washer pumps out too fast - what to do?

[Doug Lassiter]

We have a GE "extra heavy duty large capacity" washing machine that has worked beautifully for more than a decade. Unfortunately, ever since we got it, the drain line has been problematical. The washer drain hose is stuck into a 1.5-inch ID pipe opening in the washer wall fixture behind it. If the seal between that drain hose and the pipe is not good, the water will overflow out the opening and spill down the side of the wall. (Yeah, we don't have a lot of wallboard left under there anymore.)

Now, that same drain pipe is also fed by the dishwasher and kitchen sink, and there is no such trouble with them. Water drains out of the sink pretty quickly, in fact -- for a sink. As you might guess, without any overflow line (see below) the washer pump also fills up my sink. So it seems that at least between my washer and the kitchen sink, the line is OK.

A plumber has come in to clean out the drain pipe, and nothing much changes. I finally attached an overflow line on the access port fixture on the outside wall of the house (conveniently behind the washer) that allows this water flow from the washer to shoot out into the garden. NIce, and kinda spectacular, but ...

I've been told by a neighbor that I'm supposed to NOT have a perfect seal between the drain hose and the sewer pipe, as there has to be air pressure relief. (The plumber didn't think this was an issue.) But this is certainly not the solution to the problem because if the seal isn't good, as I said, the water just spills out faster!

So it seems that I have a washer pump that is too powerful for my drain. What are my options? I guess I could constrict the drain hose a bit to slow the flow, but I'm concerned that might be stressing the pump. Would it? Actually, I'm probably already stressing the pump with my seal.

[jackson]

Sorry, but it sounds to me like the problem is in the drain for the washer and not the washer itself. I'd probably call a different plumber.....

[Robert Gammon]

Do you prepare most of your meals at home??

What do you do with the waste food in dishes. pots/pans, etc????

You could have a fair accumulation of grease and food if you don't scrape all food and cooking waste into the trash can. Plumbers sell an enzyme concentrate that you flush down the furthest drain once a month to digest accumulated sludge in your pipes.

The problem may NOT be the washer, but downstream of the kitchen sink.

Even so, you may still need to get your city to come out and pressure flush the sewer. I complained of standing sewage in the street and the next day they broughy out a truck with a 2000 psi water pump on it. They unplugged at least 3 other partial blockages before they got to my house. When they broke through the final barrier, a 3 foot high fountain of water, sludge, and waste went into my yard. They spread a fair amount of granular chlorine on the waste that remained in my yard. Byproduct is that the chlorine also killed the mold growing on the concrete, so it is MUCH whiter than the concrete that was not affected.

Roto Rooter can't do this, they us a mechanical scraper and a garden hose. The 2000psi pump REALLY cleans things out. And it costs NOTHING to have done, IF you can really complain about standing sewage water in the street.

[mm]

The normal way this problem is avoided is by having a laundry tub that the hose empties into. The water in my tub gets up to 15 inches deep I think while the washer** is draining, and I think that is typical. So you have your kitchen sink and it's doing the same thing. I think you are lucky your sink is doing this. Otherwise the washer hose might be pushed out of the pipe.

*which I think is one notch larger than some, but isn't heavy duty, let alone extra heavy duty. What does that mean: it can wash a lot of heavy denim at one time. I think.

It's not bad like when the woman upstairs, in an apartment no less, put Drano into her sink, and it backed up in my mother's sink and ruined her dutch oven that she had for 40 years. Just don't put drano in your laundry and everything will be good.

I don't think you are because it has the kitchen sink as an outlet. Just don't plug the sink when doing the laundry.

Would a constriction on the hose help? I'm not a repairman or anything, just a guy with one washing machine and three others in earlier years. But when you squeeze a lot of hoses, it just spurts out faster in the opening that is there. That doesn't seem to match the laws of pressure from high school physics. They would seem to imply your plan would lower the output. Someone more clever than I can resolve this.

