Macerators ~ are they any good?
Nick
pan/cistern and hand wash basin with minimal storage beneath. H & C water
supplies can be arranged easily enough.
Disposal of waste is the problem.
Nearest access to mains drainage is about 10M distant. There is no way of
bringing mains drainage to this smallest room.
So, I'm thinking of using a macerator.
Some googling results in very mixed reviews.
Any opinions or advice please, particularly on units that may or may not be
recommended.
Many thanks,
Nick.
Grimly Curmudgeon
drugs began to take hold. I remember "Nick" <nick...@boom.co.uk> saying
something like:
>So, I'm thinking of using a macerator.
>Some googling results in very mixed reviews.
>
>Any opinions or advice please, particularly on units that may or may not be
>recommended.
<orders popcorn and puts feet up>
John Rumm
> I've been asked to turn a very small space into a wc. There is room for a
> supplies can be arranged easily enough.
>
> Disposal of waste is the problem.
> Nearest access to mains drainage is about 10M distant. There is no way of
> bringing mains drainage to this smallest room.
>
> So, I'm thinking of using a macerator.
> Some googling results in very mixed reviews.
>
> Any opinions or advice please, particularly on units that may or may not be
> recommended.
http://www.diyfaq.org.uk/humour.html#saniflo
--
Cheers,
John.
/=================================================================\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\=================================================================/
Mark Bluemel
wrote:
> We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
> something like:
>
> >So, I'm thinking of using a macerator.
> >Some googling results in very mixed reviews.
>
> >Any opinions or advice please, particularly on units that may or may not be
> >recommended.
>
> <orders popcorn and puts feet up>
Paging Mr. Parry!
The Medway Handyman
Dave-UK
"Nick" <nick...@boom.co.uk> wrote in message news:98p9qr...@mid.individual.net...
I've installed one for a relative who needed a downstairs loo.
Due to lack of space and difficulty accessing the main soil pipe
a macerator (Saniflo) was the only choice. It's been working fine
for the last 3 years.
Fortunately, the install I did didn't involve any vertical
sections of pipe work! I'd hate to have to deal with a faulty
unit at the bottom of a column of crap.
The outlet pipe diameter was 22 mm but I thought that was too
narrow so I modded it to go from 22 mm to 32 mm.
If the thing ever packs up I don't think I'll bother trying to
fix it, I'll just replace the whole unit.
All in all it's been successful, definitely better than no loo downstairs.
RobertL
> On 21/07/2011 01:22, Nick wrote:
>
> > I've been asked to turn a very small space into a wc. There is room for a
> > pan/cistern and hand wash basin with minimal storage beneath. H& C water
> > supplies can be arranged easily enough.
>
> > Disposal of waste is the problem.
> > Nearest access to mains drainage is about 10M distant. There is no way of
> > bringing mains drainage to this smallest room.
>
> > So, I'm thinking of using a macerator.
> > Some googling results in very mixed reviews.
>
> > Any opinions or advice please, particularly on units that may or may not be
> > recommended.
>
> http://www.diyfaq.org.uk/humour.html#saniflo
very amusing. Iiked the bit about expanding foam. it reminded me of
another account of expanding foam misuse where the contractor was
installing cavity wall insulation. He pumped it into the cavity wall
of the house and also of the integral garage, but it wasn't a cavity
wall to the garage. the owner later opened the garage door to find
his car entombed in solidified foam.
Robert
Roberts
"Dave-UK" <not...@home.com> wrote in message
news:4e27e341$0$2535$da0f...@news.zen.co.uk...
forget it. You will regret it
Robbie >
>
The Natural Philosopher
In no particular order constipated turds, toothbrushes, condoms,
tampons, cement tailings...
asalcedo
Hello Nick,
I have reasonably extensive experience in macerators, having had several
over the years.
In my opinion, if you use Saniflo Saniplus, you are going to enjoy
trouble free performance for a long, long time.
I've had macerators where people have thrown everything into, q-tips,
pads, you name it, and they were still working.
It is however, very important to avoid putting anything other than human
waste and toilet paper in them. As I said, they cope with them, but,
eventually they get clogged inside and start having problems.
My best advice is:
1. Avoid non-human waste
2. Install them so that they can be serviced easily and follow the
installation recommendations.
3. If used regularly, change the membrane (£20) every 6 to 8 years. This
ensures the membrane is flexible and does not leak. If not used
regularly, change the membrane every 5 years.
4. Give them a good clean every membrane change or whenever performance
deteriorates.
They have very simple and reliable construction. A capacitor change is
also a common occurence. Easy to do too.
--
asalcedo
Dave-UK
"Roberts" <m...@privacy.net> wrote in message news:98q8lv...@mid.individual.net...
What warning ? I do not regret fitting a Saniflo.
82045
Saniflo is French and they haven't forgiven us since Agincourt.
Jim K
wrote:
> something like:
>
> >So, I'm thinking of using a macerator.
> >Some googling results in very mixed reviews.
>
> >Any opinions or advice please, particularly on units that may or may not be
> >recommended.
