cheap trailer from 2 meth heads and they let it fall into total disrepair.. toilet badly leaking the past 2 days, buddy thought it just needed a new gasket. When I removed the toilet I saw the flange was cracked and parts missing too. I watched a few videos and decided it’s better to finally buy me a sawzall then pay a plumber (I do siding and landscaping). Gonna give it a go tomorrow
I work maintenance at a residential apartment property. I get these work orders sometimes, but the old dogs around here never trained me how to do it so efficiently! All their ways were so ungodly slow and impractical… thanks
Thanks for watching and commenting, Zachary!
Like most people on here, you saved me a few hundred dollars. And didn't want to cut into it till I watched somebody else do it. Thanks for the save!
No prob! So glad you found my video helpful!
Very helpful! Thanks for giving me the confidence to do it! Learned a lot in the process too!
finally someone with a practical and honest take on this task. even the fact you tapped into the side pipe makes me feel human, as had the exact same error.
Thanks for this. I have a similar problem and I didn't want to start cutting up my pipes until I saw someone else do it. I appreciate the video!
Glad my video helped you out! Thanks for watching and commenting!
This saved me a couple of hundred dollars. I had a toilet flange that ended up being more than an inch above the floor after the tiles were removed. Thanks for the video.
You bet, Adbest! thanks for taking the time to comment! glad my video helped you out!
Adbest Dormeus Thats some think tile
Thank you. You are the first to show how to remove the top
You’re welcome 😊
For those of us with, at best, domestic duty power hand-tools (which typically won't include that fancy saw you have), you can break off the surface level flange parts with the chisel (or screwdriver lol) and for the inside-pipe flange cut, use any simple hand-saw that fits. I happened to have a mini hacksaw (Amazon query for Bahco 218 Mini Hacksaw with 32 Teeth Per Inch) which is small enough to fit inside the 3" flange spout. It worked great, and you'll have less chance of cutting through the drainpipe. As a bonus, I needed this anyway because the upright bolts that came with my new toilet were too long to allow the cap to be snapped on.
good tip
Exact same problem, not sure why builder glued it to begin with. New one will stay by gravity and screws into the floor. Love how simple you kept it...very helpful, thank you!!!!!
Thanks for watching and commenting, my friend! Glad my video helped you out
Looks easy when you do it. When I do it I see myself starting the cut in the bathroom and ending up out of the room into the hallway because the saw runs away from me. Ha ha
definitely need to be careful!
What happens if it’s on the outside of the pipe
Am I the only one who thinks this guy sounds like Sheldon Cooper? Great video. Thanks a lot:)
I've been told that before. Glad you liked the video, Mike!
cool video. Just finished removing the old one. Only took about five minutes. Thank you for sharing
Nice work!
Thanks for posting this! Saved my bathroom!
Glad I can help u out, Jessica!
YEP! Best simple video I looked at. Thank you
This is great and all, but all the videos I’ve watched about this is for flanges in concrete. What about the flanges on bathrooms where the drain pipe is the ceiling of my basement? I’m pretty sure that’s a common occurrence here in the states.
I was able to remove the old flage (a female) as opposed to male in this video. A heat gun is a must. As well as 4" saw zall blades instead of 6" in this video, and a hand based 'multi saw' chop saw. Cut 1/2 to 3/4 way through the flange with sawzall, then used the hand saw and cut the rest of the way through. Use heat gun until the flange is light brown, and pry it out with vise grip and chisel. Hammer should be a last resolution.
Do not use a propane blow torch.
Thanks for the great tips! Hope your comment helps someone else out
Thank you so very much. Replacing this today
let me know how it went
Excellent!! Excellent!! Thanks so much!
You're very welcome!
You saved my a$$ today with this video Thank you!!!
Glad I could help!
Good idea but there is a also another way of doing this without damaging the pipe. Make one cut and add a little heat. The pipe will pull out with ease.
Sounds like that is worth a try! thanks for the tip
Nice job. I was working on this job today and two things went wrong. I marred this inside of the drain pipe and my drain pipe slightly cracked from wacking with a chisel.
What I could’ve done better (still not done), use a smaller saws all blade for better precision. I actually will try a multi tool next for the inner notches. And will get a smaller and newer chisel.
yes, that can happen. just need to go slow and be patient with the process. Hope it turns out ok for you.
