Back To Wall Toilets

Guide To Back To Wall Toilets

Guide to Back to Wall Toilets

Back to wall toilets are also referred to as floor standing toilets, hidden cistern toilet suites or as a WC with hidden cistern. Simply put, they are a standard pottery toilet pan which sits on the floor, with a cistern concealed hidden away in the wall or a toilet unit.

They're a good compromise between the older close coupled toilet style and the modern wall hung toilet style. They also come in at a more competitive overall price than some wall hung toilets with frames, so can be a great value option for creating a minimal look.

What are back to wall toilets?

Back to wall toilets are floor standing toilet pans that require a concealed cistern. They are generally contemporary in shape and offer a modern design option. Especially for those not able to accommodate a wall hung pan and preferring a hidden cistern (concealed cistern).

They're produced in a number of different ways depending on the manufacturer and chosen brand. Villeroy and Boch for example make a lovely range of toilets. Including floor standing back to wall toilets that are very popular on the UK bathroom market. And also feature the option to add the ceramic plus finish to most of their range.

Ceramic plus features V&B‘s easy clean coating. The piece goes through an additional firing process strengthening the overall coating. This fills in the microscopic surface holes and dimples even further, allowing dirt and water to not only clean off much more easily. It also helps to repel and resist staining before dirt has any chance to adhere to the surface at all. This is visible as the water running over the surface of a ceramic plus finished item has a beading effect. Not unlike water running off a newly polished car. The colour is not affected in any way and still appears as their lovely standard Alpin White finish. But with the special surface upgrade working hard to keep the product cleaner for longer.

Villeroy and Boch's 'In 60 Seconds' video describing their Ceramic Plus surface finish.

Some of the best back to wall toilet designs are modern in style, contemporary. Clean shapes lend themselves well to this product type. They hide pipework behind a smooth simple single form. And connect to the cistern seamlessly from a concealed clean water feed that comes into the pan from the wall or furniture. Totally undetected and concealed.

A popular request is for a Laufen floor standing WC. This Swiss manufacturer produces high-quality ceramics. Complete with a wonderful crisp finish and attention to detail. Their designs are fresh and continental. And will elevate your bathroom design with their elegant, understated class and refinement.

Back to wall toilets - how do they work?

In terms of how they actually work, they are very simple and straightforward, no metal framework is required. You will need the toilet itself, a seat and then a concealed cistern and flush plate or push button, and that’s it you’re ready to install!

The cistern, hidden in the wall or in a toilet unit, feeds clean water into the pan when you push the button or press the plate. This is fed down the flush pipe and flushes your toilet. This connection is concealed out of sight completely making it visually more appealing and less cluttered. But also reduces the flushing noise compared to exposed cisterns.

The soil pipe, for which the connection is also hidden out of sight, then carries the waste and dirty water out of the pan. Either vertically or horizontally depending on your connection. You will need to check with your plumber or builder on the position of your soil pipe and compare this to the toilet pans specification drawings. Most pans will be horizontal or vertical, opt for an open back floor standing if you are unsure. There will be space at the sides of the back of the toilet to bring your soil pipe out horizontally if required.

Back to wall toilet with vanity units

Back to wall toilets are the perfect toilet choice for use with fitted furniture. Or even freestanding toilet units with a matching basin vanity unit.

A quality set of bathroom furniture in a matching finish will make your final bathroom look polished and well coordinated. A back to wall floor standing toilet is very simple to install onto a specialist cistern unit. Most manufacturers such as Roper Rhodes actually make their own specialist cisterns. These sit perfectly inside a toilet unit, ready for your choice of toilet.

A variety of looks can be achieved. From the fashionable angular lines of a more traditional pan (Victorian and Edwardian shapes) mixed with grey units and black details for a bang up to date industrial fashionable feel. Or more delicate colours and floral tones for a softer country cottage look.

The image illustrates a variety of looks you can create with Roper Rhodes furniture and a back to wall toilet

Back to wall toilets and cisterns

Back to wall toilets can also be installed with a cistern fitted into the wall or a cavity your plumber or contractor can build especially. This creates a lovely clean look overall especially if you are concealing the cistern into the wall. As the cistern is completely hidden it won’t detract from the streamlined look of a wonderfully tiled wall for instance.

The Villeroy and Boch Architectura Washdown Rimless WC Architectura Washdown Rimless WC, which has DirectFlush and AquaReduct is fully back to wall. With a simple single form. These are so easy to clean and maintain, not only with the DirectFlush technology inside the pan leaving no place for germs to hide. But the outer shape being smooth and simple leave no place for dust and dirt to build up. The addition of Villeroy and Boch’s CeramicPlus coating will ensure another layer of dirt busting technology is built into your new toilet. Keeping it looking cleaner for longer and more hygienic, something we all want in our bathroom environment.

The image above shows the attractive angles and simple forms of the Villeroy and Boch Architectura Washdown Rimless WC

The DirectFlush technology from Villeroy and Boch is a rimless toilet pan design. Described as a new generation of rimless toilet it ensures 3 main points: Hygiene, Design and Efficiency. It ensures the highest degree of hygiene by being easy to maintain and care for with due to the rimless shape no area is missed. The entire interior of the bowl is flushed clean. The surface upgrade to CeramicPlus aids this further! A splash free and accurate precise flow of flushing water flushes up to the top level of the lip. Great design is instilled through a simple and timeless design that can be incorporated into almost any bathroom design. And finally efficiency is maintained with Villeroy and Boch’s technology. Which is water saving being developed to use the ideal water flow for maximum flushing effect.

The image above shows how Villeroy and Boch's DirectFlush rimless toilets work and keep the toilet pan cleaner for longer.

The video below from Villeroy & Boch illustrates the working of the rimless direct flush WC’s. It shows how they operate without a flushing rim but a slight horizontal ledge, this is the next development in rimless toilets. It is sure to be an investment purchase in a quality toilet that will last for years to come.

Can I have a back to wall toilet?

For 99.9% of bathroom renovations – yes! Back to wall, washdown or floor-standing toilets as they are also known, are suitable for any bathroom layout and any bathroom design.

Even if you are not able to recess the cistern into the wall, or house it in furniture there are still options. The Geberit monolith for floor standing toilets offer a solution to this problem. Allowing installation of a back to wall toilet in any bathroom. The Geberit monolith stands freely outside of the wall. It is slim, modern and neat and comes in a range of luxurious glass finishes. It houses the cistern neatly outside of the wall meaning it can be fitted to almost any bathroom renovation project. It is available in 2 heights and a choice of black, mint, sand, umber or white glass.

Final thoughts on back to wall toilets

• Don’t forget to purchase your concealed toilet cistern in addition
• Easyclean upgrades are always a good investment
• A soft close toilet seat upgrade will add a touch of luxury
• Back to wall / Floor Standing / Washdown toilets are robust, timeless and easy to install
• Traditional or more modern styles are available
• These toilets work well with bathroom furniture

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