>
> <orders popcorn and puts feet up>
;>)))
Jim K (plumber baiter)
Steve Walker
> What warning ? I do not regret fitting a Saniflo.
Yet.
Dave-UK
"Steve Walker" <spam...@beeb.net> wrote in message news:9901ie...@mid.individual.net...
> Dave-UK wrote:
>
>> What warning ? I do not regret fitting a Saniflo.
>
> Yet.
>
What do you mean 'Yet' ?
How do you know what I'll regret in the future ?
Do you think I decided, just on a whim, to install a macerator for no reason ?
As I said my first post, I installed it for a relative.
This person is elderly and infirm and had trouble getting up
stairs to go to the toilet, often not making it in time.
Eventually I got fed up with cleaning up shit and piss from the
carpets and the alternatives were a commode, a downstairs toilet
or she goes into an old peoples home.
As I didn't want a commode stinking the room out that left a toilet
of some sort and a macerator somewhere downstairs was the answer.
So I don't regret fitting the Saniflo and I won't regret it in the future.
If the Saniflo packs up tomorrow I'll gladly replace it with another one.
Maybe when you or your relatives are old and can't get up stairs etc.
you might change your childish mind about macerators.
Newshound
10 years.
A capacitor went after a couple of years, I had to replace the internal
flexible
tube after about five. Had to open it once to remove a tampon. I
replaced it when
the control board went and have had no problem with the replacement in
several years. I've done all the repairs myself apart from the
capacitor. The guy who changed that recomended Saniplus. I've never had
a pipe blockage. In my experience, it's not all that unpleasant having
to delve inside, more psychological than anything. Less unpleasant or
smelly than blocked foul drains or inspection chambers because you have
reasonable access. The key tool is the wet and dry vac because you can
empty the loo pedestal easily with that, and then the pump chamber. You
may have to remove the pedestal to get at the works.
So yes, I'd still use them if constrained by space, or not wanting an
inconvenient or unsightly run of 110 mm.
Not sure what other poster means by membrane. My first one was a
centrifugal pump although sealed by a slightly complicated washer. This
was a bit fiddly to seat until I got the knack, but I never replaced it.
Peter Parry
wrote:
>So, I'm thinking of using a macerator.
>Some googling results in very mixed reviews.
Saniflows are neither sanitary nor much use as a lavatory. They are
moderately good at flushing perfectly clean water.
Possession of one leads in some people to a condition known as the
"Saniflo syndrome" this paradoxical psychological syndrome, where
victims develop empathy with and have positive feelings towards their
tormentor. It was first noticed in the Norrmalmstorg robbery of the
Kreditbanken in in Stockholm in 1973.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_syndrome
The conditions necessary for Saniflo syndrome to develop are :-
1. The owner views the Saniflo as giving life by simply not taking it.
Each day without a blockage is a gift. In this sense, the Saniflo
becomes the item in control of the owners basic needs.
2. The owner endures isolation from other people and has only the
Saniflo perspective available. Lack of information about the outside
world’s response to their purchase keeps them totally dependent.
3. The Saniflo threatens to destroy the victim and has the capability
to do so. The owner judges it safer to align with the Saniflo, endure
the hardship of ownership, and comply with the instruction manual than
to resist and face the most horrible consequences.
4. The owner sees the Saniflo as showing some degree of kindness
whenever it flushes without blocking. Kindness serves as the
cornerstone of Saniflo syndrome; the condition will not develop unless
the Saniflo exhibits it in some form towards the owner, usually by
operating normally for a short time. Owners often misinterpret a lack
of failure as kindness and may develop feelings of appreciation for
this perceived benevolence. if the Saniflo show some kindness, victims
will submerge the anger they feel in response to the terror and
concentrate on the Saniflo's “good side” to protect themselves.
The inventor of these devices was French. In 1958 Sanibroyeur SFA
invented the "toilet grinder" and, having recoiled in horror from what
they had done immediately exported it to Germany, the UK and the USA -
all countries the French hated.
The original advice, to destroy the house, remains valid but it has
been pointed out that it is possible to reduce, albeit slightly, the
unsavoury habits of these devices. The following notes are provided
as a service to those sufficiently deranged that they want to
contemplate installing a toilet grinder and pump.
The first thing to do is to ensure the room is hermetically sealable
and the floor and up to 2ft up every wall is tanked in 1cm thick
kevlar laminate. Near the top of the room there should be installed a
concrete or ceramic tube of 12" diameter leading upwards to an outside
wall. The purpose of this will be explained later.
A 2ft Kevlar threshold across the door also acts as a barrier to
females (it can often be raised to 4ft with beneficial results). Piped
breathing air attachments should be installed near the Saniflo
location.
Into the laminate set quick release fastenings for all fittings and
fixtures such as the toilet bowl. These will, in the normal operation
of a Saniflo, require frequent removal and refitting so easy to
operate and robust fasteners are well worth doing at this stage.
When plumbing in the Saniflo read the installation manual and learn it
by heart. Use any members of the family who have decided to stay to
test you on your memory of obscure parts of it at frequent intervals.
