Washing Machine draining into wall pipe - 2nd floor of condo building

Hello group

We live on the 2nd floor of a 3 floor condo building. The washing machine is drained by the hose being stuck into a pipe that diagonally sticks out of the wall about 4-6 inches above the top of the machine. The problem is that no matter what we try, the water backs up in that pipe and comes pouring out the top when the machine drains. We've tried clamping sections of the hose to try and slow the volume of water draining but we almost need to clamp it off completely otherwise it still overflows. We've tried using lesser and lesser amounts of detergent thinking maybe it's the suds that are building up in the pipes and backing the water up but it makes no difference. We've had several machines in here over the years and the problem happens with each of them. Every couple of months we're able to compress and tape part of the machine drain hose and get it set just right so it drains without overflowing. However it keeps coming back.

Anybody have any ideas that don't involve ripping down walls floors and ceilings or paying a plumber $500 to dig through the system?

Reply to
VM
Loading thread data ...

The easiest thing to do first is snake out the line in the event it's clogged. If you still have problems, it could be a problem in the vent line going up to the roof. It could be clogged and can be snaked from the roof. Another thing you can try to do is extend the drain pipe up about 2 feet. This will do 2 things:

1) Allow more water volume in the drain pipe, decreasing the chance of overflow. 2) The pump should drain a tad slower because of the added height it has to push the water up. This should not pose a problem to the washing machine because most washers can push water up a max height of 8-10 feet. Just make sure the drain hose is long enough for the added height. Otherwise you can buy a drain hose extender.

It should be fairly easy to extend the pipe up. You mentioned it comes out diagonally. Just buy a 45 or 30 degree elbow and a short length of PVC pipe. Glue it together, then attach it to the existing pipe with a no-hub coupling. This will make it easy to remove in the event it you notice it still overflowing. ( If you have PVC coming out of the wall, do not glue the extension otherwise you cannot remove it, just use the no-hub coupling.)

Reply to
Mikepier

Drano?

Reply to
HeyBub

i would snake the line, probably a lint clog.

dont muck around a big flood with a patch job in your unit might put you on the hook if another unit gets water damage.

snake the line.............

Reply to
hallerb

i would snake the line, probably a lint clog.

dont muck around a big flood with a patch job in your unit might put you on the hook if another unit gets water damage.

snake the line.............

Any unit below yours having an issue????

Reply to
bob kater

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.