Hydro jet for clearing kitchen line

[Higgs Boson]

I have been in plumbing hell for the last few months. One damn me$$ after another.

Now I ask your input on some procedure quoted to me by Plumber A as "Hydrojet". Supposed to clean around the interior pipe rather than snake a hole though it (my unscientific interpretation!).

Just checked with Plumber B who snaked my line in *Feb*. Clogged up in *Ju ly*. Plumber B snaked it again.

Two days later, had major work in bathroom done by Plumber A. Kitchen clog ged up again *5 days later.* I was afraid something got stuck in there fro m bathroom work by Plumber B. I've been letting kitchen water run into dri veway; afraid to investigate whose "fault" it is if anyone, and how to fix problem.

Called Plumber A. They said no chance anything stuck in line; they do not converge. Recommended Hydrojet. They haven't followed through as promised . End of THEM!

Called Plumber B (snaker). He said in 25 years he had rarelu of ever used Hydrojet. He is coming over to see. Says sometimes 2 snakings needed.

If a kitchen snake job can seize up IN A FEW DAYS doesn't that mean somethi ng is radically wrong? Esp. if it was snaked in Feb, then again in July? Normally over [censored] years, I've only had to have it snaked every few Y EARS!

Who is scamming me, if anybody?

Does anyone agree with Plumber B (snaker) that Hydrojet is not often needed ?

Sorry for the length, but I have family coming in 2 days and I don't want t hem to see mess in driveway.

Any input welcome.

HB

[micky]

All I can say is that I think I've seen hydro-jet done, for the sewer that runs near the road, from house to house (townhouses fwliw)

They have water sprays coming out from the center pointing in maybe 10 directions, and another sprray pointing fowards, that slowly propels the device in the other direction, or maybe they just reel it in.

They used this after the people at the top of the hill had trouble draining their sinks. The plumber said he found a fat log in the sewer, I guess made of fat that's liquid when the hot water is running in the sink and is much nearer to hard when it hits the cold water in the sewer. I think that's only happened once in tthe 30 years I've been here, but individual houses have probably had clogged drains.

I myself have never had a clogged drain in the 60 years I can remember, since I was 6 and lived with my parents and all the time I've lived on my own. Or even a toilet where the water level rose when I flushed it, let alone overflowed.

I don't let fat run into the kitchen sink. I pour it in a jar with a screw on lid, freeze it, and eventually throw it in the trash. I don't put anything but human waste and toilet paper (not Kleenex or anything like Kleenex) in the toilet. Toilet paper is designed to fall apart when wet. No other paper is. And aiui the so-called feminine cloth products that say on the package, just throw in the toilet, canNOT actually be thrown in the toilet or they clog the toilet up. And how much more so the "feminine" products that DON'T say they can be thrown in the toilet. No one does any of that here either.

[Stormin Mormon]

months. One damn me$$ after another.

me by Plumber A as

pipe rather than snake a hole though it (my unscientific interpretation!).

in *Feb*. Clogged up in *July*.

by Plumber A. Kitchen clogged up again *5 days later.* I was afraid something got stuck in there from bathroom work by Plumber B. I've been letting kitchen water run into driveway; afraid to investigate whose "fault" it is if anyone, and how to fix problem.

stuck in line; they do not converge. Recommended Hydrojet. They haven't followed through as promised.

he had rarelu of ever used Hydrojet. He is coming over to see. Says sometimes 2 snakings needed.

doesn't that mean something is radically wrong? Esp. if it was snaked in Feb, then again in July? Normally over [censored] years, I've only had to have it snaked every few YEARS!

is not often needed?

in 2 days and I don't want them to see mess in driveway.

Since you've had a couple snake jobs done, did you watch what was done? I'd think to do my own small hand snake job. Follow up with a load of crystal Drano to try and dissolve some of the grease and hair that often is found in drains.

Yes, that does sound rough.

. Christopher A. Young Learn about Jesus

.

[Curly Fikes]

Galvanized drain pipes? If so, those things can get deposits where a snake won't work. I actually took a section apart and heated with a cutting torch to remove the minerals.

I know a snake can open the minerals somewhat, but they will clog right back up.

[TimR]

You're probably a lot smarter than me, but don't make the mistake I recently did.

The kitchen sink blocked up.

And I stupidly used a plunger. Well, I've used one before on toilets and sinks, and usually there's no problem.

