Hi All been asked to help out with the M-I-Ls washing machine. Original problem was that a corner of the floor seemed to be getting damp. A man had been called (British Gas support, aargh) who seemed to do b*gger all, talked about 'having repairing the pipe' but no real evidence of anything having been done.
I've taken a look and learned a bit more. The washing machine outlet is via the standard corrugated drain hose with a loop, which is then a loose fit into the (40mm?) drain pipe. A little further down, the bathroom sink feeds into the same pipe and then off to the drain.
Watching the hose when the machine runs a cycle, you can see that the drain pipe overflows where the corrugated hose fits into it, when water is emptied. Because of the downstream sink I suspected a blockage and chucked some caustic soda down, to no effect.
Also to consider:
- the actual flow through the pipe to the drain seems quite good, both from running the sink and when the machine pumps out water - what has changed to cause problems? not much AFAICT
With all this in mind I am wondering about this loose placing of the outlet hose into the pipe. This seems common practice; is that right? I have bought a replacement hose with an end which looks like it is intended to be a friction fit inside a pipe, not a loose fit.
Also, I note that the vertical length of the drain pipe, into which the drain hose fits, is only about 150mm long, followed by a right-angle to the long stretch with the fall. I am wondering if the water is simply getting reflected back up ... perhaps because the hose should be stuffed in past the r/angle bend? Unsure in that case why it hasn't been doing it forever...
Any thoughts or comments on best practice appreciated.
Thanks a lot Jon N