A Truly Top-Knotch Toilet

October 31, 2010 11:22 AM

Please recommend a top knotch toilet with the best, most powerful flush.

My current toilet is an Artesian and is supposed to be a water saver type.
There is a small spot of rust and it takes two and sometimes three flushes.

I am not that interested in saving water as much as I desire to have all the contents down in one flush.

One more thing--it needs to fit in semi-close quarters.

Feel free to share your expertise about what makes a truly great toilet.

posted by AuntieRuth to Home & Garden (16 answers total)

I did research for this several years ago and decided on the Toto Drake. We have 2 and they are fantastic.
posted by CathyG at 11:29 AM on October 31, 2010 [1 favorite]

We're very happy with our Toto Ultramax. It's small(ish) and does a great job.
posted by sharding at 11:30 AM on October 31, 2010

Seconding the Toto Drake. It's a basic toilet that works very well.
posted by cabingirl at 11:37 AM on October 31, 2010

Mentioned previously, Terry Love's toilet reviews. He likes Toto and Western models for one-and-done, even without the need for pressure/vacuum assistance. (The standard American toilet design is, in all honesty, not a model of efficiency.)
posted by holgate at 11:40 AM on October 31, 2010

If 'one flush' is your biggest concern, look into a toilet with a pressure assisted flush option. I spent a year in a rental with a PAF toilet and never once had to look for a plunger. Many popular brands offer it as an option that replaces the guts of a traditional tank, so it does not take up any more space than a gravity flush reservoir.
posted by datacenter refugee at 11:41 AM on October 31, 2010

Consumer Reports liked the American Standard Champion 4 and the 1.6 gallon Kohler Cimarron best. Both were ranked considerably higher than the Toto models mentioned above.

We have the Cimarron and have had no trouble with it.
posted by jedicus at 11:50 AM on October 31, 2010

OMG, the toto drake is amazing. We had one installed, and within a month replaced our other two toilets with them. When we sell our house, I will be sad to leave behind our toilets.
posted by dpx.mfx at 12:10 PM on October 31, 2010

Toto. I have both the UltraMax and the Drake. I have a an oddly named domestic toilet called, the Patriot. Well, I am going to be mean, and possibly seditious and say that the Patriot is AWFUL. It worked OK for about 5 years and then did not flush well. The husband compounded the error of the Patriot's way by installing a water saving duo flush thing. Yeah, so the Patriot is probably going to be replaced.

One of the nice things about the Toto besides getting a washlet, if you can, is that the flush does not cause spray. I am squemish about aerosolized toilet water.
posted by jadepearl at 12:11 PM on October 31, 2010

Last month, we replaced all of our mediocre, multi-flush necessary toilets with Toto Drakes. We have yet to need a second flush. I love them!
posted by murrey at 12:26 PM on October 31, 2010

The MaP testing (link via the Terry Love link above) will give you a list of toilets, rated by grams per flush. There's a huge difference in capacity between the top and bottom of the list; make sure that whatever you buy can chow down whatever you can throw at it.
posted by Forktine at 12:58 PM on October 31, 2010

Please cross the American Standard Champion off your list of considerations. I chose it based on some good reviews, but it's very disappointing. Loud, too, which makes it especially awkward when a guest has to hang out in the bathroom and flush multiple times.
posted by Corvid at 1:16 PM on October 31, 2010

We had a problem at work with, uh, clogging. So we replaced the toilets with Gerber Avalanches. No problems since.
posted by sanka at 1:50 PM on October 31, 2010

Our 2 American Standard Champions have never let us down. Our older model, bought in 2005, is considerably louder than the one we bought a couple of months ago. Not a single instance that required a double flush.
posted by puritycontrol at 3:18 PM on October 31, 2010

Best answer: We got a Jacuzzi Perfecta toilet because it was the tallest thing we could find for less than ~$350 (it was $130--there was one 1/2" taller, but I figured I could live with 18" for that price) and it has a mightily powerful flush. It also sounds like a jet plane coming in for a landing. But we only have to flush it the once. Looks like it did well on the MaP test mentioned above, too.

And much, much more reasonable for a tall person with a bad back than the extra-short we had before.
posted by galadriel at 7:01 PM on October 31, 2010

We have an American Standard Champion that's a few years old. We have had two kids potty training using it so far; they are not exactly miserly with the toilet paper and this would clog its predecessor. This model, though, is the real deal. I don't remember ever having to unclog the thing. It is not overly noisy to my ears.
posted by RikiTikiTavi at 10:09 AM on November 1, 2010

The American Standard Champion 4 is by far the best I have ever seen. Look at what it does, you will be amazed.
posted by sanka at 12:57 PM on November 2, 2010