I am staying at my parents home and some of the plumbing they have is 56 yrs old, specifically the bath tub drain pipe that leads to the septic field. They live in the country and have HARD water. They do use a water softener.
I have long hair and it has only taken a few weeks for the drain to clog to the point that it's taking almost an hour to drain the tub after a shower. We have been using Drano treatments to loosen the scale and it hasn't worked. We are considering using Liquid Plumber tomorrow (the one that has two parts that mix together first). We tried putting down a snake to loosen the pipe clog and my husband said he couldn't get it further than 6 feet but could feel a buildup of scale along the pipe as he used the snake.
Should we use Liquid Plumber? We also have to keep in mind that this is draining out into a septic field; it's now winter here and below 0*F so we don't want to do anything that would cause a slowdown of proper functioning of the septic field. Is there something more environment friendly that can be used besides replacing the old pipes?

Hi WW:

The way most plumbing systems work is that tub drains drain into the toilet pipe in the bathroom and then the toilet pipe drains into the main drain and then the main drain drains into the septic system...

There may be more than one bathroom, a kitchen, a laundry area, etc. on the MAIN DRAIN LINE, but almost all drains in a house connect into a main drain line and that main drain connects to the septic system.

So clog to tub should be within 6-8 feet if you have normal size bathroom..? Hard water is not usually a major contributor to clogged drains... may just be time and then bad-timing on your part if you think your hair is aggravating situation... ;)

Where exactly is your husband snaking the drain from? Is he snaking AFTER the PTRAP or before the PTRAP? Is he at the tub at an access panel? Let me know more please..?

Thanks...

MARK

It's possible that my husband wound up snaking the vent. I just went downstairs and the tub drain connects to the P trap and the main sewer drain within 3 feet... the toilet is draining just fine and is only 4-5 feet away from the tub. The clog MUST therefore be inside the P trap. We will try opening the plug on the trap tomorrow and snake it, both ways, from that point. I also went back through the archives here and found an answer where someone combined snaking and an enzime wash. Do you have any suggestions on what type of enzime wash to get?

I cannot speak to the enzyme wash...

But try snaking the pipe/trap. Blockage is most likely between the trap and the connection to the toilet/main drain pipe.

Finally, if hubby removes the trim plate from the overflow assembly and then takes a WETTED rag and stuffs it into the overflow.. tightly/firmly, but not so tight you break the brass pipe behind the wall, and then fills tub with 3 inches of water and uses the PLUNGER you may be able to free blockage that way... ;)

Let me know outcome.

To make sure the drain line's clear the best way is to snake the drain, (see image).
Unscrew and remove the overflow plate,(The one with the drain lever) and pull out the tub stopper. You now have a clear shot at the trap. The way you were going in through the drain it ran you square into a tee that you can't get around. Now feed the cable( 1/4" best or 3/3" with a small tip. You can rent a Ridgid K50 sink cable.) About 2' down you will run into the bend of the trap. Crank and push at the same time to work around it. Your blockage will be found in the lateral pipe going to the stack. You shouldn't have to put out more then 10 or 12 feet. I have found tub and shower clogs to be mostly hair and the worm should auger into it and pull it back. Hope this helps and thank you for rating my reply. TOM