Looking for unique good quality stuff for a house remodel

[FrankPintor]

one thing to remember when paying people to remodel- the default mode here is always to use the cheapest material. Better quality is almost always available, and, usually, not that expensive. But everyone assumes your number one goal is to spend the least possible.
So- ask, always, your electrician, or plumber, or tile guy, what are your choices.
I had someone else install new toilets in 2007. In about 2018, one of the started leaking at the floor. I yanked it up, and found it had just been siliconed down.
I went around the corner to the wholesale plumbing supply place, and asked for a wax donut seal for a toilet. The guys looked at me like I was crazy, but I insisted, so they pulled out the biggest ladder, and climbed up to a shelf 4 meters up, and pulled one down for me. It cost five bucks, is installed without tools, and works very well. Standard on every single toilet in the USA, and nobody uses them here, because, hey, its five bucks.

What would a wax donut seal be called here? We're about to install toilets, and I wouldn't have seen anything wrong with using silicone.

 

[Ries]

Aro de connexion. Obvio, they cost a bit more now- 10;000 pesos on mercado libre. My original 2007 toilet was just sitting on the tile floor with a 5 cm piece of plastic pipe sticking up. No seal between pipe and toilet- the silicone was around the perimeter of the base of the toilet to the tile floor. Silicone worked loose with years of sitting, water started leaking out between tiles base of toilet and tiles. Not good. But no way of knowing exactly which shortcuts or savings any given worker will choose, hence the need for more diligence.

 

[PhillyD]

one thing to remember when paying people to remodel- the default mode here is always to use the cheapest material. Better quality is almost always available, and, usually, not that expensive. But everyone assumes your number one goal is to spend the least possible.
So- ask, always, your electrician, or plumber, or tile guy, what are your choices.
I had someone else install new toilets in 2007. In about 2018, one of the started leaking at the floor. I yanked it up, and found it had just been siliconed down.
I went around the corner to the wholesale plumbing supply place, and asked for a wax donut seal for a toilet. The guys looked at me like I was crazy, but I insisted, so they pulled out the biggest ladder, and climbed up to a shelf 4 meters up, and pulled one down for me. It cost five bucks, is installed without tools, and works very well. Standard on every single toilet in the USA, and nobody uses them here, because, hey, its five bucks.
Similar deal with many electrical parts- the difference between a quality light switch, and a very crummy one, is often a dollar or two, but they will always automatically hand you the cheap one. In many cases, the neighborhood ferreteria is where the construction guys buy everything, and most of the small ones dont stock quality.
I go down to Sarmiento near Nuevo de Julio, for electrical supplies and builders hardware- there are several big distributors of both in a few blocks.
you can choose from all the possible manufacturers of, say, light switches, or hinges, and there is excellent argentine made quality in both, but you have to know to ask, and then work to get it.
I needed to replace some door hardware for my 120 year old apartment- the big Herrajes stores there had exact replacement parts, either in plated steel or bronze, still made and stocked.
But my neighborhood ferreteria had crappy stamped chinese stuff only, that wouldnt fit anyway.
Everything here requires doing your homework, but it pays off in the end.

Thanks some good information there. Pennywise, pound foolish applies for sure. Very glad on the hardware parts. Definitely want to restore or replace with like kind not cheap knock offs. Our building went up in 1918. Much original hardware in place but 10+ layers of paint covering.

 

[FrankPintor]

Aro de connexion. Obvio, they cost a bit more now- 10;000 pesos on mercado libre. My original 2007 toilet was just sitting on the tile floor with a 5 cm piece of plastic pipe sticking up. No seal between pipe and toilet- the silicone was around the perimeter of the base of the toilet to the tile floor. Silicone worked loose with years of sitting, water started leaking out between tiles base of toilet and tiles. Not good. But no way of knowing exactly which shortcuts or savings any given worker will choose, hence the need for more diligence.

Seems like our engineer thought of the seal. Amazing