From: *@eli.users.panix.com   
      
   (Originally posted as  in alt.hackers,   
   but reposting in alt.ascii-art for AA content.)   
      
   In alt.hackers, Horn   wrote:   
   > jdevries@gate.net wrote:   
   > >  Will I be THE LAST person to post to this group????   
   > No.   
      
   You are missing your ObHack.   
      
   So I guess I should add one of my own.   
      
   Recently I've been rennovating the main bathroom in my house. The   
   last rennovation was some twenty to thirty years ago, done by my   
   father-in-law. Neither of us are plumbers.   
      
   So the teenager stripped the room down. Took out the vanity, pulled   
   out the old toilet, stripped the floor to the sub-floor. Then he   
   put in new underlayment and tiled and grouted the the room. So far,   
   so good.   
      
   Then I went to put in the new toilet. There was a problem. This is   
   how the drain is supposed to look:   
      
             ,-,   
          ,/' _ '\,   
        .'  /'D'\  '.   
       +.  /NDRAI\  .+   
        | (NDRAIND) |   
       +'  \RAIND/  '+   
        '.  \.N./  .'   
          '\, ~ ./'   
             '-'   
      
   The two notches on the side are used to slip the bolts in to attach   
   the toilet. The drain on the floor is ninety degree rotated from that.   
   I quized the teenager about how the previous toilet was attached but   
   didn't get any good answer. I'm suspecting it was to the previous   
   underlayment, but I'm not sure.   
      
   In any case, the new underlayment doesn't extend far enough to use,   
   and the floor is tiled now, so I can't attach stuff to the subfloor   
   or underlayment without pulling out tile.   
      
   I went to my local hardware store and looked at what they had for   
   this sort of problems. What I found was a plastic "spacer" ring   
   exactly like the shape of the top of the drain pipe, with four   
   mounting holes. Cost is $3.50, so I buy it.   
      
   Well, it's not big enough to use screws to attach the spacer ring   
   to the floor, so I mark where the spacer holes are on the flange of   
   the cast iron drain pipe. Then I drill those holes out.   
      
   First I try to glue the spacer down with epoxy through the mounting   
   holes on the spacer and the holes I made in the drain. It seems to   
   work, but as soon as I tighten the nuts on the toilet bolts I feel it   
   pull free.   
      
   I pull out the toilet, scrape off the wax seal and then the epoxy.   
   Next I try pop rivets, using ones I have on hand.  It seems to   
   work, but as soon as I tighten the nuts on the toilet bolts I feel it   
   pull free.   
      
   I pull out the toilet, scrape off the wax seal and cold chisel out   
   the rivets. The counter-sunk holes in the plastic don't offer enough   
   grip. Back to the hardware store. I need a new wax seal (they run $2   
   each, but I have no more on hand). I also get a new spacer ring and   
   the largest pop rivets they have (3/8" diameter, maybe 1/2" length).   
   I need to enlarge the holes in the flange to fit these rivets, but   
   that's easy enough.   
      
   Now I put the rivets in with a washer so they won't pull through the   
   counter-sunk holes and they grip the cast iron very securely. I check   
   by really pulling on the spacer before putting the toilet on. Very   
   solidly attached.   
      
   Of course, I find out that the cast iron pipe itself has some play,   
   but I'm not about to try to deal with that. Toilet goes in, bolts   
   get tightened. Life moves on.   
      
   Elijah   
   ------   
   3x wax seal ($6), 2x spacer ($7), 1 pack rivets ($3), DIY priceless   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)