Ask Me Help Desk - I could only snake in 18 inches in the sink pipe

[QUOTEAlso I just found a 2" dia. access hole at the bottom of the sink about 5 " above the floor and it's about 45 degree and 12" from the sink pipe sticking out of the wall where I put my snake in. Should I open this access hole and try to snake in from there?][/QUOTE]
If you're saying this ' 2" dia. access hole at the bottom of the sink" is a clean-out tee,(see image) the answer's yes, otherwise snake from the lavatory roof vent. Good luck, Tom

My clean-out looks like the middle part of your image with no square metal sticking out. Is this a clean-out built for this purpose? My house was built in 1954.

That sounds like a clean -out tee to me. N Open it up and snake from there. Good luck, Tom

I peeled off the paint and it looks like a metal cap on a pipe.

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Originally Posted by tennisyoung1

I peeled off the paint and it looks like a metal cap on a pipe.

Remove the cover and snake from there. Use your drill snake and let me know how you make out. Good luck, Tom

Thanks.

Here's what we did. We tried to open the cover of the pipe but without success. Look like the cover and the pipe were all rusted up. We also tried to snake in again but concluded that the snake actually went over to the adjoining sink pipe and got stuck at the P trap. My friend went up the roof and hosed into the 1" dia. vent and water drained easily into the main pipe with no back up anywhere. So he did not snake the vent. He said the vent is way beyond the clogged sink pipe. Could he be right and could anybody tell us how to snake into the sink pipe without the snake going over to the other side of the adjoining bathroom sink?

Also please tell us how to open the cover of the pipe without breaking it. The 2" dia. Metal cover is a rounded cover with two sides sticking out about 1/16". Do we need special tool to do it?

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My friend went up the roof and hosed into the 1" dia. Vent and water drained easily into the main pipe with no back up anywhere. So he did not snake the vent. He said the vent is way beyond the clogged sink pipe. Could he be right and could anybody tell us how to snake into the sink pipe without the snake going over to the other side of the adjoining bathroom sink?

Your friend was either too lazy to take a sewer machine up on the roof and snake the vent as I advised in a earlier post or else he thought he knew more about plumbing then we did but in any event he was dead wrong. Had he snaked the vent as ordered we wouldn't be having this conversion. You may tell your friend to keep the day job because plumbing isn't his strong point. Of course water will flow freely down the vent. You have 15 or 20 feet of open pipe before you run into the clog located in the slab. Your clog will be found at the base of the pipe that vents your back to back lavatories. How many times doI have to say it before someone listens? (Sigh! )

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Also please tell us how to open the cover of the pipe without breaking it. The 2" dia. metal cover is a rounded cover with two sides sticking out about 1/16". Do we need special tool to do it?

If you don't wish to snake from the roof vent then squirt some WD-40 on the threads and take a hammer and a blunt chisel and start the threades by tapping on the protruding bosses on either side. As a last resort I'd break the cover out and replace with another. This started as a simple clog that you snaked from the wrong place. And you're still attempting to snake from the wrong place.

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We also tried to snake in again but concluded that the snake actually went over to the adjoining sink pipe and got stuck at the P trap.

One more time. Either snake from the lavatory roof vent or open up the cleanout and snake from there. Those are your only two options unless you want to bite the bullet and call in outside help in the form of a plumber. Have yourself a great weekend, Tom

Tennis
If you snake is to big to carry up to the roof try this.

Get an assistant and enough 2 PVC pipe to reach from the ground to the vent pipe. With one person on the ground operating the machine and the other on the roof, run the snake up the PVC pipe and then down the vent.

Great solution Harold,
I can always count on you to think "outside the box". All I can add is put out enough snake to reach the base and 20 feet more to push it out into the nain. Good luck, Tom

Thanks to you all. In fact he carried the machine all the way up the roof right next to the vent. May be yesterday wasn't our day yet.

Maybe you should try a toilet auger in the sink drain. It is a little more flexible and might make the turn that is stopping your drain snake. Might not be long enough to reach the blockage but then it might be. Do you have an attic above this bathroom. If you do go up there, cut the vent pipe and snake. I assume you have PVC pipe but can't find anywhere you said. As far as that clean out plug. They make wrenches for these. If you don't want to purchase one, cut down a piece of 2x4 to fit tightly inside the recess. Stick in it the recess, put a pipe wench on it and take that plug out. This would probably be the best solution, this is not the last time you are going to have a stopped drain.

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Maybe you should try a toilet auger in the sink drain.

A ttoilet auger in a 1 1/4" lavatory drain? Harold doesn't make many boo-boos but this is one of them.
Read my lips and pay attention to what I've been saying all along. You can not snake two back to back lavatories from the drain If they're connected with a cross you'll end up in the other lavatory. As I've repeatedly posted, your only two optipons are snaking from the lavatories roof vent or from the clean out located in the bathroom. How can I make it any clearer. FORGET THE DRAINS and do the job right.

OK. I admit that I didn't read all of the post thoroughly and missed where Tennis said he went through to the other lavy. And yes, I know better.

Note the edit to my post. I think he really should get that plug out of the clean out so he can do it properly.

I agree with Harold, The cleanout will be the easiest but the roof vent's the only other option. Good luck, Tom

We removed the sink shelf cabinet and chiseled the plug as you advised. Sad to say we had no luck. We 'll snake the vent next.

Let us know how you make out. Don't forget to run the snake down to the base and 18 feet more to reach the main. Good luck, Tom

We snaked the vent but had no luck. It got stuck after 20' and could go no further. I asked a plumber to open the clean-out for me. He took it out in no time with his big wrench. I snaked in with my manual drain snake and it went all the way. It's a clean-out for the main pipe only and the sink drain is still clogged.

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We snaked the vent but had no luck. It got stuck after 20' and could go no further.

What do you mean, "it got stuck"? Stuck in what? Going down a vent? That's not right! What came back on the aughr tip? Did you or the plumber snake the vent? If the plumber snaked the roof vent then he missed the boat by not telling you that it sounds like a collapsed pipe. Don the math. It took you 15 feet to get from the roof vent to the base. Only 5 feet into the drain and you hang the auger up. Hmmmm!
Something ain't right down there and you have to find out what it is. You might want to consider running a camera down that vent and checking it out.
How old is your house. Cast iron or plastic drainage pipes? Good luck, Tom

Didn't you say you had an attic?
Do you have PVC? Go to attic, find vent for sink, cut PVC and snake there.

Let's run with Harolds thought. How many vent pipes coming out of your roof?: If you only see one vent pipe then look in the attic for the correct vent. Good luck, Tom