re: Replacing Toilet - DIY or Plumber? - Update - I changed them but problem in OP

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If so, would the Sani Seal Wax Free Ring make it any easier?

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Yes, It will hold the bolts upright so you can set the toilet without the bolts flopping around. It's also reusable where a wax ring is a one shot deal. The Sani Seal has taken the abuse of the 300 lb fatties in my rental unit with no problems.

Turn off the water, flush, let flush finish then dump a bucket of water (2 -3 gallons) in the bowl. Dumping the bucket of water will pretty much get all the water out of the bowl except in the trap.

Hardest part for me was moving the new toilet into place because I have a small bathroom. Like others said, use a wax ring, don't over tighten bolts, don't put silicone around the edges. Otherwise, like many household plumbing jobs, is fairly easy, just can be messy.

get the extra thick wax ring...

I replaced mine a few years back. It's definitely easy if you know what you're doing. I did it myself and it was a breeze.

If you have doubts you could do it, call someone. Poop ain't nothing to mess around with.

Toilet's easy. All the finer points have been covered already, but make sure it is level. Any rocking at all will be bad, so shim it if you have to. You DO NOT want to have to replace a broken flange.

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Water valve outside the toilet was bad

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If a property is more than 10 years old, replacing a stuck water valve could be the toughest part of the job.

To replace that valve, you'll need to locate and close the main water shutoff valve near the street, and then use care to secure the pipe coming from inside the wall with a big wrench to avoid turning it and getting a nasty leak inside the wall.

ETA: Also take care when you dispose of the old toilet. I learned from experience that shattered porcelain can be incredibly sharp.

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That's an easy DIY job if you're the least bit handy

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It even takes less time than you may think.

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To replace that valve, you'll need to locate and close the main water shutoff valve near the street,

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The valve by the street was stuck, and my dumbass decided to risk it. Bad move.

I had to use a piece of flexible tubing to reroute the water from the wall. My wife came home and freaked out.

My buddy rushed over and was able to stick a pipe on the end of my water shutoff key so we could get enough torque to turn the water off at the street.

Then we used a pipe cutter to remove the old toilet shutoff valve. The new valve had a shark bite fitting that was very easy to install.

I did it and it was easy. Actually had a cracked flange, so I had to replace that as well (which was a bid of a pain because I had to tediously get the old flange "unglued" from the PVC in the ground, but wasn't difficult). Wear gloves and clean up the old wax. Get a new wax ring (I suggest the thicker as well. Don't know about the wax free one, but the wax one's work, so why fix what isn't broken. Being too thick wasn't a problem for me at least). It really is stupidly easy.

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Easy job but can be nasty, those old wax seals are disgusting.

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This, but as long as you have the tools for it, shouldn't be a problem. I am pretty sure they sell kits that have all the tools you need for toilet plumbing problems. I observed a guy replace the wax ring on our toilet about a year ago and definitely noticed it looked really easy...just didn't want to attempt it on my own because we rent the place ad would be liable for damages if I fricked it up.