soil pipe, advice needed , not for the squeemish.

[gaz1]

got the pig tail on and goes right through , borrowing a bung to screw on tomorrow..

send the plunger down first

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bung is used more as testing the width of the pipe

Bailey 94-110mm Drain Test Plug 2 Pack - Screwfix

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its used more for testing the water tightness of drains but it can also be used as a width checker dont force it it needs to slide down the pipe easily and its easily trapped if you do force it

this is why you use the plunger first as it will flex enough but use the water plunge method in reverse just fill as much water in that drain as possible as the plunging movement even in reverse can shift and move crap rather well

 

[arther dailey]

Seems strange to me that you can get a pigtail all the way through but no movement on the levels. I assume you mean something like this:

Rothenberger Double Worm Screw

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Does it seem to catch on anything when it's going through or being pulled back? What's on the end when it gets to the next inspection point? You could cable tie some old rag over the pigtail which would increase pressure as you pushed it through.

yup ,I i cant fathom either , just think solids turned to slurry which has some sort of suction/hydraulic lock

 

[arther dailey]

Once its unblocked you need to plan out a longer term fix...a high fibre diet is meant to help I've heard .

Nasty jobs soil pipes...the ones you go at fully prepared are never the ones that go wrong....it's always the way!

my diets reasonable good , but a family member has to use a lot of paper , no need for details , but its just normally clears easily , couple times a year I geuss.

 

[arther dailey]

send the plunger down first

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bung is used more as testing the width of the pipe

Bailey 94-110mm Drain Test Plug 2 Pack - Screwfix

Order online at Screwfix.com. For use with Drain Air Testing Kit. FREE next day delivery available, free collection in 1 minute.

www.screwfix.com

its used more for testing the water tightness of drains but it can also be used as a width checker dont force it it needs to slide down the pipe easily and its easily trapped if you do force it

this is why you use the plunger first as it will flex enough but use the water plunge method in reverse just fill as much water in that drain as possible as the plunging movement even in reverse can shift and move crap rather well

thanks for the info, cheers

 

[julianf]

I know you know this, but I'm going to say it again just to highlight it -

Don't get whatever you put down there stuck!

Good luck.


(Ps I buy caustic in 25kg sacks for something else, but it's not cheap at the moment, and you can't really pour it into a drain thats full of slurry as it won't really penetrate well)

 

[Agrismith]

Drain lining man as I say...

Would need CCTV inspection first. From the symptoms I think a belly in the pipe sounds more likely than a cracked pipe. And drain lining won't sort that

 

[arther dailey]

I know you know this, but I'm going to say it again just to highlight it -

Don't get whatever you put down there stuck!

Good luck.


(Ps I buy caustic in 25kg sacks for something else, but it's not cheap at the moment, and you can't really pour it into a drain thats full of slurry as it won't really penetrate well)

I had thought about caustic, as I can get the rod with pigtail through it would obviously drag some though but my thoughts the same not enough to do any good , await the bung that goes on end of rod , the water level does drain down overnight to height of pipe , but i need to get it cleared as cant keep going down the supermarket and using facilities.

 

[arther dailey]

Would need CCTV inspection first. From the symptoms I think a belly in the pipe sounds more likely than a cracked pipe. And drain lining won't sort that

oooh, hope not , but doubt the pipes in good nick as it was laid about 70 year ago , it would be a monumental task to clear garage and shed to replace thats for sure , so fingers crossed to clear it , otherwise it might well be £££ specialist/camera and go from there.

 

[knighty]

I've had a rose on the end of a rod through a drain before and it stays blocked

I've always assumed (guessed) there's a build up of crap the rose pushes through... but then there's plenty more crap there to full the rose shaped hole as you push through

plunger on the end always shifts stuff for me


we.... almost always, doesn't shift a pop can/bottle or a bit of broken pallet stuck on a bend :-(

 

[gaz1]

I had thought about caustic, as I can get the rod with pigtail through it would obviously drag some though but my thoughts the same not enough to do any good , await the bung that goes on end of rod , the water level does drain down overnight to height of pipe , but i need to get it cleared as cant keep going down the supermarket and using facilities.

you have what you call a good blockage of whatever down there

the slury/sludge will just reblock again as it drains down

resend the pigtail back down and at each section push and twist that pigtail round each length is about 1m

your trying to feel something as you insert the rods per length

if you feel resistance you could have a blockage or it could be roots twisting the pig tail will find roots and can jamb up well so you learn to twist x3 and pull so you can break up smaller roots

push back in and twist x3 again and keep doing it per length

its long and labourious work but doing it this way starts digging and cutting into what you have down there

the twist allows the pigtail to bounce and moves it to either side if your not sure why you do it

if you find say a fat burg the twist will gently pull the rod forward a root wont show this effect as the root will take x2 to x3 to show this effect as it wraps around the pigtail

a twist also allows you to move over the join of the drain connections as it can jamb up at these points as you push the rod into the drain you will feel the difference as you push the rods into your drain and its mostly done by feel at best of times

i have 2 sets of rods one that spins and another set that are solid bolt on ones you can only twist one way with the solid type dont reverse spin otherwise you can unscrew the rods in the drain
the other set that spins you cannot use the pigtail or the half plunger as it wont allow a spin on them

 

[julianf]

I had thought about caustic, as I can get the rod with pigtail through it would obviously drag some though but my thoughts the same not enough to do any good , await the bung that goes on end of rod , the water level does drain down overnight to height of pipe , but i need to get it cleared as cant keep going down the supermarket and using facilities.

The way caustic works is excellent for things like fats (it turns them into soap) but not good at all for things like root ingress.

Wet wipes etc (I'm not saying that's the issue at all but just as an example) will not just vanish with some caustic.

