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mpost · Jan 2, 2005, 08:47 PM

I live in an older home and have a tub and bathroom sink that drain very
Slowly. When I drain the sink, I can hear a gurgling in the tub drain and,
When I put a lot of water down the sink drain, some water will come up from
The tub drain into the tub. I've been putting some Drano down the drain
Every two months or so, but am worried that this may damage my pipes in the
Long run. I also have tried to get a snake down the tub overflow, but don't
Think I'm even getting past the elbow that turns from vertical to horizontal
Under the tub. Unfortunately, the first floor ceiling underneath the tub is
Finished, so I can't really get at the trap (I'm assuming it's a drum trap).
So, 2 questions:

1. Is there a secret to getting the snake past that first 90 degree bend?
I'm able to get the snake through sink P traps with no problem, but can't
Really figure out what's catching the snake under the tub.

2. Are there any other solutions other than the Drano that are less likely
To damage my pipes, but work for more than a couple of months?

Thanks in advance.

shark · Jan 3, 2005, 09:49 AM

'Older home' - lead waste pipes?? In the past I've used one of 2 solutions:

If the waste piping is not metal and the problem is possibly lime/calcium then Sulphuric or preferably hydrochloric acid. Pour VERY slowly in stages and also heat is generated and might warp plastic.

If the blockage is fat, hair etc then I use causic soda (caustic potash is apparently better, but not available to me). Again, pour VERY slowly in stages and also heat is generated and might warp plastic.

Not thought about going to the bath (lowest point)and flushing a length of fishing line with a smallish evenutually soluble object attached to the end to guague the distance of the blockage?

***WARNING*** always pour the acid slowly into water, but do not pour water into acid. This is especially relevant to undiluted ones.

speedball1 · Jan 3, 2005, 10:51 AM

"When I drain the sink, I can hear a gurgling in the tub drain and,
when I put a lot of water down the sink drain, some water will come up from
the tub drain into the tub."
You can't work a snake past a drum trap.
The "gurgle" you hear is the lavatory attempting to vent through the tubs trap.
The fact that you have water backing up in your tub tells me you have a partial blockage in the lavatory drain line and prehaps a blocked vent.

To fix this problem you must snake out the lavatory vent from the roof. Put out enough cable to get past the bend at the base of the vent and about 20 feet more. Good luck, Tom

mpost · Jan 3, 2005, 10:01 PM

I ended up running a snake its entire length in through the clean-out plug in the sink's P trap and only encountered resistance in the last foot or so (I
Think I have a 25' snake). Unfortunately, once I got everything back
Together, I found that the tub didn't drain any better and the sink was
Completely clogged.

If I ran the snake up the vent instead of down the drain, is it possible that I
Pulled an obstruction from the vent down into the drain so that it's now
Completely plugging the sink drain? Why would they make plumbing so that
It's more likely that the snake would run up the vent instead of down the
Drain? What I can't figure out is why the sink is so stopped up while the
Tub isn't any worse... that means the clog must be pretty close to the
Bathroom since I'm assuming the sink and tub come together pretty close by.

Any ideas how I should proceed? Calling a plumber at this point seems like
Admitting defeat.

speedball1 · Jan 4, 2005, 06:42 AM

To fix this problem you must snake out the lavatory vent from the roof. Put out enough cable to get past the bend at the base of the vent and about 20 feet more.
Did you miss this part of my last post? You had a blocked vent to began with, the "gurgle" in the tub when the lav drained told us that.
What you did was to snake the lav lateral drain to the drainage tee. From there it's a crap shoot whether the snake goes up or down. That's why we snake from the roof vent. You're probably right. He snake went up instead of down and brought the blockage back with it. Rent a medium size sewer machine and use a auger tip. I don't think your 25' snake's going to do it but you can try. Let's fix one thing at a time. The vent's the most important at this time. Opening it up will allow the tub to drain better and perhaps we can clear the tub without having to locate and open up the drum trap. Let me know how you make out. Regards, Tom

mpost · Jan 9, 2005, 01:14 PM

I finally was able to clear both drains--the tub and the sink--this weekend by removing all the piping underneath the sink back to the rough-in and snaking from there. Taking the P-trap off completely instead of just running the snake through the clean-out plug gave me a better shot at getting the snake down the drain instead of up the vent. I pulled out a fistfull of nasty hair, rust, and other assorted gunk, but everything drains like a champ now. Of course, in removing some of the old drain piping underneath the sink, part of the rough-in pipe cracked off, and I had to hacksaw it back a 1/2" and force the compression nut on it to work the thread, but that's another story.

Thanks for everyone's advice and info.