I don't know what kind of glue was used in the 70's, but my old flange sleeve isn't budging. The old flange seems to be made of some sort of really hard rubber that is gray on the inside and black on the outside. The chisel just dents it a little. Is there an alternative short of calling a plumber and replacing the old pipe. This is a second story bathroom so the pipe curves immediately.
gosh....I don't know. hard to give advice without seeing it. maybe take pic and go to a plumbing store and ask.
great video as I recently could have used this. Too bad I didn't watch it before I replaced my flange.
Hopefully, you won't need my video anytime soon! I don't wish this kind of luck on anyone!
The first time I replaced one I didn’t have a video either. But going forward I have lots of them! I so glad that I can create reference libraries. This and others I have stored are priceless gems♥️
Fantastic informative video sir thank you 👍👍👍👍👍
You're welcome!
thank you for the video. Exactly what I needed
You're welcome!
Thank you!! Worked like a charm!
You're welcome, Darcy!! Thanks for taking the time to comment! Hope my other videos are just as useful to you.
excellent worked perfectly for me thank you!
you're welcome!
You forgot to say to use an Estwing hammer. I've got to get another one. The Stanley is good but it's not an Estwing. Happy Mowing, Buddy!
Hey Lewie! Yes.... Estwing rules! When I was building houses in the late 80's, I bought my first Estwing, and i've never looked back!
My 1st one was a throw away from 2 guys I was working with when they flattened a thumb or 2. I got it to help set clutches on the dragline I was running and it grew on me. So far I've managed to loose two 18 oz. waffle head framers. I thought my son got them but I have no way of knowing. He was just a sprout at the time but he liked those hammers. I'll just get another one one day. Thanks Phil and GBWYou!
My first framer was a waffle head with a super long wooden handle. Every time I hit the nail it would give a high pitch "ping" sound. so... everyday it would be like ...."ping ping ping ping ping etc.... all day long. My boss made me buy that first Estwing hammer due to the annoying pinging sounds. He didn't give me a choice. He actually made me buy it when we were in town picking up supplies, and took it out of my check. I was a little ticked off about that, but it was the best hammer purchase I ever made. Funny that I have a story about that.
I always liked the 'ping'. That way I knew I hit something instead of just something! I just need to get another one and I'd say everybody that has one has a story. We aren't alone I betcha!
Thanks for this info. My flange is below the floor’s surface. How would I cut the rest of the top off first?
Im not sure what you mean by "the rest of the top". If you're flange is below the floor, just use a jumbo wax ring. hope this helps.
@@PhilCrockett the part that you cut off is slightly below the floor tile.
It's so hard to give advice sometimes without seeing it. I'd hate to steer you wrong, my friend. Is your tile already in? Is this new construction? You may not need to cut it. Use spacers to bring the flange up until it's positioned with the surface.
You can use pliers to pull and break the top of the flange clean off.
Great video!
Thanks, Jerri!
Thank you!
You're welcome!
And is it fine to glue the new one back? Or do I need one of the inner rubber seal type? Thanks for the vid!
You can glue the new one as long as it fits well.
Those rubber seal type flanges suck, they don’t seal. Just bought one from Lowe’s last night
Excellent
Thanks
I’m fixing to have to do this to my master bath toilet. The pvc closet flange is cracked. Unfortunately I’m on a concrete subfloor and they installed the closet flange with two metal hit anchors. Should I even bother drilling these out? I would imagine the stud in the center is hardened steel. Should I just grind the head off and take them flush to the slab? Then drill new holes after chipping out the old pvc for tapcon fasteners? I’m seriously considering calling a plumber do undertake this task but would like to avoid it if I could.
It's hard to answer without being there to look at it. I'm guessing that you have a PVC insert flange like mine, but the actual 'flange' (that you bolt to) is cracked? Right? if so, I'd personally just saw everything to the concrete slab surface to where it looks like my thumbnail pic on YT. OR...... get a flange repair kit that goes over the cracked flange. If that's not an option, then do the following:
doesn't matter that the hardware is still in the concrete. You don't have to drill out. Just as long as you can zip them down to the level surface.
