Drain that plumber couldn't snake out

[Melinda Meahan - remove TRASH]

I have a clogged drain in a 50YO house that the plumber could not snake out. He suspects that the clog is in a section of pipe that he is guessing goes vertically from the one bathroom sink to the other bathroom sink and said that the plumbing will have to be disassembled behind the wall to locate the clog and clear it. The drain just trickles and takes forever to clear the sink.

Does anybody know of any alternate ways to clear a drain besides (a) snaking, (b) plunging, (c) pouring boiling water down the drain, (c) using Drano, and (d) using slow-drain clearer, none of which are working? Do the pressure things work -- the ones that send either water or down down and gradually create enough pressure to dislodge the clog?

TIA for any help I could get here.

[Paul Franklin]

I have had good luck with the rubber bladder device that attaches to the end of a garden house. You remove the trap underneath the sink, attach this to a hose, slide it in the pipe as far as you can, and turn on the water full blast. First it swells up to seal itself in the pipe, then it starts sending jets of water down the pipe.

You can tell by the change in sound when (if) the clog gives way. I use hot water and let it run a few minutes after the clog is broken.

I had a bathroom drain that clogged often because of a double elbow in the drain in the wall, which I eventually tore out and redid. The double elbow also made it impossible to snake out.

I've seen these at the big box stores and hardware stores. It won't work if you have another fixture (like a tub) on the same line upstream of the clog. You will know very quickly if this is the case (DAMHIKT). The thing is cheap, so it's worth a try.

HTH,

Paul

[Des Perado]

disassembled