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DMY · Feb 3, 2006, 07:10 PM

Our basement floor drain began backing up after washing several loads of laundry in a row. Our plumber explained that there was a clog in the line between this drain and the street but since there wasn’t a cleanout, they would need to dig up the floor and place one in the line. After the cleanout was added and a few pieces of old broken pipe were replaced, a grated floor drain was cemented into place and the floor was cemented. The snake was run to the street from the new cleanout. The first load of laundry backed up immediately in the new line yet only a trickle of water was flowing through the cleanout (I took the lid off). The washer hose goes into a horizontal piece of PVC at shoulder level, into an elbow, through a piece of panty hose and into a single laundry tub, through a piece of 1 1/2” corrugated pipe which rests against the new grate on the drain. We held the end of the hose perpendicular to the grate and it took most of the water but I think the hose should go into the drain but not sure. In the meantime (It’s Friday night, the plumber is off until Monday and I would to get some laundry done) I drilled a 3/4 “ hole in the bottom of a plastic trash can and put this over the grate (not bad for a girl?) but would like a better solution. Any suggestions?

labman · Feb 3, 2006, 07:29 PM

Do I have this right? The water goes from the washer through a PVC pipe over to the laundry tub. The laundry tub then drains through a 1 1/2'' corrugated pipe into the new grate. The water then flows from the grate past the clean out out to the city sewer at the street? Please confirm this. When the ''A team'' gets here, Tom will need all the details. It sounds to me like there is a clog between the grate and the clean out. Do you know if there is a trap between the grate and the clean out?

DMY · Feb 4, 2006, 04:57 AM

Your details are correct. I too, thought there would be a clog between the grate and the cleanout - it's only a 3 foot area from the floor drain to the cleanout and this was just replaced 2 days ago. Hmmmm.

speedball1 · Feb 4, 2006, 07:48 AM

"After the cleanout was added and a few pieces of old broken pipe were replaced"

That's the sentence that bothers me. A few pieces of pipe broken off from what? How many more "pieces of old broken pipe" are still down there waiting to snag a discharge and build up to a clog? One wonders if the plumber didn't push more "pieces of old broken pipe" out into the sewer main where it's waiting to produce more clogs. It's for sure that the plumber did something wrong or we wouldn't be having this conversation. Call him back and have him correct the situation without any charge to you. Please let us know how this turns out. Good luck, Tom

DMY · Feb 5, 2006, 11:15 AM

That's what I thought too! And, overnight, the 2nd story bathtub stopped up completely so I KNOW he must have just pushed the stuff down the line.
I'm awaiting a return call first thing Monday morning.