This should include waking you up at 3AM to ask what the minimum
outflow gradient must be. No attempt should be made to fit these
devices until questions such as "Page 96 4th line down third word in"
can be answered flawlessly every time. Any deviation from any part of
the manual will bring about immediate failure.
On no account should a plumber be used. Plumbers never have Saniflos
in their houses so have no practical experience of them in use. Most
plumbers refuse to respond to "Saniflo calls" so repairs are left to
the "untouchables", poor broken men addicted to drink and herbal
supplements who eke out a living trying to remedy Saniflo failures.
Shunned by their fellow tradesmen because of their malodorous state
these shadowy figures creep home to their mansions each night their
morale boosted only be the knowledge of how much they can charge per
repair.
Next is the matter of diet. The Saniflo will barely dispose of matter
which has passed through the body and often not that if it includes
fibrous or solid items such as cherry stones. A good Saniflo
household will implement strict dietary controls to exclude meat,
fruit and fibrous vegetables from the diet. The ideal Saniflo house
will live on Pablum and Sennakot to ensure maximum longevity (of the
Saniflo).
There still remains the problem of visitors. Ideally just outside
the Saniflo room there should be a wall mounted shovel and directions
to the back garden (or neighbours flower beds) for the convenience of
visitors. However, some may be non-cooperative. To ensure no harm
befalls the Saniflo the toilet bowl, at just below seat level, should
be permanently fitted with a fine mesh screen made from stainless
steel with a mesh aperture of no more than 1.5mm. A suitable soft
spatula should be provided to aid the inspection of the mesh after use
and a tin can provided where any non-compliant material may be placed.
There still remains the issue of failure or "F day" as it is known in
the community of Sanifloists. This is the time some hours after
installation when the Saniflo asserts its mastery and refuses to flow.
Your hours of careful planning now come into their own. Obviously
Saniflos only fail after pre-use. In other words the materiel to be
disposed of is in the pre-pumping area (as it is known). The contents
of the last use by comparison are festering in the outlet pipes (the
post pumping area) both of which you are about to release.
Elfinsafety.
Any owner of a Saniflo is recommended to invest in a "“Dirty Harry”
Contaminated Water Diving System"
http://www.divexglobal.com/index.asp?id=2&ref=27&ref2=411&con=432
This can be coupled to the permanently installed breathing point
already in place in the Sanilav room.
Having entered and having had an assistant seal the room the
Sanifloist, safe within their "dirty harry" suit and connected to
their external air supply can start disassembly using the previously
fitted quick release fastenings. Hopefully the kevlar tanking will
contain the combined effluent released from the pre and post function
chambers. Once the Q tip which stopped everything working has been
removed and sealed in an evidence bag for DNA testing to identify the
culprit the system can be re-assembled the door unsealed and the wife
sent in to clean up the effluent from the floor.
It is rarely necessary to carry out this procedure more than twice
weekly but it is a sad fact that some Sanifloists find even this
simple regime to be too much. This is where the tube installed
earlier is used. Seal the door, remove the visitors shovel and fit a
concrete pump to the external part of the tube. Fill the Sanilav room
with concrete.
Dave-UK
"Peter Parry" <pe...@wpp.ltd.uk> wrote in message news:382o271i34feg7m01...@4ax.com...
> On Thu, 21 Jul 2011 01:22:37 +0100, "Nick" <nick...@boom.co.uk>
> wrote:
>
>
>>So, I'm thinking of using a macerator.
>>Some googling results in very mixed reviews.
>
> Saniflows are neither sanitary nor much use as a lavatory. They are
> moderately good at flushing perfectly clean water.
>
So what's your alternative solution then ?
PeterC
> On Thu, 21 Jul 2011 01:22:37 +0100, "Nick" <nick...@boom.co.uk>
> wrote:
>
>>So, I'm thinking of using a macerator.
>>Some googling results in very mixed reviews.
>
> Saniflows are neither sanitary nor much use as a lavatory. They are
> moderately good at flushing perfectly clean water.
<large snip>
Normally i'd thank you for this, but after some 7.3% organic cider and
reading your posting I'm feeling ill!
--
Peter.
The gods will stay away
whilst religions hold sway
The Medway Handyman
Grimly Curmudgeon
something like:
>Maybe when you or your relatives are old and can't get up stairs etc.
>you might change your childish mind about macerators.
Here, you want your rattle back?
Might have someone's eye out with that.
Roberts
"Grimly Curmudgeon" <grimly...@REMOVEgmail.com> wrote in message
news:mmm23799ba26clhta...@4ax.com...
Obviously you never read my comments. If you don't understand polite
language, I did say if there are women and and children around then forget
it. From my experience, women of old age do not use women' s sanitary towels
or tampons - therefore that problem does not arise and also are less likely
to have young children running around. If you have an upstairs toilet then
you can direct visitors to that one. I once saw a macerator being dismantled
which I noted with care. Although the idea of having a macerator in a place
where 6 women of university age were living is questionable.
Robbie aged 75
Grimly Curmudgeon
something like:
>Obviously you never read my comments. If you don't understand polite
>language,
Get fucked.
Londonman
"Grimly Curmudgeon" wrote in message
news:9j1437956gqu2op9a...@4ax.com...