Drain question

[Janet Tweedy]

The drains from my house are fine, not blocked (checked and rodded to make sure and watched water flow easily) but the first bit of the drain is the drain from my kitchen sink and bath. It goes into a sort of vertical hole, which is fine but appears to go into the main drain via an opening half way up the side. It keeps blocking at this end, the water beyond is fine and rodding from the main drain to the opening (i.e. back up the system) is also fine. Plunging the rods etc. up and down seems to clear the drain for a while but then it slowly seems to block again. Am I right in assuming that leaves or debris have dropped down the grating and have started to form a surface blockage that blocks the opening and so i will need to somehow reach the sludge at the bottom and get it out? i did once see some sort of spade/scoop that enables you to do this but i can't find it online. It's only grey water coming out of the drain but even so I am not keen on putting my arm down the hole to fish out sludge or decomposing leaves. Is there some thing i could buy to scoop the stuff out rather like getting water out of a well?

Sorry, question a bit involved but i didn't want you thinking it was a typical blocked horizontal drain. I can do them!

Janet

[Tim Watts]

Janet Tweedy ( [e-mail]) wibbled on Friday 14 January 2011

12:41:

Can you work a garden hose, running on full pelt through the pipe?

That can shift the odd bit of scunge...

[Tabby]

Fat's the most common blocker

[Janet Tweedy]

In article , Tim Watts writes

Well yes but it looks as if I need to get out whatever is being sucked and thereby blocking the hole (IYSWIM)

[Janet Tweedy]

In article , Tabby writes

Then once i have emptied the drain down to the hole (leaving it appears about another 6 inches or so ) how do i get out and entirely empty the trap/drain?

[Dave Liquorice]

I hope you don't put cooking fat down the sink...

Nor quite sure what you mean here. I suspect you mean just an ordinary gully trap:

and easiest way to remove the gunk in the bottom is a long sleeved rubber glove and reach in but you say you don't want to do that. A wet 'n dry vacum cleaner will do it might need to add extra water a few times to loosen the debris enough for it to be sucked out. You may find something to large/heavy in there so that will require the gloved hand...

[Donwill]

A long rubber glove, I had a similar problem with a grey water gulley, the kitchen sink discharged into it, I found some rubber (Marigold type) long gloves in a cheapie store, they came up to the elbow and were long enough to enable me to scoop the crud out of it which was mainly composed of congealed fat and a limey substance which was I assume was the deposit left by the hard water we have in our area. It makes a wonderful paste but I wouldn't advise you cleaning your teeth with it :-) .

Good Luck Don

[TheScullster]

"Janet Tweedy" wrote

discharge into, then there is supposed to be a constant level of water in - that's what provides the "trap" element and prevents smells from passing.

As others have said, long rubber gloves are good for clearing the sludge from these. Once you get passed the smell and the concern over impending creepy crawlies it's not such a bad job. The more thoroughly you clean, the less snags there are for future crud to catch.

Phil

[stuart noble]

Yes, that's well worth a try, but often the arm down is the best way. Just pull the leaches off afterwards :-)

[S Viemeister]

The over-the-elbow gloves vets use for reaching into the back ends of their patients, work very well for clearing gunked drains.

[Janet Tweedy]

In article , stuart noble writes

Oh .............. yuk

[Janet Tweedy]

In article , S Viemeister writes

Oh right, yes, I'll see if I can get a pair, good tip

[Janet Tweedy]

In article , Dave Liquorice writes

No, don't use fat to cook with and any excess gets used for bird food stuff

[Jim White]

And a divers nose clip to counter the stench ;-)

[zaax]

You will need to get all they way down and feel passed the u bend and the best way is with hand and arm. That way you can feel for any damage, just have a bucket of diluted household disinfectant standing by to wash hands and arms. If there are any bugs down there you will have to find out where they are coming from.

[Huge]

And that's how drain clearing services make their money.

[Alan]

In message , Janet Tweedy wrote

Use a mop as a plunger to loosen all the gunge whilst running a hose. When the worst is removed this way stop the water. Then a packet of washing soda (approx £1 for supermarkets) and a few kettles of boiling water.

[Terry Casey]

I don't know if this is any use to you but when our surface water drain got blocked with sludge a few years ago, I made simple scoop.

I used a tin can cut in half vertically but with the bottom left intact. If you've got a can opener that cuts into the side of the can below the lip, rather than into the lid, it will make it easy to remove the cut-out bit. (Make this bit slightly less than half the can and bend the edges over with pliers for more strength and to hide the cut edge, if you like.

I then screwed the can onto a long piece of wood and used it to reach to the bottom.

Might be better if you don't fancy the Marigolds and clothes peg approach or if, like me, your knees are worn out and don't find it easy to kneel ...

[Graham.]

I think she guessed. She removed the x-posts anyway :-)

[Janet Tweedy]

In article , Huge writes

It's not the drain but the leeches i don't fancy!!