OK to use rotor rooter if toilet has lead bend? Some say lead is too easily damaged to take the rotor rooter action as the downstream blockage is cleared.

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Originally Posted by cedric55

ok to use rotor rooter if toilet has lead bend? some say lead is too easily damaged to take the rotor rooter action as the downstream blockage is cleared.

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A good Rooter tech will know to hand feed the cutter blade past the lead closet bend.

If the cable damages the lead bend, then you have far bigger issues than a simple blockage.

Growler's correct. I don't recommend snaking through a lead closet bend. Even if you feed the auger tip past the bend you will still have the cable whipping around in there when you kick on the power. If the lead bend ruptures you're looking at a major repair bill. We pull a toilet and snake through the bend only as a last resort. Snaking from the bathroom is a dirty messy operation so we snake through the lavatory roof vent instead. Is there any reason that you simply have to pull the toilet and snake from there?

Thanks for the replies. My house has now outside clean out fixture, so the plumbers tell me they must either roto in through the toilet drain, or, for about $1,000, install an outside clean out. This would be done by digging outside to intercept the lateral drain toward the street.

Reluctant to use his big power roto rooter device, the guy today used a 100' long snake turned by an electric motor. He got in about 70 feet and pulled out a foot long sausage like cluster of small roots.

His company proposes to send in a different crew tomorrow to install the outside drain, then put the big power roto rooter through it, then coat the pipe with copper sulphate which they say will keep new roots at bay for one year.

Appreciate all your comments, suggestions, opinions. This is my first sewerage overflow situation, so I need all the info I can get.

Thanks again,

Cedric