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Actually, as I may have posted earlier, our vintage 1933 "low tank" toilet has sprung a leak in its flush tube.
The Google search I did to determine the toilet's age -- before it occurred to me to check the tank lid, which is neatly stamped with the date of manufacture -- directed me to a "how to repair" page which cautions its readers that removing these "vintage" plumbing fixtures can significantly devalue older homes.
I don't think this statement takes into consideration the fact that the yahoos who installed this particular unit deemed it advisable to saw through a floor joist to position the waste stack, presumably in the 1930s although the actual date is anyone's guess. Some years later, the stress to the adjacent floor joist caused it to snap, at which point the then-current owners jacked it up with a pair of two-by-fours -- a "temporary" repair that was still in place when we purchased the house in 1993. The home inspector we hired failed to notice anything amiss (and as first-time homeowners we were fairly clueless), so it wasn't properly repaired until roughly eight years ago.
I may be wrong, but I'm not thinking this bathroom is adding anything to the value of our home. It may be worth trying to sell the old toilet, though, in case someone else wants that vintage charm.
I personally want a 1.6 gallon flush.
Ah, but I mentioned a leaky pipe. Astute readers will probably have already guessed that it's necessary to replace the floor tiles (and if we're particularly unlucky, parts of the subfloor as well). This was advisable anyway due to the sheer ugliness of the puke-yellow vinyl that's in there now, replete with random gashes and odd cigarette burns.
Yesterday I peeled off the vinyl baseboard (black, in case the bathroom couldn't get uglier) and discovered that the last renovation to this room consisted of wallpaper over paneling.
It's definitely true what people say about old houses being a can of worms. Nothing is ever simple; every attempt at repair invariably reveals more horrors that ought to be addressed. Fortunately this room is small. If I can keep the chaos contained to that 4'x7' area, it'll be fine.
Eventually.
In the meantime, dear friends, if you hear of anyone looking for vintage toilet parts...
The Google search I did to determine the toilet's age -- before it occurred to me to check the tank lid, which is neatly stamped with the date of manufacture -- directed me to a "how to repair" page which cautions its readers that removing these "vintage" plumbing fixtures can significantly devalue older homes.
I don't think this statement takes into consideration the fact that the yahoos who installed this particular unit deemed it advisable to saw through a floor joist to position the waste stack, presumably in the 1930s although the actual date is anyone's guess. Some years later, the stress to the adjacent floor joist caused it to snap, at which point the then-current owners jacked it up with a pair of two-by-fours -- a "temporary" repair that was still in place when we purchased the house in 1993. The home inspector we hired failed to notice anything amiss (and as first-time homeowners we were fairly clueless), so it wasn't properly repaired until roughly eight years ago.
I may be wrong, but I'm not thinking this bathroom is adding anything to the value of our home. It may be worth trying to sell the old toilet, though, in case someone else wants that vintage charm.
I personally want a 1.6 gallon flush.
Ah, but I mentioned a leaky pipe. Astute readers will probably have already guessed that it's necessary to replace the floor tiles (and if we're particularly unlucky, parts of the subfloor as well). This was advisable anyway due to the sheer ugliness of the puke-yellow vinyl that's in there now, replete with random gashes and odd cigarette burns.
Yesterday I peeled off the vinyl baseboard (black, in case the bathroom couldn't get uglier) and discovered that the last renovation to this room consisted of wallpaper over paneling.
It's definitely true what people say about old houses being a can of worms. Nothing is ever simple; every attempt at repair invariably reveals more horrors that ought to be addressed. Fortunately this room is small. If I can keep the chaos contained to that 4'x7' area, it'll be fine.
Eventually.
In the meantime, dear friends, if you hear of anyone looking for vintage toilet parts...
