Topic

Name

Date

Question/Answer

Greek

Toilets

Waste

John Thorogood

15/07/07

I found your explanation very helpful in relation to toilet paper and Greek waste systems. I am buying land in Alonissos to build a property on. I noted that most of the homes have standard UK size soil wastes but everyone insists you place toilet paper in a bin. Even our architect couldn't explain why this is necessary. I suggested fitting macerators to the toilets and he had never heard of them. Do you think that would help?

Kefalonian Homes

16/07/07

Oh dear—the ‘T’ word again !  We British really do seem to be hung up on the whole subject of Toilets.

Well John, your observations are quite correct.  As discussed in the ‘Greek Toilets—Greek Mythology’ response on this web-site the Greek system is an enigma which has it pros and cons.

(To those who are reading this board for the first time I strongly recommend that you read the fore-runners to this message by clicking here )

Is it worth fitting a macerator?—

Macerators serve two functions: one is to pulp the waste (as in a kitchen blender), the other is to pump the waste away.

In Britain building regulations stipulate that any dwelling using macerators should have at least one ‘standard draining’ toilet.  This is for a good reason.  Macerators are not known for their reliability—they are prone to block or break down and are of no use in a power cut.  Most macerators simply cannot handle items such as tampons or sanitary towels (sorry ladies—I don’t mean to offend).  If the macerator jams or blocks it is an extremely unpleasant task to disassemble the unit and clear it manually !

Using a macerator in Greece ——-

A macerator would doubtless pulp all the loo paper.  However, using the figures previously published, this would result in around 420 loo-roll’s worth of papiér maché per year.  Have you ever seen papiér maché once it has dried, as it would in the drain pipes ?  Also  -  sanitary items would still need to be disposed of in the ubiquitous ‘bin’.

Perhaps more importantly—on a practical level, the mains power supplies are prone to failing, especially on the islands.  If you have a standard loo you can always use a bucket of water to flush the bowl.  A macerator in a power outage leaves you with egg-on-your-face and soil-in-your-pan !

So—what to do if you really want a loo in Greece to run in  ‘British’ mode ?

EITHER  -  Find an inventor who will design a ‘super’ macerator ( along the lines of a garden shredder ), with its own standby generator and water tank.  Then adapt your septic tank/soak-away to a ‘green’ biological processor.  This could prove costly.

OR  -  Flush as you would in Britain (but only in your own villa—you won’t be thanked in other people’s villas or hotels) but be prepared for regular visits to have your tank/soak-away emptied—a costly solution.

I’m sorry if I sound a little flippant on this subject—I really don’t mean to be.  I know of many people who just cannot accept the ‘bin’ principle and I genuinely empathise with their predicament.