Relocating downstairs toilet

[TweezerMay]

Never done anything more significant than a coat of paint in any house I’ve lived in, but we’re looking at buying a house that we’d hopefully be in for a while and I’m getting ahead of myself.

There’s currently a downstairs toilet but it’s in the kitchen, which I hate. It doesn’t even have its own sink, which I hate even more.

In my dreams I’d make that little room a pantry, and move the toilet into that little corridor between the sitting room and dining room. Hopefully attached floor plan.

Anyone have any idea how big a job it would be? Would it mean destroying the floors to get to all the pipes? It looks like the main soil pipe/vent thing is on the back of the house, next to where that original toilet is.

Any advice or experience welcomed!

Where is the upstairs toilet? Is it above the kitchen? Have you looked at Saniflow systems if you don’t have a good way to access the soil stack?

Saniflow are awful and get blocked if you look at them askance and you have to pay to get someone out to unblock them. They are also really noisy.

As previous poster says, where is the upstairs loo?

You may also need planning permission if access to the soil pipe is not easy where you plan to move the toilet to.

@SleepingisanArt Yup the bathroom is above the kitchen, with the toilet directly over where the downstairs one is currently (in the corner of the kitchen).

How do you even start with something like this? Asking a plumber?

My mum had a saniflow in a previous house for over 10 years and never had any issues although I do appreciate that some people have issues with them.

a plumber or builder is probably your best person to ask. If you need a new soil stack then that would be a builders job.

I had a new downstairs loo put in last year. It was a big job alright, but was part of a total downstairs reconfigure. No doubt your floors will have to come up and new waste pipes put in all the way through to connect with the outlet into the main drain.

If I didn't want that kind of disruption and cost, I think I'd explore easier options. For instance, could you make a corridor from the existing toilet to lead to a square lobby. One door into the loo/utility and one door into the kitchen. The loo is not directly off the kitchen then.

You could still use the space in between d/r and l/r for a pantry or for coats and bags etc.

But that's just me thinking out loud, and maybe there isn't enough space in the kitchen to do what I am suggesting.

So theoretically, they could run a new waste pipe where you want the new loo to run and dig down externally outside the kitchen and dinning room to run a pipe to join into the existing sewer pipe. Not sure on prices but I would think maybe £10,000?

The limiting factor if you want to avoid a Saniflo will be the drop. A waste run has to achieve a specific angle so that nothing gets stuck - the longer the run, the bigger the difference in height between the two ends of the new pipe. If the main drain isn't deep enough then a standard setup won't work. Probably best to ask a plumber - they'd need to take a look at the existing stack. Worst case you might need a drain survey (I think!).

Oh thanks everyone! This is all very helpful. Would have no idea about sewers and drops 😁

Could you add a wall across the kitchen from near the corner of the two internal toilet walls to the left hand wall near the sink? Move the toilet door to the left hand wall of the space and turn the toilet to face left.

Use the blocked off space as a utility room and, depending on space, either put a sink in with the toilet or in the utility room. Doesn’t put the toilet where you asked but does mean access is not directly off the kitchen.