or, more accurately, kitchen sink no drain.

[IMG:left] [/IMG]

This is where I'm working.


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This is the drain with the trap removed.

So the clog is down the sewer pipe, not too far I think based on the short time it takes to back up. I have a snake, but given the alignment/arrangement of the drain connection, I have little confidence in negotiating the bends to get it down the pipe, nor is there much room to crank the handle. The hex part of the fitting implies that the short piece can be removed from the Y fitting, but I am not at all certain this is possible, or a good idea, not to mention that there is not much clearance to get any leverage on it. I am willing to buy a tool if there is one specifically for this situation (tool options I have are the pipe wrench visible in the first photo, or a dowel fed into the fitting (there is clearance for an 8" long dowel).

I also have a way to put air pressure into the drain, but of course, would have to get the bladder past the vent tube. Again, I don't know if this is a good idea/worth trying or not. The pressure generated by the disposeall is not sufficient to clear the jam.

[IMG:left] [/IMG]

This is a picture of the vent, it tops out under the sink rim (I think this is called a "closet vent.") There is no roof vent. Another option: I can cut the vertical pipe, and gain access that way, repairing with a cemented join afterwards.

Any helpful advice would be appreciated. "Call a real plumber" is also under consideration.

quote:

Another option: I can cut the vertical pipe, and gain access that way, repairing with a cemented join afterwards.

^^^ this ^^^

Not hard or expensive and if it gives you the access you need 0 then why not?

If you snake job is unsuccessful then try plan B but cutting PVC is really no big deal.

YMMV

In my old home, I had dumped a bunch of fruit and veggie fiber down the disposal after juicing the fruits and veggies. I ran the disposal for about 20 seconds and shut off the water.
Half an hour later I ran the water and it was plugged.
I tried a plunger, but it backed the water out the laundry drain. I dumped in a bunch of liquid plumber and no luck. Big failure. I grabbed the trust dusty 25’ narrow gauge snake and didn’t hit the clog. Too far down. I tried my 50’ but the bend in the pipe was too severe.
I went to Home Depot and bought two gallons of this glorious stuff.

I waited a couple hours as the water would very slowly drain. I poured a gallon in, and slowly started to add the second gallon, until it was full right up to the sink drain. Then I went to work. Came home 10 hours later and the clog was long gone. Ran the water for a solid ten minutes and did a couple double full sink drains to rinse the pipes as well as possible.

As far as chemical clog removers, this stuff works awesome.

Yeah, I've had bad experiences with chemical drain cleaners in the past. The problem is two-fold: (1) if they don't work, then you have a huge mess to work through afterwards, and (2) you need some amount of flow through the clog, if it is not draining at all, or is too slow, the chemical doesn't get to where it can do anything.

quote:

Originally posted by Beancooker:
In my old home, I had dumped a bunch of fruit and veggie fiber down the disposal after juicing the fruits and veggies. I ran the disposal for about 20 seconds and shut off the water.
Half an hour later I ran the water and it was plugged.
I tried a plunger, but it backed the water out the laundry drain. I dumped in a bunch of liquid plumber and no luck. Big failure. I grabbed the trust dusty 25’ narrow gauge snake and didn’t hit the clog. Too far down. I tried my 50’ but the bend in the pipe was too severe.
I went to Home Depot and bought two gallons of this glorious stuff.

I waited a couple hours as the water would very slowly drain. I poured a gallon in, and slowly started to add the second gallon, until it was full right up to the sink drain. Then I went to work. Came home 10 hours later and the clog was long gone. Ran the water for a solid ten minutes and did a couple double full sink drains to rinse the pipes as well as possible.

As far as chemical clog removers, this stuff works awesome.

I've used the same brand but the black container marked hair and grease with great success.

It looks like it's a threaded fitting where the trap drain pipe goes into the T. I don't like the angle of that fitting as the water has to go uphill a little to get into the main drain line (above what the trap already holds) See if it will unscrew there, go to lowes and get a new screw in fitting (they call it an adapter) and thread it in and run the snake inside so you don't bugger the threads.


One of these in the appropriate size
https://www.lowes.com/pd/LASCO...h-40-Adapter/3381472

You can also cut the uphill pipe above the T, but then won't be able to get much leverage in working the snake because the cabinet top are in the way.

If you cut the pipe put one of these in with a plug and have the appropriate fitting in the link above the screw into it and should be able to work a snake down the main line anytime you want without tearing everything apart.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/LASCO...C-Sch-40-Tee/3371616

quote:

It looks like it's a threaded fitting where the trap drain pipe goes into the T. I don't like the angle of that fitting as the water has to go uphill a little to get into the main drain line (above what the trap already holds) See if it will unscrew there, go to lowes and get a new screw in fitting (they call it an adapter) and thread it in and run the snake inside so you don't bugger the threads.

This would be my first option before cutting anything

Ive used a small jack to lift a disposal into place. Worked great.

quote:

Originally posted by mas4363:
Ive used a small jack to lift a disposal into place. Worked great.

I thought of that, but wasn't able to get a bottle jack to fit. I also thought of a toggle inside the disposal mouth, and pulling it into place through the sink's drain hole with a cable, but wasn't able to quickly fit a toggle. The bitch is that the opening is too small to get your shoulders through so you are lifting at arm's length.

After resting a little I was able to lift it into place and got the ring to catch. All is well now and the wife is delighted to have a working kitchen sink again.

Thanks again, everybody!

Woo hoo!!!

Super happy that your sink drain is working again. Nothing better than a happy wife.

Glad the compressed air worked! Instead of running the pressure into another branch. In theory, capping the waste line at the kitchen and using a hose from the roof also would have pushed the obstruction clear.

Disposals also have become more tricky for me. I avoid them. After one or two false starts, I usually get it latched but it has to be 100% square. The other way is to support it with my leg or sometimes a 2x4.