Pump roars furiously for 40 seconds every time the new WC is flushed argh!H

jussayeh

I got a builder to put in a new ensuite but he connected the WC to the pump and it roars into action for 44 seconds after each flush of the ensuite. The pump is in the hot press right outside the kids bedrooms and the noise of this new toilet is going to drive us all crazy.
The builder said that the plumber had no choice that it was standard procedure as it was a power toilet or something.
I then rang my mums plumber and he said that he would never connect a WC to a pump cos it would drive the homeowners crazy kicking in every time the loo is flushed in the middle of the night.
He said that even if it was a power toilet you could still connect it to the mains and use a ballcock.
Unfortunately the plumber never told me before it was installed and all the tiling done ... builder is refusing to pay for this and plumber says he did nothing wrong but my mums plumber said no plumber worth his salt would put it on the pump without warning the homeowner ....
I've paid a lot of money to this builder for this job and don't feel I should have to pay. I have 2 other WC's in the house and neither of them are on the pump?
If there are any plumbers out there if you're client bought a power toilet (I'd never heard of power toilets until today despite buying one .. I just bought what I thought was a regular WC) would you connect it to the pump if it was going into an ensuite bedroom, would you run it by the homeowner about the noise or what?
Please help! I'm meeting the builder in the morning and I'd like to know what the consensus amongst plumbers would be?
Thanks in advance.

MAJJ

jussayeh wrote: »

I got a builder to do an attic dormer conversion and he put in the new toilet into the ensuite today but he connected the WC to the pump and it roars into action for 44 seconds after each flush of the ensuite. The pump is in the hot press right outside the kids bedrooms and the noise of this new toilet is going to drive us all crazy.
The builder said that the plumber had no choice that it was standard procedure as it was a power toilet or something.
I then rang my mums plumber and he said that he would never connect a WC to a pump cos it would drive the homeowners crazy kicking in every time the loo is flushed in the middle of the night.
He said that even if it was a power toilet you could still connect it to the mains and use a ballcock.
Unfortunately the plumber never told me before it was installed and all the tiling done ... builder is refusing to pay for this and plumber says he did nothing wrong but my mums plumber said no plumber worth his salt would put it on the pump without warning the homeowner ....
I've paid a lot of money to this builder for this job and don't feel I should have to pay. I have 2 other WC's in the house and neither of them are on the pump?
If there are any plumbers out there if you're client bought a power toilet (I'd never heard of power toilets until today despite buying one .. I just bought what I thought was a regular WC) would you connect it to the pump if it was going into an ensuite bedroom, would you run it by the homeowner about the noise or what?
Please help! I'm meeting the builder in the morning and I'd like to know what the consensus amongst plumbers would be?
Thanks in advance.

How about a timer switch on the pump?

Sleeper12

jussayeh wrote:

I got a builder to do an attic dormer conversion and he put in the new toilet into the ensuite today but he connected the WC to the pump and it roars into action for 44 seconds after each flush of the ensuite. The pump is in the hot press right outside the kids bedrooms and the noise of this new toilet is going to drive us all crazy. The builder said that the plumber had no choice that it was standard procedure as it was a power toilet or something. I then rang my mums plumber and he said that he would never connect a WC to a pump cos it would drive the homeowners crazy kicking in every time the loo is flushed in the middle of the night. He said that even if it was a power toilet you could still connect it to the mains and use a ballcock. Unfortunately the plumber never told me before it was installed and all the tiling done ... builder is refusing to pay for this and plumber says he did nothing wrong but my mums plumber said no plumber worth his salt would put it on the pump without warning the homeowner .... I've paid a lot of money to this builder for this job and don't feel I should have to pay. I have 2 other WC's in the house and neither of them are on the pump? If there are any plumbers out there if you're client bought a power toilet (I'd never heard of power toilets until today despite buying one .. I just bought what I thought was a regular WC) would you connect it to the pump if it was going into an ensuite bedroom, would you run it by the homeowner about the noise or what? Please help! I'm meeting the builder in the morning and I'd like to know what the consensus amongst plumbers would be? Thanks in advance.

Most apartments have the toilet pumped, so plumber didn't actually do anything wrong, didn't break any building regulations etc. Not saying it's the best way but I don't see why he shouldn't get paid.

jussayeh

I accept there are no regulations being broken but surely if you're putting an wc into an upstairs bedroom of a tiny 3 bed townhouse you'd at least check to see if the other loos in the house are connected to it? I mean who wantsthe noise of pumps in the middle of the night unless its absolutely necessary ?