But this is our first house with a dishwasher, and it did not occur to me until too late these lines all connect. Doh, how else is the dishwasher going to drain? So when I plunged the sink, I forced all that cr@p into the dishwasher.

I ended up removing the trap and snaking it.

[David L. Martel]

Higgs,

What maintenance do you do to your plumbing? How many people are in your household?

Dave M.

[Higgs Boson]

er another.

e a hole though it (my unscientific interpretation!).

logged up again *5 days later.* I was afraid something got stuck in there from bathroom work by Plumber B. I've been letting kitchen water run into driveway; afraid to investigate whose "fault" it is if anyone, and how to f ix problem.

ot converge. Recommended Hydrojet. They haven't followed through as promi sed.

sed Hydrojet. He is coming over to see. Says sometimes 2 snakings needed.

thing is radically wrong? Esp. if it was snaked in Feb, then again in July ? Normally over [censored] years, I've only had to have it snaked every fe w YEARS!

t them to see mess in driveway.

I don' either. I scrape it into the trash.

I pour it in a jar with a

I

Glad you mentioned that! Many families do throw those "wipes" into the toil et because the label says OK. Our City sentout a notice a while back to th at effect. DON'T!! So we fold it into paper towel or TP and put in bathroo m bin.

[Higgs Boson]

Plumber A said it was not metal, judging from where I unscrewed nut. But I don't remember having non-metal installed. I still think it's the old, old, old metal. Wish someone would tell me the truth.

Plumber A intimated that in the long run I'd have to have 50' of pipe replaced. 2K+.

[Higgs Boson]

I DID just exactly that! Plunger.

Whether it contributed to Feb or to July snaking, I have no way to tell.

Earlier, I had the undersink pipe replaced because of a pinhole leak (very old pipe) so I don't think those operations were connected.

HB

[Higgs Boson]

Very (*&^%#$%^^) little maintenance (not sure I understand what that involvers?) We only respond to emergencies. We DO take GREAT care to not put grease down sink, and in bathroom, to not put anything but paper and poop in toilet.

HB Two in household

[Stormin Mormon]

You can buy an electric drain reamer from HF less than that cost.

. Christopher A. Young Learn about Jesus

.

[ChairMan]

Why has no one suggested running a camera down the drain to see exactly what the cause of the clog is? Or for that matter, the condition of the pipes

[micky]

A friend had a plumber out for a clogged drain. He snaked, and when that didn't work, he said he had to dig up the drain pipe in the front yard.

My friend was about to pay him to do that when another friend of his told him to call the county. The county came out and snaked the part of the drain that they owned, from his drain pipe or some place, to their bigger drain. Everything fine now. County pipes. No charge.

I don't if the pipes are arranged the same way in other places. Though he lives on a street which is NOT scheduled to be widened ever, afaict. I really don't know what pipes were the county pipes.

[recyclebinned]

a hole though it (my unscientific interpretation!).

ogged up again *5 days later.* I was afraid something got stuck in there f rom bathroom work by Plumber B. I've been letting kitchen water run into d riveway; afraid to investigate whose "fault" it is if anyone, and how to fi x problem.

t converge. Recommended Hydrojet. They haven't followed through as promis ed.

ed Hydrojet. He is coming over to see. Says sometimes 2 snakings needed.

hing is radically wrong? Esp. if it was snaked in Feb, then again in July? Normally over [censored] years, I've only had to have it snaked every few YEARS!

them to see mess in driveway.

1. What kind of tip did the snake have on its end? Was it a grease cutter h ead?
2. Is your vent clear? That?s the part that sticks over the roof.
3. Is it septic or city sewer?
4. Could your sewer pipe have a hole in it which would cause all the ?jui ces? to leak out and leave the ?solids? behind?

[micky]

Maybe they're just at the limit of their knowledge, that is beyond the limit. I think some plumbers are self-trained. After all, how complicated could plumbing be! Just a bunch of pipes. You don't need book-learnin' to understand pipes. I don't know if you can get a license with that attitude and only self-training. I also don't know if your guy has a license.

In the example I gave in the other post, he had done good work for them before too. And I guess he was right that a pipe was clogged, but there are only two counties around here, where this guy worked and he should have known what the county plumbing folk will do for a homeowner.

People rationalize their misbehaviour, that is, they convince themselves they're not misbehaving. Just look at Congress, one or both parties are misbehaving but no one thinks his party is.

