As the development of properties puts strain on the existing infrastructure, Ann Boardman discusses how the use of macerator pump technology can provide effective solutions for difficult installations.
Today the modern bathroom – whether domestic or commercial – has a tougher job than ever to perform as our expectations soar. 
Increasingly customers want a bathroom, cloakroom or en suite in places once thought impossible – an attic, a basement, under the stairs and even in a cabin at the bottom of the garden.
By installing macerator pump products, homeowners can have a bathroom with WC, bidet, shower and bath literally anywhere they want, providing a mains water supply reaches the installations.
Let’s look at a fairly typical domestic scenario. A family wants to convert a garage into a bedroom with en-suite bathroom. The main water supply is easy to connect, but the soil stack is on the other side of the property. This means that direct access to mains drainage requires major heavy work, which the family wants to avoid from a cost, time and hassle point of view.
If the en-suite is to contain a WC, basin and shower, for example, then there is a raft of products that can serve the purpose perfectly. Even if you want to provide an inclusively designed en-suite for a more elderly or less able member of the family, then there is a solution for this too.
A macerator pump is a simple, quick solution that takes the waste from a WC, a wash basin and a power shower – and a bidet if required – and then pumps it through 22mm small-bore pipework, either vertically or horizontally or a lesser combination of both. It is, therefore, no obstacle if the en-suite being installed is located on the other side of the property or at the bottom of a garden.
With the Saniplus by Saniflo, for example, waste from the WC is dealt with automatically when the WC is flushed. Waste water is drained by gravity from the shower, bidet or basin to the Saniplus through inlets on either side of the unit.
If you are creating an inclusively designed en-suite, it becomes possible to place the WC and the macerator pump anywhere in the room, giving you great scope for flexibility of product selection and bathroom design.
In another domestic situation, a concealed pump unit can help you provide a kitchen or utility room with great ease by removing waste water from a sink, dishwasher or washing machine, even when below or distant from a drain.
For example, Saniflo’s Sanivite is a powerful pump with four inlets for connection to sinks or appliances. Waste water is pumped through 32mm small-bore pipework, vertically up to 5 metres or horizontally up to 50 metres or a lesser combination of both.
In commercial settings, most customers want to ensure continuity of business, whether that is for a B&B, hotel, restaurant, hospital or some other public building. For this reason, there are also commercial installation solutions available that aim to overcome the problems of location and access.
One such solution is the Sanicubic from Saniflo. This unit contains two separate pumps for absolute reliability and power. Each is fitted with a high performance maceration system, and the two pumps operate alternately, ensuring even wear of the motors. In the event of inflow overload, such as a busy Saturday night in a city night club or a Sunday morning in a B&B, both motors run at the same time. And, if on the rare occasion one pump should fail, the other pump takes over, guaranteeing continuity of business and happy punters.
The Sanicubic is an extremely hard working macerator that can take up to 340 litres of water a minute. It pumps up to 11 metres vertically through 50mm pipework and 100 metres horizontally, or a lesser combination of both. With an inlet diameter of 110mm for WC waste and 40mm for waste water, the Sanicubic can take waste water of up to 70°C.
Installing a macerator pump and accompanying system can open up a new raft of opportunities for the homeowner to maximise the potential of their property. Plumbers who are able to provide solutions using this technology will be able to deliver with less upheaval and lower costs, meaning that all parties benefit from this change of approach.