1) cut and chisel out the inner flange and replace. (if there really is an inner telescopic piece).
OR......
2) buy a brass flange and install on the floor over the hole using my drilling and tapcon technique.
OR.....
3) like I said earlier, buy a 'toilet flange repair kit' and install.
Hope this helps you out, my brother!
Wish I could be there to help.
Thanks for the reply, that’s likely the fastest reply I’ve ever gotten on CZcams! You are correct, I have the same PVC flange that was cracked and previously repaired with a spanner flange on one side that also failed, I’ve decided to fix it proper once and for all but I’ll likely have to borrow a hammer drill for the new flange install. Thanks for the expedient reply!!!
No problem! So you have 2 real options. 1) The longer one that you see in my video, where you cut and chisel 2) zip it all off and screw down a brass flange.
Yes, definitely get a hammer drill....... that will make your life a lot easier. Let me know how it works out for you.
I don’t see how a brass flange would seal up to the PVC, I’ll likely be going back down with PVC. I’ll have to drill through ceramic tiles as well, I’m hoping the masonry bit can make it through the tile with a regular drill before I use the hammer drill for the slab.
It's not the flange that seals it, but the wax ring. The ring even has a horn (funnel) on one end to help. These insert flanges are fairly new. The old-school brass ring worked great for many many years. It's all about the wax ring really.
With a wooden floor, should the top of the flange be flush with the floor or should the bottom of the flange be flush/sitting on the floor?
The real answer is: the flange always works best when installed on the level of the soil pipe. HOWEVER...... You can purchase Jumbo wax ring to make up for a further reach.
How to remove the flange when is sitting and glued on outside 3" pipe and is covered with concrete all around pipe
fine chiseling is what it sounds like you're needing to do.
I have PVC elbow right underneath the toilet flange. When I tried to chip away the old PVC flange from the elbow, I broke the elbow
What should I do now ?
Depends on how far down the crack or break is. Take a pic and go to a plumbing supply store and see if they have a new flange that will slide in past the break. Also.... they may have some good advice after seeing the pic.
I want to cap off my toilet drain so I can cover the existing area with flooring. After cutting, what should I do?
cap it off permanently?
@@PhilCrockett yes. But semi-permanantly so future people can use it if desired. I'm turning an unused bathroom into a utility room and simply don't need the toilet. I have two other bathrooms :(
wow.... never have done that. However, if I were to do this, I'd install a flange that had a 'knock-out' cap. I just wouldn't knock it out. here's what I'm talking about: czcams.com/video/MyCKo7NE2Ik/video.html
What a grand idea Andrew
Will this technique also work on ABS black pipe?
Ive never been in that situation.
What do yo do if chiping the flange out and the pvc pipe is broken out too... on second floor on gypcrete and wood?
I wish I could tell you, but I've never experienced that. Hopefully someone else can read this and give advice.
I tried this method and could not get the flange out due to an extremely strong adhesive the plumber used during initial installation. It’s as though the pipes are bonded together instead of being glued. I’m currently trying to find someone to come to my house and drove the stupid flange. House is only 2 years old and already having to replace a whole bathroom worth of hardwood flooring and plumbing parts all because of a poor wax ring install.
That sucks! Sorry to hear that, David. I would say though...... you could always try thinner slices (cuts that are closer together) and see if that helps. However, in your situation, most plumbers have a tool that can saw/drill/grind it out. Let me know how it went, and what the plumber ended up doing.
Don’t know where you live but you might be able to get the tool you need from a real plumbing supply store. We are fortunate to have a Ferguson’s plumbing supply store.
Trying to remove the flange but have discovered it is sitting on top of drain pipe and glued! 1/3 of it isn't even touching top of drain pipe. Can't figure out how to get to it to remove. Will I have to remove some subfloor surrounding it first? Wish I could think of some type of tool or blade to get at it from the inside of flange.
Sorry to hear about your issue. I can't really give good advice without seeing it. Are you saying that the flange is below the surface of the floor?
