We have a 40 year old house. The sewer started backing up so we put a 1 inch flat snake (had a ball type tip) through an access valve close by in the wall(where the upstairs bathrooms drain) and pushed it through 102 feet, so it should have accessed the main on the street. That didn't work so we rented an electric snake (50 feet) to clear the floor drain (Where the sewer is backing up)that is 10 feet away from the wall drain and it went all the way through. Then we used the electric snake on the floor drain which is about 30 feet away (in the laundry room, it has a cap on it but when we removed the cap it would start backing up here as well) and it went all the way through. We have made sure the sewer vents on the roof are open by pouring hotwater down them until that backed up (heavy snow had us shovelling off the roof the week before) Help!!

HI Haylakes...

Did you call the city/town to make sure there are no issues with the main in the street? If not, may be a good idea to double check with them... ;)

Otherwise, you want to send the snake down the MAIN DRAIN CLEANOUT... stop snaking through PTRAPS (floor drains).

You'll need a bigger snake, say a 5/8" or 3/4" cable and 1/2 of a large cutter head and snake the drain multiple times back and forth... see what you bring back on the snake head. When you hit resistance, and you should at some point, work that area back and forth multiple times.

Let me know how you make out with all, OK?

Mark

Hi Mark thanks for answering so quickly.

Yes the village knows about our problem, they are the ones who lent us the first snake. We are going to try a wider one but it is not as long.

Should we fill the floor drain with water so we can see if we bust through the clog with the snake. Is it possible we went through the clog and then it closed back off again?

Yes... very good idea to leave standing water so you can see when the drain starts to unclog. AT the point you see the water starting to drain, stop your snake, pull it back 5 feet and then work it back and forth in that 5 foot area for a few minutes. When the drain really starts to flow use a hose to flush the drain out complete.

It is definitely possible that you went through the clog... ;)

Use a larger head/cable and if necessary, get permission to rent one that is longer, if needed!

Mark