Saniflo for a garden room

[iSelfBuild]

I'm just about to build a large garden office and I need to fit a toilet in there. The garden office will be about 35m away from the soil stack and is slightly lower by about 50cm at the garden office location so I can't really get a traditional soil pipe in. I know absolutely nothing about saniflos and reading some conflicting info about what they should be discharged into. Some say 22mm some say 40mm. Ideally I wanted to lay down 35m of 32mm MDPE pipe and then boss this into the soil stack. Has anyone done similar? 

[joe90]

How are you going to get the slope from your soil pipe to the garden room, surely it will be above ground by the time it gets there?

[iSelfBuild]

Saniflos are capable of pumping up hill aren't they?

[ProDave]

The biggest issues are when someone puts something "too big" or "too hard" down them.  I would encourage it only to be used for No1's

 

All the ones i  have seen use 40mm pipe.  The plumber doing one on a recent job puts jubilee clips on all the joints because in his words not mine "solvent weld is not strong enough and can blow apart"  (I don't think he is the best plumber)

 

While the 32mm mdpe will be stronger than solvent weld waste pipe is is also smaller.  Is this leftovers you just want to use? 

[iSelfBuild]

Ahh crikey, I probably wont use it but it's crucial for my member of staff who is female as don't want her using my house and I'm out on site most days now. 

 

Only reason I wanted to use MDPE is that it would be fast and can be kept to minimal joints. Apparently there is a little trench along the garden path with a MDPE water pipe that's never been connected up at the shed and a duct with 6mm cable in for electric which then runs along into our patio (can see where someone has grinded through the sandstone and there's a clear route leading to the boiler house which is directly next to the soil stack). I'll probably replace the electric with 10mm SWA as well as that seems undersized and have a few CNC machines to run in the office/workshop - that's another post to workout the electrics. 

[Mr Punter]

I really would try hard to get a gravity connection.  Failing that, a small pump station.  I would rather people crapped in the garden than have a Saniflo.

[iSelfBuild]

>.< are they that bad haha???

[joe90]

32 minutes ago, iSelfBuild said:

>.< are they that bad haha???

IMO yes, very noisy, apt to breakdown, they pump uphill at their location only so you need a waste pipe at the “office “ with a gradient down to your mains drains. “Upstairs WC” ?.bog on stilts ?.

Edited February 20, 2021 by joe90

[ProDave]

Full time or occasional use?

 

How about a modern caravan chemical toilet, the built in sort not a bucket and chucket.  Or a composting toilet?

[iSelfBuild]

2 minutes ago, ProDave said:

Full time or occasional use?

 

How about a modern caravan chemical toilet, the built in sort not a bucket and chucket.  Or a composting toilet?

Full time use, also with use of kitchen tap etc. So I really do need something plumbed in. I think I've been a bit naive with how Saniflos work. I thought it would work and just pump it up 400mm height with ease.

[ProDave]

1 minute ago, iSelfBuild said:

Full time use, also with use of kitchen tap etc. So I really do need something plumbed in. I think I've been a bit naive with how Saniflos work. I thought it would work and just pump it up 400mm height with ease.

I think it would, but the trouble is, the pump is in the saniflow, so when it stops pumping, all the "sludge" is still in the pipe and will remain there until the next time it runs. 

 

What @joe90 is suggesting is to get all the uphill pumping done very locally from where it can then drain downhill in a conventional drain pipe with rodding access.

 

If you laid a conventional drain at the minimum fall from the house towards the office, how close would it get before it comes out of the ground?  If it would get quite close then that with a shorter pumped route from the saniflow might be a better option?  If necessary raising the ground level along that hedge to get a conventional pipe closer but still "underground"

[iSelfBuild]

36 minutes ago, joe90 said:

IMO yes, very noisy, apt to breakdown, they pump uphill at their location only so you need a waste pipe at the “office “ with a gradient down to your mains drains. “Upstairs WC” ?.bog on stilts ?.