@@PhilCrockett I was a little panicked when I wrote this . Have now discovered the flange is glued to outside of 3'' drain pipe. I need to replace some of the 1/2 plywood surrounding the toilet area due to previous leak. Flange is black plastic and is broken in two places where the bolt goes through for commode. Am planning on putting down 1/4 backerboard and attempting to tile before re-installing commode . I have watched videos on repairing versus removal but I did buy a chisel and small hand saw to remove. Have never attempted anything like this before.
I have a similar issue, have since replaced the damaged subfloor but must add another 3/4 plywood to get to 1 1/4 inch before laying decoupling mat instead of hardiboard and then tile. So I have to lengthen drain by adding more drain via coupling. Planning to leave an additional 2 inches of pipe until tile is laid then will cut flush with floor and add flange.
A piece of the flange fell down the pipe I didn’t use a rag could this cause my gurgling sound when I flush now?
i suppose it depends on how big the piece is. I wouldn't fix something that's not broke.
I’m removing a pvc flange pipe now to replace flange due to a wobbly toilet. Found the concrete around the flange is uneven and is most likely the cause of my wobble. What do you recommend for repair?
Without seeing it, that would be hard to diagnose. so there's no floor covering? if it's concrete like mine, it shouldn't matter much. the pipe should be straight up and down, so the flange should go in flat position as it slides in the pipe. the if there's a space due to uneven floor under one side, you can buy spacers.
@@PhilCrockett Thanks, I had put spacers but by the time the toilet was stable my gap was nearly 7/16 of an inch from floor to toilet base. The original plumber set the flange too high. The toilet would clamp down to the flange but was also being supported off the floor by the flange. So I chipped away at the concrete near the flange until I had a nearly even base. I’m currently in the process of setting the new flange in and it sits nearly flush with the concrete now! I will let you know how it goes!
I wish all the haters that have given me trouble about flushing the flange with the floor would read your post! It's wayyyyyy easier to fudge too low, than too high. If you're too low, then you can use a jumbo ring, if you're too high, then you will experience the pain of what you're going through. yes... Please let me know how it went
@@PhilCrockett Yep, so the house was a new construction spec house. The plumber that installed the flange originally also didn’t drill holes and screw down the flange. After setting the flange and screwing it down, installing a jumbo wax ring, toilet now sits flush to the ground and works perfectly. Thanks so much for your time to make these videos, it was a blessing!
EXCELLENT that you got the job done! Thanks soooo very much for commenting. I love hearing success stories. Hope you find my other videos just as useful
I wound up cutting some shallow grooves into the outside of my 3" drain pipe (the deepest groove is maybe 1mm deep). Any tips on patching those? You mentioned sanding but I assume I'd need to do something else afterward to prevent small leaks -- the cuts extend from the top of the pipe down nearly two inches.
If I did that, I would probably research bathtub repair, and/or epoxy. The great thing is..... this has liquid pass through in an instant. If it was submerged, I would be more concerned.
@@PhilCrockett Ahh good point, I guess it'd only be a real problem in the event of a lengthy backup. Or plunging... hmm. Well, I smeared a little silicone on there anyway, hopefully between that and the cement it'll be completely watertight. Thanks for replying so quickly! I'll read up on epoxy.
edit: I wound up doubting the silicone so I took your advice and got some marine epoxy to work in there instead.
Good call!
It seems like primer and glue on bothe the marred pipe and new flange would seal the cuts in the pipe since the plastic is dissolved as part of the weld. Twisting the flange back and forth a bit, quickly before the glue sets, would help seal any damage also as the cut would be smeared over with dissolved plastic.
Yes there is no pressure there unless your plunging so it isn’t imperative that you have a high pressure seal there.
Am I daft or does it seem they left it sticking up cause they still needed to add tile on the floor..? At least that’s what it looked like to me.
Yes
Does this work for an abs flange and pipe?
not sure. haven't had to do that
Work the same for abs???
haven't needed to do that.... not sure.
I have problems before someone house. Fix that problem.
Thanks for the great video! But I'm pretty sure there's no L at the end of the word SAW. ;)
You're right! It's my country draw that you heard. OR ...is it my country .............wait for it................................drawl?
XD
I imagine some one doing step by step... and at the end he says now remove the rag inside the flange
Right
where's your gloves?
In my glove box
Este truco ya es viejo para los mexicans
Los mexicanos que son viejos son difíciles