Above-floor grinder pump system supports powder room addition in split-level basement renovation

Problem

EAST AMHERST, NEW YORK — Donald Nenno, owner of Nenno Construction Services, regularly takes on residential remodeling projects. In the plumbing business for 13 years, he has consistently used and recommended Saniflo products to his customers.

When a homeowner wanted to add a powder room to a split-level basement, Nenno was tasked with finding a plumbing solution that worked within the space’s limitations. Creating the basement powder room presented several challenges because the home’s main drain line was located higher than the proposed powder room, requiring wastewater to be pumped up into the home’s drainage system rather than relying on gravity-fed plumbing. 

Solution

Nenno chose the Sanibest Pro grinder pump because he believed it offered the best functionality for an upflush system.

“I’ve used Saniflo products for many years, and I think the extension tube and overall design give a much better look for residential applications compared to competitor models,” says Nenno. “The installation process has always been easy, and with the available parts, I felt it was the best option for the homeowner.”

Nenno built the powder room by constructing the floor system over an existing sump pump. He raised the framing off the concrete slab using plywood and modified the joists as needed to fit the grinder pump system while keeping both systems accessible.

The installation is designed so that both the sump pump and grinder pump can be easily removed for servicing if needed. As Nenno explains:

“I built it over a sump pump to make a bathroom-sized space,” adding that the system was configured so “you could remove the sump pump and also remove the Sanibest Pro with the Ferncos [flexible couplings] attached to it for servicing. This easy removal is another reason why the Saniflo product worked well.”

The system handles drainage from two fixtures, a rear discharge toilet and sink, discharging the effluent through conventional PVC piping: a horizontal run of roughly two feet and another two to three feet of vertical lift into the home’s main drain line. While Saniflo recommends that the discharge line diameter be ¾-inch (see box at right), Nenno chose to go up a notch: “I still like at least an inch because you’re pushing waste.”

As for venting, Nenno says he used a wet vent because a new vent stack could not be added in the basement.

Installation included framing adjustments, fixture placement, and the construction of a raised back ledge to accommodate the grinder pump system,” he says.

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Product Profile:
Sanibest Pro Grinder Pump

The Sanibest Pro is a heavy-duty, one-horsepower grinder pump system used to install a complete bathroom up to 25 feet below the sewer line or up to 150 feet away from the soil stack. Recommended for restrooms and other commercial/institutional facilities serving the general public, the product has three inlets to handle drainage for a full bathroom: a 4-inch inlet for the toilet connection and a pair of 2-inch inlets, one on either side, to handle gray-water drainage from a sink, a bathtub, or a shower.

The Sanibest Pro is typically shipped with a two-piece toilet that flushes through a horizontal, rear-discharge (above-floor) spigot. Designed to handle sanitary products and other larger items that normally should not be flushed, the powerful grinder pump quickly reduces and discharges effluent to the sewer or a septic tank through a ¾-inch plastic pipe connected to the top of the unit.

Also at the top of the unit is a 1½-inch vent port and a service panel that permits easy service access to all components inside the Sanibest Pro.

Other key features:

Four-year limited warranty

Built-in, backflow-preventing check valves inside the 2-inch inlets for easier installation

Certified by CSA and listed by IAPMO for nationwide compliance

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Results

Despite the confined space and unique construction requirements, the installation process went smoothly. Nenno estimates the total installation time for the plumbing system and fixtures at roughly three to four hours of active work, with most of the additional time spent coordinating materials.

The finished installation provided the homeowner with a practical basement bathroom solution while preserving service accessibility for both the Sanibest Pro and the sump pump system.

Nenno continues to recommend Saniflo’s grinder pump systems for similar basement bathroom projects because of their reliability, compact design, and ease of installation.

“I recommend it to anyone that I get projects like this with,” he says. “When I think of grinder pumps, Sanibest Pros are the products I hear about most often. When walking into basements completed by other contractors, I typically see Saniflo products.”