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    PleaseHelp!'s Avatar
    PleaseHelp! Posts: 1, Reputation: 1
    New Member
     
    #1

    Feb 3, 2006, 07:38 PM
    I'm backing up...
    In the past few days the plumbing in my house has gone to crap... literally.
    It started with a slow draining bathroom sink on the 2nd level of the house. Liquid Plumber Gel did the trick. Then the toilet clogged. Plunger did it's job. Then we noticed the toilet on the lower level was moving when ever sat upon and that the carpet was wet. We bought a new seal and had plans to pull the toilet today. However, while my son was showing and the washer draining, the toilet started overflowing. I rushed out to the garage for the plunger when I saw that the drain was backing up with raw waste and toilet paper. Last but not least, when ever a toilet is flushed on the second floor there is the loud noise of running water which wasn't there previously. Thinking that the problem was the main drain and having a snake handy, we snaked through a hole in the drain that was covered with a screw- in cap (thinking it was the clean-out drain) for about 20 feet. However, it seemed that the snake was going from the drain to the house, not the house to the street. Could a broken seal on a toilet cause this? Does this mean that the main drain is clogged? If it is a clog, does it mean it is from the sewer to the drain in the garage?

    Please help...

    Backed up in KC
    speedball1's Avatar
    speedball1 Posts: 29,301, Reputation: 1939
    Eternal Plumber
     
    #2

    Feb 3, 2006, 11:28 PM
    "Does this mean that the main drain is clogged? If it is a clog, does it mean it is from the sewer to the drain in the garage?"

    To check this make sure the clean out cover is screwed on and flush until something starts to back up. Now unscrew the clean out cover and check the opening. If There's water gushing out of the cleanout then the clog's located in the sewer main between the clean out and the street. If not then it's located in the house main and you will have to snake from a vent. DO NOT snake from the clean out to the house against the fitting flow. You have no guarantee wherthe snake will come up and you stand a very good chance of hanging it up. Always snake with the way the drainage flows.
    Regards, Tom

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