In most homes, replacing or installing a toilet is a simple affair. You simply pick the one you want online or from a hardware store and either connect it where the old one went or call a plumber and have the work done in an hour or two. However, if you want a toilet for in a basement or anywhere where you can’t simply drain what you flush into a sewer main or septic tank, you’re either going to need a sewage pump (e.g., an ejector or grinder pump) or a macerator to go along with your toilet. A dedicated sewage pump will give you more power and will handle more wastewater and solids than a macerator pump, but it’ll also cost much more to install, both in terms of time and money. And if you’re installing a half bathroom, you’re probably spending enough money already.
A macerator pump, on the other hand, can potentially be installed with much less interference in your flooring, resulting in a faster job for you or your plumber and more money in your wallet. While it’s possible to buy a macerator pump independently and connect it to almost any toilet you wish, whenever possible, we recommend buying macerator pump and toilet kit simultaneously just to avoid compatibility headaches. Today we’re going to look at the Saniflo Saniaccess 2 Upflush Macerator Pump + Round Toilet Kit. It’ll cost you a lot more than a regular toilet, but it’s one of the cheapest ways we’ve yet found to add a toilet to a below-grade sewage system or system requiring a septic tank. We review it in detail below, and you can buy it here.
Key Features of the Saniflo Saniaccess 2 Macerator Pump and Toilet (60 Second Summary)
The Saniflo Saniaccess 2 Macerator Pump and Toilet is essentially a toilet connected to a small sewage grinder pump. Designed to be used indoors in environments such as in half bathrooms in basements, the system is capable of pumping sewage up to 15 feet vertically to a sewer line or up to 150 feet horizontally to a soil stack. Per Sanfilow, the system can handle effluent resulting from both the included toilet and a nearby sink; two inlets are included to make this possible. The system has a 10-15 second operating cycle and the maerator blades turn at up to 3,600 RPM. The system includes a 1-1/2″ inlet, a discharge elbow, and a 1-1/2″ vent connection for a two-way air vent. A non-return valve is installed at the discharge elbow.
Our Long and Short Term Experiences Installing and Using the Saniflo Saniaccess 2 Macerator Pump and Toilet
Installing the Saniaccess 2 system can either be a very quick process or a somewhat longer one, depending on a.) the experience of the person doing the job and b.) the pre-existing plumbing environment. If you’ve installed a sewage pump or macerating toilet before, nothing here will surprise you. If not, you might want to get the job professionally done.
The process involves connecting the pump to the included toilet (or to a horizontal rear discharge toilet if you somehow bought it separately), connecting the toilet tank to your water supply, connecting the pump to a discharge pipe, connecting it to a vent system, and finally connecting the pump to your power supply; a Ground Fault Interrupter (GFI) circuit is recommended.
While the description above suggests the installation only involves basic plumbing, the complexities, if they arise, will involve your drain lines and accessing them. If you call a plumber, you might get away with paying as little as $200 if s/he can get to your main stack easily. However, if things aren’t accessible, you might spend several hundred. If you can get it done when your plumbing is roughed-in, you can save yourself a lot of money and also tie in your system with other fixtures, such as a bar sink, shower, or bathroom sink (or potentially all three).
We’d estimate the 15-foot head figure provided by Saniflo is correct; many clients and DIY enthusiasts have noted similar heights in their home projects. Similarly, you’ll likely be able to get dozens of feet of horizontal distance out of it without issue; the pump is a small one but it’s strong.
Regarding lifespan, you should get several years out of the system with zero to minimal maintenance; Saniflo talks up the relative lack of movable parts and the durability of the impeller and other macerator components. The toilet itself isn’t where things are going to break down, as it’s not doing anything a regular toilet wouldn’t the pump is the high-stakes portion, but it’s a good one.
Troubleshooting and Installation Tips to Get Your Saniflo Saniaccess 2 Macerator Pump and Toilet Working Sooner
Remember that if you’re installing it on your own, you’re going to need to vent the system. Similarly, you’ll also need to vent a sink, shower, or anything else you tie into the system for drainage.
If you buy the pump and toilet kit, you’ll get a sink attachment that allows you to easily connect a utility, bar, or basement sink to the system for drainage.
If you’d like to use the toilet as a standalone system without the macerator and pump, you can do so so; it’ll cost you more than if you just bought a cheap standalone toilet, but there’s nothing stopping you from simply using the toilet and not connecting the macerator. You’ll just need to make sure you’re discharging to a sewer line that is below the grade of the toilet’s discharge line. You’ll also want to install a valve to prevent backflow, especially if you’re planning on installing the toilet close to your sewer line. Make sure you have the necessary gravity flow; it’s recommended to have at least 1/4 vertical feet per horizontal foot of travel.
Saniflo Saniaccess 2 Macerator Pump and Toilet Pros, Cons, and Value Comparison
In conclusion, while the Saniflo Saniaccess 2 macerator pump and toilet kit isn’t the cheapest toilet out there, it’s one of the cheapest ways to add a toilet to a basement when you need to drain what you’re flushing against gravity. Compared to a dedicated sewage pump, it can save you a significant amount of money. As noted above, we’d definitely recommend an ejector or grinder pump if you’ve got a business environment or if you need to drain multiple toilets, sinks, showers, and similar sources of water. However, if you want nothing more than a simple toilet or half-bath in your basement, a macerator pump and toilet kit will likely get the job done for far less in installation costs, and this is as good an example as any.
You can buy the Saniflo Saniaccess 2 Macerator Pump and Toilet here on Amazon.
Canadians can buy the Liberty Pumps ASCENTII-ESW macerating toilet here on Amazon; unfortunately, the Saniaccess 2 is unavailable.
If you find our work at PumpThatSump helpful, you can put our relentless reviewing of every pump and fixture on the market to the test by shopping via our links above for whatever you need to make your house a home. Despite being self-employed, we promise not to spend it all on health insurance.