Whats' to be gained by connecting a loo to the pump ? A shower I understand as it rewards you with lots of hot powerful water and it doesn't wake you at night cos nobody showers in the middle of the night but people use the loo at night and they don't care how long it takes the cistern to fill so why bother putting it on a noisy pump? The plumber and builder have already been paid by me. I only realised the loo was connected to the pump after I flushed it for the first time after they left. I am very upset now because I paid a lot of money for an ensuite bathroom and lots of other work and now I can't use the bloody loo in case I wake the kids. I want them to fix at their expense so I can use my loo without waking the dead. All this upset and money it will end up costing me to put right just because the plumber didn't think to ask me or mention that the pump would drive us all nuts flushing at night. How it all could have been put right with a little common sense in the first place. I've never installed a toilet before, I never knew there was such a thing as powered and not powered toilets but I know now and I'll be able to advise all my friends and family and warn them to never allow their plumbers put their toilets on the pump ... I'm so surprised that this plumber never had this complaint before! Sorry rant over!

jussayeh

@MAJJ I don't think he can put a timer on it because he took the feed from the pipes that go to the bath and shower, he didn't take it from the pump directly as he would have had to lift up the landing floor to do that. Maybe thats why he took the easy route from the pipes that feed the bath - the water is already powered going to them.

jussayeh

Thanks to everyone for the responses but we've had a resolution. The plumber, builder and showroom I bought the loo from have all spoken to each other already this morning and the builder has agreed to fix the problem at his expense. He was totally wonderful about it and we didn't have any cross words or argument.

He agreed that the noise at night would be soul destroying and that he probably should have connected it to the pipe feeding the main bathroom next door but that the feed was on the other side of the toilet and awkward to access.

He'll now connect it to the attic tank, which is almost directly on top of this room and lift 2 tiles in the new ensuite to access the system that's now tiled in behind loo. He says it may take much longer for the cistern to fill but in my mind that's a much cheaper price to pay that disturbed sleep ... I don't care how long it takes to fill as long as I don't have to hear the the thunderous roar of it kicking in 43 seconds every time the loo is flushed when the kids and us are sleeping.

He said my pump was particularly loud and probably because it was so old. It's 12 years old and would be about 700 euro to replace with the same one so it will have to stay until it dies a natural death. I was so upset when I posted last night as he said on the phone last night that this would cost money and he wasn't going to go the loss of it.
However he couldn't have been nicer about it this morning and said he agreed that pump at night would drive and that it was partly his fault for and to rest assured that he would not walk away and would take the hit. This builders quote was 30% dearer than the cheapest quote I got for the job so maybe it paid off - fingers crosses it works!

Calahonda52

Glad to read its sorted, am curious, what is a power toilet?

cruizer101

Just on the pump you say it is very noisy, not many people seem to be aware but you can get and should get pumps serviced. They will replace seals and glean out built up scale and dirt which will extend the life of pump rather than just waiting on it to fail. Here is two example links.

http://www.plumber-dublin.ie/pumps.html
http://www.sosdublinplumbers.ie/water-pumps/

Also curious what is a power toilet?

Dice75

Selling bathrooms for 20+ years and still to come across a power toilet. Sounds awesome - bit like a go faster stripe on a car?

gctest50

Pressure-assisted

Power flush, or pressure-assist, toilets use less water but flush with more force than a standard gravity powered toilet.
Inside the tank of a power flush toilet, you’ll find a sealed plastic container filled with air.
As water fills this container after a flush, it compresses the air in the sealed environment creating pressure.
When the user flushes this pressure releases, forcing water into the bowl at a high velocity
. While these toilets are very different from your old gravity-powered toilet internally, externally they are almost identical and the installation procedure is just about the same.

cruizer101

cruizer101 wrote: »

Also curious what is a power toilet?

Reminds me of those Japanese ones that wash your bum and then dry it with hot air

Anybody sell them in Ireland?

K.Flyer

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Reminds me of those Japanese ones that wash your bum and then dry it with hot air

Anybody sell them in Ireland?

I think Ideal on Ballymount Rd had one at one time, or it may have been a crazy expensive Japanese toilet seat.

Anyone remember the Siphonic toilet bowels?

Dtp1979

K.Flyer wrote: »

I think Ideal on Ballymount Rd had one at one time, or it may have been a crazy expensive Japanese toilet seat.

Anyone remember the Siphonic toilet bowels?

Indeed I do. There's nothing they wouldn't flush away

jussayeh

LOL at the 'go faster stripes' ..... I don't thinks its called a power toilet - I just referred to it as that but its like gctest50 said - it can be used with a pressurised system. When I complained to the builder that the pump came on when the toilet was flushed he rang me back to say that his plumber told him that the plumber had no choice but to connect it to the pump because the toilet was a 'powered toilet' or 'pressurised toilet' that I'd been sold (I can't remember exactly what he called it but that was what he meant)

I then spoke the place I bought it from and the guy said that it wasn't a 'power toilet' and it did not have to be connected to the pump but was possible to use it with a system of up to 5 bar pressure but it could also be used with a below normal level pressure. He said that the plumber should not have connected it to the pump unless he was explicitly told or if it was in the architect plans - neither of these things happened, in his opinion the plumber should have asked me first whether or not I wanted it on the pump due to the nuisance of night time flushing causing the pump to kick in and drive the family crazy.