It's best for kitchen drainage issues, or other situations where you know someone has chucked a load of lipids down the drain.

I've had pumps block in high concentrations of caustic before as there's been sawdust contamination - I mean it's not a silver bullet for everything by any means.

 

[gaz1]

theres a few things that dont break up easily

kitchen rolls will break up but they do take a little while to do so

wet wipes, pads, tampax dont they can also catch easily you might be surprised on how many actually do flush that sort of stuff down the toilet

fat burgs are the worst showers and kitchen drains are the worst going for causing real blockages

ive shown enough videos of them on here

 

[arther dailey]

you have what you call a good blockage of whatever down there

the slury/sludge will just reblock again as it drains down

resend the pigtail back down and at each section push and twist that pigtail round each length is about 1m

your trying to feel something as you insert the rods per length

if you feel resistance you could have a blockage or it could be roots twisting the pig tail will find roots and can jamb up well so you learn to twist x3 and pull so you can break up smaller roots

push back in and twist x3 again and keep doing it per length

its long and labourious work but doing it this way starts digging and cutting into what you have down there

the twist allows the pigtail to bounce and moves it to either side if your not sure why you do it

if you find say a fat burg the twist will gently pull the rod forward a root wont show this effect as the root will take x2 to x3 to show this effect as it wraps around the pigtail

a twist also allows you to move over the join of the drain connections as it can jamb up at these points as you push the rod into the drain you will feel the difference as you push the rods into your drain and its mostly done by feel at best of times

i have 2 sets of rods one that spins and another set that are solid bolt on ones you can only twist one way with the solid type dont reverse spin otherwise you can unscrew the rods in the drain
the other set that spins you cannot use the pigtail or the half plunger as it wont allow a spin on them

I have sent it through from both directions with pigtail on several times , today I got a bristle type brush that fits on from screw fix, its 4" , wouldnt fit in so cut 1/2" of all around ...now fits goes in and gets to about 25 foot , which is clear of garage , screw fix did nt have a scraper so ordered one for tomorrow, will use that from the far end.

 

[arther dailey]

It is just soil waste pipe , so no kitchen roll, fat etc , but might be a sanitary type product , saying that had it before and cleared it easily, will have another go from far end this evening when it cools , as now I know its in the last 20/25 feet. if not scraper on order for tomorrow. And Thankyou for all advice , appreciated.

 

[Erie Fred]

If this is a septic tank, chemicals might kill all good bugs in the tank ?

 

[knighty]

Yeah, chemicals are a bad idea

A plunger really is your best bet

As you work it back and forth it shifts the whole slug of water/crap/whatever that's in the pipe back and forth and breaks it up

 

[arther dailey]

send the plunger down first

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Order drain/chimney rod tools and other drain equipment online at BES.co.uk. Low Prices, Free Next Day Delivery Available, 15k Plus Products in stock. P/N: 13038

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bung is used more as testing the width of the pipe

Bailey 94-110mm Drain Test Plug 2 Pack - Screwfix

Order online at Screwfix.com. For use with Drain Air Testing Kit. FREE next day delivery available, free collection in 1 minute.

www.screwfix.com

its used more for testing the water tightness of drains but it can also be used as a width checker dont force it it needs to slide down the pipe easily and its easily trapped if you do force it

this is why you use the plunger first as it will flex enough but use the water plunge method in reverse just fill as much water in that drain as possible as the plunging movement even in reverse can shift and move crap rather well

Sorry , I wrongly said bung when meant plunger , 4" plunger wont fit is what I found today...

 

[gaz1]

Yeah, chemicals are a bad idea

A plunger really is your best bet

As you work it back and forth it shifts the whole slug of water/crap/whatever that's in the pipe back and forth and breaks it up

whilst i agree with you as ive used this method often ive actually known if fail

ive always piped filled the pipe with water before using the plunging method as i use the water to push and it slowly cuts into most stuff but when it gives you soon know about it as the water and the rod can be ripped out of your hands and flush down the pipe then its fun trying to get your rod back

when its failed its always been back to the pigtail and chew at it by spinning and riping into it whilst water is in the pipe you also get into habbits of backing up and spinning it so it bounces enough to another place and continue to shew at whatever it is

a half pipe scrapper is used best when pipe is clear as you can use it to cut into the crap and slosh it with water in the pipe dosnt work with a fully blocked pipe as you cannot insert it far enough into the clog in the pipe but comes in handy for pulling crap and water back sloshing the water into a watery substance or to use a pull out system

it can be used to clear 3/4 of your drain but wont work upside down

 

[arther dailey]

Yeah, chemicals are a bad idea

A plunger really is your best bet

As you work it back and forth it shifts the whole slug of water/crap/whatever that's in the pipe back and forth and breaks it up

the bristle brush came to an abrupt halt at 25 feet, so as stuff could creep around the sides ,through bristles dont think plunger would do any better , but you can hope...

 

[arther dailey]

whilst i agree with you as ive used this method often ive actually known if fail

ive always piped filled the pipe with water before using the plunging method as i use the water to push and it slowly cuts into most stuff but when it gives you soon know about it as the water and the rod can be ripped out of your hands and flush down the pipe then its fun trying to get your rod back

when its failed its always been back to the pigtail and chew at it by spinning and riping into it whilst water is in the pipe you also get into habbits of backing up and spinning it so it bounces enough to another place and continue to shew at whatever it is

a half pipe scrapper is used best when pipe is clear as you can use it to cut into the crap and slosh it with water in the pipe dosnt work with a fully blocked pipe as you cannot insert it far enough into the clog in the pipe but comes in handy for pulling crap and water back sloshing the water into a watery substance or to use a pull out system

it can be used to clear 3/4 of your drain but wont work upside down

I like that, wont work upside down , only chuckle Ive had on this so far..