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Author:
Jazz (TX)
I hope someone can help me.
Our twin-basin kitchen sinks would back up after about 2 gallons of water would go down the drain. I picked up a 50 foot snake and cobra drain cleaning bladder and went to work.
I removed all the trapwork below the kitchen sinks, and started with the bladder. It didn't clear the plug, but did blow water out the vent pipe on the roof.
Going through the access plug outside the kitchen window with the snake, i hit the obstruction about 35 feet in. Pushing and pulling steadily for about an hour, i succeeded in pulling out some gunk and pushing the rest through. After reassembling the trap under the sink, i've run many gallons of water through and the clog appears to be gone!
Now the bad news: after the kitchen job was completed, my wife discovered that the bathtub had filled with 4-6" of very foul, sewer-smelling water. Efforts to plunge the drain have been unsuccessful, and for the time being we're using the other bathroom and hoping the water drains overnight. The bathtub has never had any drain problem before.
Could this have been caused when the water came out the vent pipe in the roof? How did sewage get into the tub? What's likely to be the best way to clear the tub drain? Is Drano a possibility (once the water hopefully drains)?
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Author:
sozoal (CA)
You need to run the snake further from the clean out to reach the mainline , you've simply moved the clog further down the line, if you run water in the kitchen sink, does it come up in the tub? If not, then snake from bathtub overflow, if yes run from kitchen clean out
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Author:
packy (MA)
no, i disagree..
i think you did move some hair and grease backwards when you used the bladder and saw water come out the roof vent.
try a plunger on the tub. cover the overflow opening with a damp rag and plunge away. work the water back and forth.
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Author:
hj (AZ)
You just moved the stoppage further down the line past where the tub connects, so now the sink drains into the bathtub instead of being plugged. I cannot imagine any "normal" stoppage being so bad that you would need to work for an hour to unplug it. If it were the "bladder" the water would have come up in the tub and could NEVER have had enough pressure to come out of the roof terminal.
Edited 1 times.
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Author:
packy (MA)
quote.."i hit the obstruction about 35 feet in. Pushing and pulling steadily for about an hour"
how could the tub be connected 35 feet beyond where it is located?
i still think the bladder blew debris back to the tub and stopped the pipe enough that the remaining water blew out the roof vent.
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Author:
hj (AZ)
quote; how could the tub be connected 35 feet beyond where it is located?
We do NOT know where the tub is located. It could be 35 feet from the sink. I stand by my original assessment.
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Author:
Jazz (TX)
Update:
First, the reason it took so long initially is that i was using a 1/2" hand snake and the handle broke, so i was using a locking pliers to turn the snake manually. NO FUN, i can assure you!
Anyway, after reading your suggestions, i went over to the orange-and-white big box builder store (that also rents equipment) and rented an electric 1/2" 75' snake. It had several auger tips, including one with a pointy blade tip.
In a nutshell, i used the pointy blade tip, ran it down the cleanout to where i stopped yesterday, and started power snaking. 25 minutes later, i had bored through whatever the obstruction was, checked the tub (which was now empty!), rinsed the snake off and re-reeled the coil.
I then went inside and ran hot water through all the sinks and tubs for another 10 minutes. No plugs, no backwashes, problem solved! ***Thanks to all for your help!***
Moral of the story: next time i'll go to dome hepot, rent the power snake for $40/4hrs, and be done with it. Live and learn!
Edited 2 times.
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Author:
Wheelchair (IL)
Glad to read that YOU solved your sewage pipe issue with 25 minutes of cutting..... something. I hope you discovered the issue as it could happen again, in the future.
Best Wishes
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