Anyone do plumbing?

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JC Viper
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Anyone do plumbing?

#1 Unread post by JC Viper »

Hey guys, I've been getting busy more and more each month. I've been stuck working on a main pipe that my dad tried to snake earlier since it was slow in draining. When he was snaking the snake head came off about 60ft in the pipe.

The bathtub and toilet drained without a problem for 2 months until now. The tub backs up and the toilet is devoid of water and I would hear gurgling when one of the sinks were used. The bathroom smells pretty rank and the tub is really brown... :shock:

Any ideas on a do it yourself remedy? Should the problem be resolved can the tub be cleaned to the point to be usable without fears of disease? (I'm kinda like Monk when it comes to germs).

Thanks for any info.
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#2 Unread post by niterider »

The only thing that I can think to do is run a 100 ft snake with a strong magnet at the end. Maybe just maybe if you are living right you might get the snake head out and clear the drain.
I have been using some stuff like rid X that comes in packets and have had minimal problem with my drain.
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#3 Unread post by Wrider »

Or you might be able to use a snake with a grabber arm on the end... Those heads are pretty good and tight in there... And right now you've probably got some stuff backed up in there behind it...
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#4 Unread post by Loonette »

On our house (built in the early 20's) we still have ceramic piping from the house to the main sewer line in the road. Through its cracks, tree/vegetation roots grow, causing a terrible blockage. The worst of it always starts at the front bathroom, but eventually nothing will drain. Then our sump pump can't push anything out of the house, and the pipe in the basement will start to leak out the, er..., stuff. I get ill just thinking about it. Anyway... about once each year we need to have the local professionals come out with their power snake to get those roots removed. They enter the main pipe from the access point outside the house and take the snake in both directions (towards the house plumming as well as towards the street). It does a great job and lasts for awhile.

The only fix for us will be to replace that length of pipe from the house to the street with PVC - also, root eating chemicals would probably help us.

Not sure if this is the same problem you're having, but if your outside pipe is not made of PVC, then it certainly could be the same problem.

Other than that - try what Wrider said with using a more agressive snake (or even get a hold of a professional power snake).

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#5 Unread post by slimcolo »

Need to get head out of pipe even if as a worst case you have to dig up. I had roots growing up my sewer. Tree roots somehow went in top of tank and up drain back into house. In addition make sure that you have good bacteria in your tank, also check tank level. If it's over leech, you need to pump tank! And as to cleaning that is a simple one BLEACH (works great but can kill bacteria in your tank, so you may need a new pack of bacteria/enzyme starter!)
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#6 Unread post by JC Viper »

Any idea what the aggressive snake is called? Apparently Home Depot rents out these snakes but that's where the stuck snake head came from :frusty: . So far the local hardware shops don't rent out snakes so this will be a tough. Calling a plumber is the last resort as they can get expensive.

I had a similar problem to those of you with vegetation ending up in or destroying the pipes. Somehow little twigs and such got stuck in the pipe till we disconnected the storm drain. (Our house is tall and there aren't many trees nearby but I guess I should never underestimate the power of the wind)
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Re: Anyone do plumbing?

#7 Unread post by moosiakdefrogosa »

Anybody can do a crappy, leak filled job. it takes skill and pride to do a good, safe job. There is a reason why plumbers are licensed, we protect the health of the nation. If anything, plumbing is getting more complex, it's that the material is getting easier to work with. Just by the questions posted here, you can see that plumbing is not getting easier. Just because anybody with a hacksaw can cut and glue pvc or cpvc, if they don't know the codes or underlying principles, they are just playing connect the dots.

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