Hahah I have to keep to the 2.5m height so maybe an upstairs terrace, open plan bathroom. There is a lovely view of the bay from my garden... not sure what the neighbours will think.

[iSelfBuild]

1 minute ago, ProDave said:

I think it would, but the trouble is, the pump is in the saniflow, so when it stops pumping, all the "sludge" is still in the pipe and will remain there until the next time it runs. 

 

What @joe90 is suggesting is to get all the uphill pumping done very locally from where it can then drain downhill in a conventional drain pipe with rodding access.

 

If you laid a conventional drain at the minimum fall from the house towards the office, how close would it get before it comes out of the ground?  If it would get quite close then that with a shorter pumped route from the saniflow might be a better option?  If necessary raising the ground level along that hedge to get a conventional pipe closer but still "underground"

 

 

I'm a bit confused but the ground level of the garden room location is maybe 500mm lower than the patio area  where the soil stack is, so to get this to work over 35m would mean a very deep trench in the patio (1m maybe?)

[ProDave]

How deep is the drain it will connect to at the house?  that is the fixed point you have to work back from.

[TonyT]

I have one, in a shop that we maintain, it was fitted before we rented it, no way to get a gravity connection.

 

used by 7-8 staff, burnt 2 out in 10 years, we just keep a spare in stock so we can swap out quickly.

 

so although not ideal, they work.

[Nickfromwales]

11 minutes ago, iSelfBuild said:

 

 

I'm a bit confused but the ground level of the garden room location is maybe 500mm lower than the patio area  where the soil stack is, so to get this to work over 35m would mean a very deep trench in the patio (1m maybe?)

2 guys and a machine will have that done in a day. Bite the bullet, as a Saniflow is a "#1" device on a good day but quite horrific on a bad one. 

 

2 minutes ago, TonyT said:

burnt 2 out in 10 years, we just keep a spare in stock so we can swap out quickly.

There's over £1.5k in that sentence. Roughly the cost of digging and dropping in a proper connection for @iSelfBuild. Then no swimming around in brown dolphin milkshake and swapping out knackered units......... 

[TonyT]

https://www.saniflo-pumpshop.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/29671_Saniflo-brochure-2017_UK_FULL-6.pdf
 

 

 

[TonyT]

It’s ok it turns over  a few million

Edited February 20, 2021 by TonyT

[Nickfromwales]

Lots of these out there and working, but when they fail it's an end of days event. In an office environment that means shutting down for a full hygienic deep clean / new floor coverings etc. Just dig the trench and have it right first time. "Short cuts take three times longer"..... 

[TonyT]

I do agree with Nick above, just saying we have one, stuck with it, so just need to get on with it. Spare carried to minimise down time

[iSelfBuild]

I'm going to try and put a proper pipe in, found a gully in the drive - which means I can take it straight across the back of the garden - hopefully the gully goes into the main sewer as I expect it's a shared grey and waste water situation - I'll have to test with food die and take some levels but should work OK. Thanks everyone for the advice.

[Mr Punter]

4 minutes ago, iSelfBuild said:

I expect it's a shared grey and waste water situation

 

Unless it is going to a foul or combined sewer it will be unsuitable.  Grey water is not contaminated with poo.  Please make sure as surface water is often discharged directly to rivers, the sea, feed drinking water reservoirs etc.

[MAB]

Incinerating Toilet? "These are suitable for any and remote location or mobile unit from log cabins to boats, incinerating liquid and solid waste."

 

 

Edited February 22, 2021 by MAB

[joe90]

I wonder how much power that uses to burn poo etc?

[A_L]

16 minutes ago, joe90 said:

I wonder how much power that uses to burn poo etc?

 

Electric ones use up to 1.5kWh per cycle at up to 2000W

 

https://www.gaelforcemarine.co.uk/en/gb/Cinderella-Classic-Electric-Incinerating-Toilet-220-240v/m-4256.aspx

 

Apparently there are also gas (propane) powered ones.