Our stand alone shower is draining extremely slow. Like some of the others on the site, we have tried chemicals to unclog the drain, and to root kill, but to no avail. When we try plunging the drain, dirt and sediment comes up ekk, what does that mean? We tried snaking, but couldn't get past the tee. The water backes up with about 2 cups of water in the drain, so it seems like the problem is pretty shallow but we can't seem it find a clog. Our home was building in 57 on a slab foundation, is there anything else we can try before we call a plumber in?

Thanks!

I had a similar problem a few years ago. Being a single mom with not much money, I really tried EVERYTHING. The only thing that worked was: Be sure the drain is dry. Take a cup (or 2) of baking soda & dump it in the drain. Drop some vinegar in the drain until it begins to bubble up. When the bubbling settles down, dump some more vinegar. I hope it works for you as it's the only solution I have besides snaking.
The problem might lie in the main pipes underground. Have you noticed any ponding areas on the ground outside? The pipe may have a break in it.

"We tried snaking, but couldn't get past the tee" By "tee" do you mean the trap?
Showers,tubs and lavatories can all smell bad and drain slow because of rotting hair matted with grease from the soap. The only way I know to clear out a partial clog is to snake the drain.
First remove the strainer,(TIP: put the screws in the soap dish. They will be hard to replace if they go down the drain.) Nowcrank and work your snake past the trap and 6 or 7 feet beyond. When you pull the snake back it should have the hair that was clogging your shower on the auger tip. Now pour 1/4 gallon of bleach down in the trap and let it set over night. Next morning pour a pan of boiling down the shower to clear what's left and make your drain smell nice.
Everything all better now? Tom