If you were designing something from scratch, I think one would put a restriction in the pump inlet, but that's deep inside the washing machine and I definitely wouldn't mess with it.

I think you should regard your kitchen sink as a laundry tub.

Then you're done and it won't cost you a penny. Besides the fact that I see no other choice.

Does it ever get too high for the kitchen sink?

[Nonnymus]

Have you considered placing a restriction in the line between the washer and the wall? Since the washer's pump is probably on a float and not just a timer, reducing the flow might be a stopgap measure. I would have no problem pumping the water to the yard or garden or even a ditch, but YMMV.

Just for the heck of it, have you tried running a rod down the drain line? Have you tried putting a can of Drano in the line, adding some water and letting it sit for a few hours? I'd even consider doing the Drano bit from the kitchen sink because of old buildup. Here at the house, we have no problems, but I still do Drano in every sink yearly or even semiannually.

Nonnymus

[Bob]

Code for this type of drain is 2" drain pipe. With a laundry tub, 1 1/2" works.

It is possible that careful cleaning of the drains could lessen your problem. You could plumb the washer hose directly to the drain and add an air trap there to break suction when the water stops. Then have drain stoppers that can be shut tight on the sink to prevent overflows there. Resticting the washer hose enough to reduce the flow would likely result in a place for lint to catch and gradually close it off further. I don't know how much pressure washer pumps can handle. Contact a washer repairman for that info.

Bob

[Nonnymus]

further. I don't

I wonder if someone might have not used a sanitary tee or have gotten one installed backwards. It wouldn't be the first time.

Nonnymus

[Tony Hwang]

Hi, Don't blame washer. Something wrong on the side of the drain. Undersized or being plugged up. How high is the stand up pipe? I have never experienced problem like that. Had the problem always? If not think logic.

[Doug Lassiter]

Well, yes. Why would we dump grease etc down the sink? Sorry, this one isn't that easy. We do the right thing with our kitchen waste. Also, in answer to others, and in relation to this, yes, tried Drano, enzymes, etc. repeatedly. No change. Also as I said, the kitchen sink drains fine. This is a fire hose pointed down the drain.

As to having my kitchen sink fill up with washer water, yeah, that's better than having the water on the floor, but it's a bit ugly when it pushes stuff up from the trap. Yes, having a special sink for a drain reservoir is what many people do, but I don't have room for that.

Let me just emphasize that this washer pumps water out FAST. When it's shooting into my garden, it's spurting out two feet in an inch-wide stream.

Now, in the limit of constricting the drain hose, it IS going to lower the flow rate. So that's not an issue. The issue is whether I damage the pump by doing that.

[Roger Jensen]

Doug,

Had this same identical problem with my washer. I used an adapter and made a solid connection that was several years ago and no problems....

rog

[bamboo]

Restricting the line would not damage the pump. Raising the pipe higher would reduce the flow rate as well. Add another foot or two of head.

[hallerb]

The obvious answer is installing a new larger diameter like 3 or 4 inch sewer line for the washer.

slowing emptying the washer may well result in less dry clothes and higer dryer costs:(

[Bill Gill]

I noticed one response that said trying a larger line. That would be something to think about.

I had a problem with my washer drain backing up and finally got tired of it. It wasn't quite the same as your descrption, but it happened over and over. I called the plumber and said I wanted it fixed. He came and replaced the line from the washer and sink back to the (larger) line under the bathroom. He also installed a vent at the washer drain. Before the closest vent was at the kitchen sink, which is too far away. So check on that too. Then call a different plumber and get somebody to replace all the drain with an appropriate sized pipe.

In my case it cost me $700 here in Tulsa, OK. The installation is different, because the drain is no longer in the wall, it now runs on the surface of the wall behind the washer. The vent is run up the wall about 7 feet and has a one way valve on the top.

By the way, mine is in the garage.

Bill Gill

[3rd eye]

I don't know if this will help or not but it might be worth considering.

I extended my drain hose a couple of inches. I was afraid it might jump out of the drain.