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A “planter top” toilet tank lid from Eljer

pam kueber - March 31, 2009, Updated: August 8, 2021

eljer planter top toilet

A PLANTER MOLDED RIGHT INTO A TOILET TANK LID? Well, this is a new one to me… found in this ad for a 1964 Eljer Estate toilet. And of course – LOVE it. Has anyone ever seen this? Let’s all be on the lookout. Like spotting rare and endangered species in the (retro)Amazon. Carry your cameras, readers!

elger planter top toilet

toilet with a planter or cubby topUPDATE: Props to Facebook follower Kae, who spotted these Eljer “planter top” toilets for sale on the Columbus, Ohio Craigslist. Mega thanks to the seller for allowing us to archive this photo — the first actual spotting of one of these in the wild.

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43 comments

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  2. Melinda says

    I missed this the first time around, but now that I’ve seen it, I want it! So many possibilities of how to use that planter, besides just a plant.

    • teri says

      We have 2 original 1964 Eljer planter lid commodes in our house. Actually looking to sell our blue one, as well as the under-mount sink that matches it.

  3. cindy hill says

    Recently, I visited our local Habitat for Humanity Restore. Donations are taken in and then resold to support the Habitat for Humanity projects. All items in the store are donated. They consist of left over building materials, appliances, household fixtures, etc.
    While shopping in there, I ran across this unusual toilet and fell in love with it. It is in perfect condition. No one there had ever seen one like it.
    My husband and I are finishing our basement and this toilet is going in the bathroom. I am so excited.

    • Bobbie says

      You’re lucky cindy. Our Habitat for Humanity Restore on the central coast of California will not take donations of any toilets unless they are “low flow” which is 1.6 gallons per flush or less. We are missing out on the possibility of finding the classic retro style and they are probably going to the dump when people remodel!

      • Amy in Sacramento says

        Bobbie — I’m also in CA, and was told by a friend that a Habitat for Humanity Re-Store in town was refusing avocado appliances. 🙁 Pretty lame, I thought!

  4. Mareline says

    We have 3 planter toilets and are looking for replacement parts for the handle assembly.

  5. Brad says

    I have two white complete Eljer planter toilets that were original equipment in my house built in 1963. For the life of me, I could not figure what the planter portion was for until last year when I came across an old picture of one. Anyway, both my bathrooms are interior rooms and don’t have windows, so planters do little good in that environment. The planter tops are not plastic such as some of the imitations out there. These are the real deal ceramic. I am making both available on Craigslist (Huntsville, AL) http://huntsville.craigslist.org/app/4421216893.html

    • Mareline says

      Having one yellow, one pink and one blue planter top, i use the larger opening for tissues, and the smaller opening for wipes.

  6. Miss Wynonna says

    My Mother had the after-model planter toilet planter……..was cool but for some reason it tended to drop dirt in the toilet tank ……It only lasted a year or so before my mother got rid of it and went back to the old lid

  8. Natalie Black says

    Remember these as a child….don’t worry about the plants dying! Only the finest plastic fauna was used.