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josh4377 · 06-03-2011, 02:36 AM

First off, new user here. I have a question that a good search has yet to answer. In my basement utility room is a floor drain, which mostly sees runoff from the washer.

This drain has always been a bit slow, and recently I tried to figure out how to go about cleaning it out. Did a bit of googling, and discovered that the main drain portion has a stopper installed, and the cleanout plug has been removed so that the only way for water to drain is via the cleanout.

The house was built in 1964, and I'm guessing that this drain is from that era. I understand the need for a trap, and am now a bit concerned that I basically do not have one with this setup. Anyone know why this may have been done? Was this standard practice at some point?

**Another-Plumber** · 06-03-2011, 04:49 AM

sure lil homie Josh, i can help you out a bit, the c/o plug is missing and only is removed to be snaked out, it your case its the drain, your drain should be in the middle along with the p-trap underneath. try snaking it out if you want or call a plumber to do it, odds are its been backed up while since the laundry/floor drain are backing up.. you have nothing more than a clogged drain...

josh4377 · 06-03-2011, 09:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Another-Plumber

sure lil homie Josh, i can help you out a bit, the c/o plug is missing and only is removed to be snaked out, it your case its the drain, your drain should be in the middle along with the p-trap underneath. try snaking it out if you want or call a plumber to do it, odds are its been backed up while since the laundry/floor drain are backing up.. you have nothing more than a clogged drain...

The pictures don't make it out that well, but it's not just clogged... it's blocked off. As in wing nut and (I'm assuming) rubber membrane. Like they bailed on the P-trap and decided that the cleanout was the new main drain.

joesplumbing · 06-03-2011, 09:36 PM

Some floor drains get blocked off if the drain is located below the manhole sewer covers outside in the street. Or, if you're the last and lowest house on your side of the street. Nothing like having your neighbors sewage come up in your basement. Go ahead and pull out the plug. It won't bite, I promise.

josh4377 · 06-03-2011, 10:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joesplumbing

Some floor drains get blocked off if the drain is located below the manhole sewer covers outside in the street. Or, if you're the last and lowest house on your side of the street. Nothing like having your neighbors sewage come up in your basement. Go ahead and pull out the plug. It won't bite, I promise.

I could understand that. Except I'm on a septic tank, and that's downgrade from this drain (I'm on a hill). Would think sewer gas would be a higher concern... but I don't smell it. Which seems very strange.

**Another-Plumber** · 06-03-2011, 11:16 PM

well the picture is what it looks like, take it from there

**Caduceus** · 06-04-2011, 12:36 AM

It looks as you stated and as Another-Plumber showed in the picture. Somebody put an expansion plug (with a wing nut to tighten) in the drain and the clean out is now the drain. The bottom of the trap may have broken/rotted out years ago and that may be why it was plugged.
If you pull the plug, have a new one on stand-by.

**lordofthepipes** · 06-04-2011, 01:24 AM

i assume that if this is the basement and you are on septic that this floor drain goes to a ejector pit and gets pumped up to the sewer. if there is no bathroom down there than you may not get a sewer smell from your floor drain, and you could just leave it be. OR you could break open the floor and replace the FD like cad said the bottom is most likely rotted out or blown out from power rodding over the years.

**Hyper48fan** · 06-04-2011, 01:44 AM

You probably don't smell sewer gas because it's clogged

josh4377 · 06-04-2011, 08:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Caduceus

It looks as you stated and as Another-Plumber showed in the picture. Somebody put an expansion plug (with a wing nut to tighten) in the drain and the clean out is now the drain. The bottom of the trap may have broken/rotted out years ago and that may be why it was plugged.
If you pull the plug, have a new one on stand-by.

Actually, getting a closer look at the drain, I think that may be exactly what's up. The small discolored area in the 2nd picture is a hole in the bottom of the pipe. So this drain looks to be (at least partially) draining underneath my foundation. Fixing this one may involve cutting a lot of floor... I may just leave it and hope for the best....