Fixing my leaking shower

Business Owners: Understanding and Solving Common Issues With Upflushing Toilets and Basement Bathrooms

by Andy Butler

If you want to add a bathroom to the basement of your restaurant, shop, studio or other commercial space, it can be expensive to cut through basement concrete and add plumbing. Fortunately, that is not the only option. With an upflush toilet, a macerator and a pump, you can add a bathroom without cutting into the concrete slab of your building's basement.

However, even with that option, there can be challenges. Here are three common challenges and tips on dealing with them:

1. Finding space for the macerator

A macerator essentially cuts up solid waste so that it can be easily pumped out of your basement and to the sewer lines leaving your business. In a home, you can use a relatively small macerator, but in a commercial space, you typically need a larger macerator to hold waste and break it up.

If you only have a small space for your basement bathroom, you may not have room for your macerator. Luckily, there is a simple solution. You can place your macerator in your wall cavity or even partially inside the wall cavity and partially in the bathroom itself.

To do this, make sure you buy an upflushing toilet with a macerator that is not attached to the toilet itself but rather connected by a pipe.

2. Hiding power cords

As your upflush toilet is connected to a pump, it needs to be plugged in. If you don't want the plug exposed to your customers or clients for style or safety reasons, you may need to explore alternatives to a traditional plug and wall outlet.

Simply talk with your plumber or an electrician about hardwiring the pump. As long as it has a GFCI (ground fault circuit interrupter) and other safety features, you won't need to unplug it. In the event of flooding, power surges or other risks, the system will automatically shut down, or you can turn off its power at the circuit breaker.

3. Lacking drainage for sinks

In addition to a toilet, you need a sink for your commercial bathroom. However, if you have to use an upflushing toilet, your sinks will also not be able to be connected to your sewer system.

Solving that issue is simple -- just buy an upflushing toilet or macerator that has several ports that you can use for sink drainage or anything else you need plumbed in your commercial bathroom.

For more ideas, consult a commercial plumbing service about basement bathroom options and tips.

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