S

[David L. Martel]

Higgs,

One of the best bits of advice that I found on this group was that plumbing needs maintenance. Glop sticks to pipes. If you don't remove the glop, the pipes clog and it's snake time. So let's deal with the glop. There are lots of products out there designed for this. Your hardware store will stock a bunch. Drano is cheap. These things are caustic so be careful. Clean your pipes every month. Even cheaper is hot water. Once again a trick from this newsgroup. Set 2 large pots of water on the stove to boil. Run the hot water in the sink you plan to clear. When the water is boiling turn off the running water and pour the boiling water down the drain. Do each sink and tub about once a month. Do NOT do the boiling water trick to your toilet, it may crack. I use this and it has worked very well for me. 4 gallons of really hot water dissolves the glop and moves the glop down the line.

Dave M.

[Moe DeLoughan]

Do a little googling on the Hydro Jet. Sounds like it is indeed the option of next-to-last resort for a lot of troublesome drainage issues, and that it can be pretty effective. Apparently, when the right head (the root rat and warthog heads were mentioned) is used with the hydrojet, it can even do a better job of root removal than the conventional root removal process w/cutter head.

It does look like prices and guarantees vary wildly. You probably want to find a few plumbers in your area that perform the service, find out what their procedure includes (for example, do they perform a before-and-after camera examination of the line), and what their guarantee is.

I guess if it were me, and if you've been quoted $2k to replace the kitchen line from the sink to the main sewer line, I'd consider hydro jetting *if* it included before and after camera inspection, came with a minimum 90 day guarantee, and if it cost no more than $500. Any more expensive than that, I'd just say the hell with it and replace the pipes.

[Moe DeLoughan]

They also decay over time, which can lead to a section of the pipe collapsing and thus causing a blockage. Which is what happened with my previous kitchen drain line.

Mine is almost that long. The kitchen sink is on the opposite end of the house from the main waste line. The drain line runs at a slight angle from the sink, down the basement wall, underneath the basement floor to about eight feet from the opposite wall, where it joins the main waste pipe. A section of the old galvanized pipe rotted away away about twelve feet from where it started its run underneath the cement slab. I ended up having the entire kitchen waste line replaced. Since it involved cutting a thirty-foot trench in the basement floor to lay a new line, it was quite expensive, somewhere between $3-$4K ten years ago. The plumbers assured me that opening the floor would be an eight-hour job. I knew better; my dad had (over)built the house himself. It took over three days for them just to cut the trench. In total, the better part of a week on the whole job, hence the expense. (Not including the time I took off from work to help them. I just wanted to get it over and done with asap.)

[Higgs Boson]

hat both A & B saw me coming.

I always check. He has a licence # on his truck & Web site. It's Mr. Spee dy, a franchise, but come to think of it, consumers are supposed to check w ith the licensing bureau to see if it's current. The friend who referred him is married to architect/contractor who has used him on big jobs. So I assume his bona fides are in order. But I cannot forgive tradespeople who just don't bother to call -- which is by now more the rule than the excepti on.

I am righteously ticked off at Plumber A. His man took $39.95 from me just to come out and look at it. He said he would be back later that day with Hydrojet. Never came. I called; they said they would put boss on the phone. Never ha ppened.

Here's how I feel: I had a verbal contract with this outfit that the $39.9

5 would go against final cost of job. I'm going to write to the Calif lice nsing bureau to file a complaint and demand a refund for breach of contract .

HB

Er..let's not get into Congress and gerrymandering...I'm upset enuff w/plum bing!

about what A & B are telling me re: hydrojet.

[Higgs Boson]

ter another.

ke a hole though it (my unscientific interpretation!).

clogged up again *5 days later.* I was afraid something got stuck in there from bathroom work by Plumber B. I've been letting kitchen water run into driveway; afraid to investigate whose "fault" it is if anyone, and how to fix problem.

not converge. Recommended Hydrojet. They haven't followed through as prom ised.

used Hydrojet. He is coming over to see. Says sometimes 2 snakings needed .

ething is radically wrong? Esp. if it was snaked in Feb, then again in Jul y? Normally over [censored] years, I've only had to have it snaked every f ew YEARS!

nt them to see mess in driveway.

Sorry, didn't notice on either of his two trips. Will bring it up to him to day.-

Can I assume so if bathroom and washing machine work ok?

City

uices? to leak out and leave the ?solids? behind?

OMG I hope not. Would this apply even if bathroom and washing machine run OK?

*****Pls explain; TIA. HB