ᐅ Experience / Recommendation for a Sewage Lifting Station for Blackwater

Hello!

We are about to start building our single-family house. It will have a basement (watertight concrete structure). The basement will include the utility room and a bathroom. There are several fixtures that need drainage:

- 2 washing machines
- 2 hand washbasins
- 1 shower
- 1 toilet
- Condensate from the ground-source heat pump and ventilation system

I am now trying to figure out how to cost-effectively pump the blackwater and greywater above the backflow level.

So far, I have considered 3 options:

Option 1
Pump sump pit with lift station inside the building
In this case, the pump sump pit (usually a prefabricated component) is cast together with the floor slab. The lift station is installed inside the sump pit and sealed with a gas-tight cover.

Option 2
Pump station with pump located outside the building
Here, a plastic prefabricated pump chamber is installed outside the building. The basement wastewater lines converge in the pump chamber and are pumped above the backflow level.

Option 3
Sewage lift station as a ready-to-install chamber integrated into the floor slab
This option involves a ready-for-installation plastic chamber with a pump. The chamber can be concreted directly into the floor slab using a sealing kit, and

At first glance, option 3 looks very interesting and more cost-effective. Unfortunately, no one around me—neither acquaintances, the architect, nor the plumbing company—has experience with this variant. A drawback of this type may be the dependence on Kessel and their spare parts. I cannot imagine that a pump from another manufacturer could be installed later.

Option 1 seems to be the “standard” solution and has proven reliable.

Option 2 does not sound bad either, but from what I have researched, it appears to be the most expensive option.

So, here are my questions:

Does anyone have experience with the Kessel Aqua Lift Compact?
Can anyone share insights regarding the costs of these options?
What are your experiences, and which lift stations would you recommend for these purposes?
Are there other recommended devices or variants?

I would appreciate any tips or advice!

Thank you in advance!

Since the links have been removed, here is a brief overview of the products I am referring to. Otherwise, it might be difficult for you to understand which products/variants I am talking about:

Variant 1
e.g., Jung compli 400 with pump sump pit from HIEBER

Variant 2
e.g., Jung PKS-B 800-32 or Kessel pump station Aqualift F

Variant 3
e.g., Kessel wastewater station Aqualift F Compact

We have the boiler 28701-C.... It was recommended to us by our architect. Unfortunately, I cannot share any experience yet, as we are still under construction and the screed will be installed in about 2 weeks.

Unfortunately, we have had experience with a lifting station.

Our site manager recommended the KESSEL AQUALIFT, which he described as not exactly cheap but maintenance-free. Today, I would definitely choose a simpler and less sophisticated solution.

Already during the first months of operation, the system did not run smoothly; every few days, different error messages appeared, and the alarm regularly woke us up in the middle of the night. After a maintenance appointment, we received a shock: two facial tissues (!!!) were said to have destroyed the pump. The company KESSEL was completely uncooperative, insisting the fault was on our side due to contamination with construction debris. Nobody was interested in the fact that we found no debris in the system and that the lifting pump was only put into operation after the house was completed. The bill: 1500€ for installing a new pump.

Less than a year later, the alarm messages started to accumulate again. Cost for a maintenance appointment by KESSEL: 540€

Conclusion: NEVER AGAIN A LIFTING PUMP FROM KESSEL!!!

Celerdain schrieb:
- 2 washing machines
- 2 hand basins
- 1 shower
- 1 toilet
- Condensate from ground source heat pump + ventilation

If you can do without a toilet in the basement, it is possible to install a relatively inexpensive and reliable wastewater lifting system using two standard submersible pumps mounted at slightly staggered switching heights, for example.
If one pump fails, the second will handle the discharge thanks to redundancy.
Occasionally, you should check the operation of both pumps and run the backup pump as well, otherwise the second pump might seize up after not being used for an extended period.

Shaft inside or outside? Both have their pros and cons.
Outside:
- Possibly additional drainage or ground water inflow if seals age.
- Less maintenance-friendly (due to depth, weather exposure)
Inside:
- Possible odor issues
- Possible flooding

I have also written something about this here: https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/Hebeanlage-einbauen-lassen.16916/#post-150915