[barbcomp]

Is my roof vent clogged? The downstairs drains in the kitchen and bathroom sinks gurgle and suds come up in them from the upstairs sinks when they are drained. Also the downstairs toilet makes a big bubble when flushed, and needs flushing twice. Advice, please.

[bushg]

Is my roof vent clogged? The downstairs drains in the kitchen and bathroom sinks gurgle and suds come up in them from the upstairs sinks when they are drained. Also the downstairs toilet makes a big bubble when flushed, and needs flushing twice. Advice, please.

Im not a plumber but our drain did that and it was partially clogged in the main drain . The one that all the pipes connect to. My hubby used a snake . There are plumbers that get on here, that will have more definite answers.

[kevton]

Hi I am a plumber and I agree it sounds as though your drain is partly blocked.check to see if your outside gullys are rising run every thin you can into each gully at separate times.if it rises or over flows then your drains are blocked.

[speedball1]

Is my roof vent clogged? The downstairs drains in the kitchen and bathroom sinks gurgle and suds come up in them from the upstairs sinks when they are drained. Also the downstairs toilet makes a big bubble when flushed, and needs flushing twice. Advice, please.

I'm still attempting to figure out Kevtons post. Perhaps he's not from the states where a "gully" is a big ditch. For someone that claims to be a plumber he sure lacks a lot 0of plumbing knowledge.
His advise is to run water until something overflows and that will indicate that you have a blocked pipe. Excuse me but wasn't that the original complaint? Enough of having fun with Kevton.

You have a problem in both the vent and the drain line. Let me explain.
"Bubbles" and "Gurgles". They are both indicters that something's going on in your drainage system.
A "bubble" indicates a clogged line while a "gurgle" indicates a blocked vent. Let me explain. When you flush the discharge drains down the pipe until it hits a partial clog. Then it rebounds back sending a "bubble" of air ahead of it. When you flush a toilet or drain a bathtub a suction is created by the water rushing down the pipe. This suction is relieved by a open pipe that runs to the outside called a vent. When a vent's stopped up the suction has to relieve itself somewhere, in this case your toilet. The noise you hear is the air being pulled through the trap by suction, (gurgle).
I would call in a plumber to snake out your lines.
Pardon the rant. I monitor the answers to make sure the people that come to us for advice get the best available. This was his first post. He could get better with time but the one thing that's not allowed on the plumbing page is bad advice. Regards, Tom

[kevton]

Hi I'm not from the states I'm from new zealand. Over here we have two or three overflow gullys installed on any drainage system to prevent any blockages in the line, flooding your home.they are located outside around the house.by flowing as much water into each gully can help you to determine where in your drainage system the blockage maybe,which can save the client a considerable amount of money.also the question was asked is the drain blocked or not by doing this it would have shown you that the drain was blocked as it was over flowing, if it was a vent problem the water would still disappear. But hey I'm obviously not much good around here.

[speedball1]

hi im not from the states im from new zealand. over here we have two or three overflow gullys installed on any drainage system to prevent any blockages in the line, flooding your home.they are located outside around the house.by flowing as much water into each gully can help you to determine where in your drainage system the blockage maybe,which can save the client a considerable amount of money.also the question was asked is the drain blocked or not by doing this it would have shown you that the drain was blocked as it was over flowing, if it was a vent problem the water would still disapear. but hey im obviously not much good around here.

Sorry Kevton,
We don't have "drain gullys" over here. Advising someone with a blocked drain to run water down the drain to see if it overflowed is just not acceptable. I now realize it was the outside relief drain that you were referring to when you posted. Would you be so kind as to describe,in detail, the function and hook up of a "gully". Would this be like a French drain? Thank you, tom