Have you ever had big problems with a toilet? Neither had I…until I did. The primary bathroom toilet began to smell foul even after it was cleaned AND NOT USED!
The toilet was clean, trust me. I replaced the seat. Still an odor. I suspected a dirty toilet tank. It can happen. I dropped in cleaner circles in the reserve tank…still the whiff of urine. So, I stepped up the cleaning…liberal amounts of white vinegar inside the tank and a brush scrub of the tank walls with the vinegar. Eventually, after the vinegar smell dissipated, the unwanted scent came creeping back.
Urine is notorious for getting other places and of course causing stains that won’t go away. I imagined the source was somewhere other than the toilet. Maybe in the grout, or on the wall or adjacent vanity? I scrubbed the grout ferociously. I sealed and repainted the wall and the vanity. Sure, all I could smell were chemicals and paint, but eventually the smell, reminiscent of a bus stop bathroom, returned.
I called a plumber and told him my woes. $350 later I have a new toilet and no smell.
The lifespan on a toilet is anywhere from 15-50 years. My toilet was about 14 years old. But it all it takes is a crack, a broken flange, corrosion of the wax seal, etc. and you could face this frustrating problem or worse…at any point in the lifecycle.
Painting the walls and the vanity was a lot of work. More than $350 of my time. So, consider this a public service. If you have had more than a flapper to replace or start having odor issues that cleaning alone does not resolve, then consider a new toilet.
Also, during my research I discovered that the round bowl was not ideal either. Besides being more comfortable, Consumer Reports suggests that elongated bowls stay cleaner and allows fewer odors to escape. The deeper and wider the water, the better solid waste odors will be trapped by the water. Round bowls do have a slightly smaller footprint, but if you have the room, consider making the switch to an elongated toilet.
If your beach condo is anything like mine, you might have a key for the common front door, a key for your own unit, and another key for an owner’s closet. That is three keys and counting. You might still have different keys for a locked shed, outdoor shower stall, garage closet…you get the picture. Did you know you can straighten the jumble of keys out to a manageable number by simply rekeying a lock?
but my renters could use the door so I did not think much more about it. Then, during the offseason, I ran into the same problem with the front door lock…the key would not fit in the lock at all! See video for the problem in action.
of the lock cylinder so that the lock functions with a different key. While you could do this yourself, I would not recommend it. It requires adjusting the pins and springs inside the tumbler. Most lock pin sets are a few hundred dollars and this just would not be cost-effective. If you need to rekey multiple existing locks, call a locksmith. However, if your situation is similar to mine and you need to replace a lock but do not want a new key, look to buy the same brand of lock (in most cases Schlage or Kwikset) and ask the hardware store to rekey that new lock to match your existing key. Lowes and the Home Depot will both do this, typically for another $5. Keep in mind that different brands of lock (Schlage, Kwikset, Medeco, etc.) cannot be rekeyed to work with each other. If you have different brands you will need to opt for one throughout. I highly recommend Schlage and you will have no problem locating that brand in stores. So get that mass of keys in order and rekey your locks!
They offered a soft washing which manages to achieve the benefits of power washing without the high pressure of typical power washing methods that can so often damage vinyl, stucco, wood and chip paint. Soft washing is achieved by combining soap with hot water and only a moderate amount of water pressure. While not a miracle worker by any means, the results are still impressive.
