Any plumbers out there?

[RWB]

My parents kitchen sink is driving us nuts. It's decided to clog up in the most unholy of ways. We've done liquid plumber and I believe I saw some sulfuric acid. Nothing has pulled it out. I went out and got a snake, and it gets to one spot and NOTHING can seem to budge it. We have no idea what could have done this, no other plumbing in the house is screwed up, just the kitchen sink. I am getting close to just ripping out the wall where I think the problem is located and smashing it all to peices.

We cannot afford a plumber :(

[289Mustang]

Pull the trap under the sink and take a look around.

[GHoosdum]

How far down is the problem? I've run into issues where you feel like the blockage is solid, but it's actually a sudden directional change in the pipe that you can't see. A plumber was easily able to kill our clog that we couldn't even get the snake into...

[RWB]

We opened teh main pip or whatever, forgot what they call the area that goes up then down to prevent sewage gas from coming out of the sink, but right where the two of those meet is an opening we opened put the snake down into. It seems to turn twice, then we hit and area that won't move one bit. I figured it might be another turn that we just can't get the snak around, I'll work on that somemore. But it oculd be it as well, being that NO water seems to want to go through it, even when forced.

I'd like to build a pressurized water thing that will shove the water right down that pipe, or maybe a good vacumme. I figure that's what the pro's do..... I used to watch "Home Improvement" every day :thumbsup:

But I gotta do my resume first, but again.... we cannot afford a pro to come out. It's starting to smell though.

I think the snake went down 5 feet or so... not realy far.

[madmat]

If you can get ahold of a air reserve tank you can put rags around the pipe, put a blower (like you use for blowing things off with compressed air) into the pipe and let 'er rip, that's one method plumbers use for forcing a clog through and it usually works pretty well.

[bothered]

If the fittings are the push on type pressure may blow them off. Can you try pushing the snake through from the other end or is it too far away?

[RWB]

If the fittings are the push on type pressure may blow them off. Can you try pushing the snake through from the other end or is it too far away?


Other end?

[primesuspect]

Well mr bothered, I don't know how you guys do it in jolly old england, but the "other end" is in the sewers under the streets here in the civilized world ;D

RWB: One thing I can tell you is DON'T use the sulfuric acid. I did that on a stubborn clog and it ended up destroying the actual DRAINPIPE in my walls, like it ate right through the ****er... I had to tear up walls and go right up to the pipe stack to replace the pipe.

Sulfuric acid = bad

[RWB]

Well mr bothered, I don't know how you guys do it in jolly old england, but the "other end" is in the sewers under the streets here in the civilized world ;D

RWB: One thing I can tell you is DON'T use the sulfuric acid. I did that on a stubborn clog and it ended up destroying the actual DRAINPIPE in my walls, like it ate right through the ****er... I had to tear up walls and go right up to the pipe stack to replace the pipe.

Sulfuric acid = bad


It's done.

;D

They already put the sulfuric acid down it I believe, I thought something like that could happen, but I wasn't part of it either. I was told a plumber is coming tomorrow or saturday. :rolleyes:

[madmat]

Generally we don't use push on pipe fittings here in the states, it has to be either a jointed pipe (screw together) or permanently affixed whether that's glued for plastics or soldered for metal.

I should have clarified though, you only use about 25-30 psi air pressure when you blow a clog, it's the air volume that moves it, not the pressure, no need to blow up the drain piping in the walls or under the floor.

[Madball]

I should have clarified though, you only use about 25-30 psi air pressure when you blow a clog, it's the air volume that moves it, not the pressure, no need to blow up the drain piping in the walls or under the floor.

Newer pvc drain pipe is rated at a minimum of 200psi. It won't blow up. The worst that could happen is one of the connections would leak air. The pros use a very powerful blast of air.

[bothered]

Well mr bothered, I don't know how you guys do it in jolly old england, but the "other end" is in the sewers under the streets here in the civilized world ;D
Ah, well, we must have a different system. Our 'dirty' water, from toilets and industry etc, goes down straight to the sewers. Our other water, from sinks, baths and rain gutters, goes into another system. Our sink\bath water usually goes outside to a grid so you can easily get to the other end. I don't know the names of the two systems but I believe they are totally seperate. Almost all of our domestic waste pipes are just plastic push on fittings. They are normally not under any pressure but it wouldn't take much to blow them off.

[madmat]

Here they call that grey water and waste water, in rural areas here in Arkansas they just let grey water run off on the ground and save the septic tanks for the waste water.

In urban areas it all goes down the same hole though, most homes do have a "clean out" port on the sewer/septic end but it could be several feet of drain with countless Y's and T's from there to an affected drain.

And in older homes with old metal pipes it could be 40-50 PSI that blows a hole in a drain, maybe less.

[kanezfan]

Bet you have a rat stuck in there.