My bathroom sink clogged about a year ago. I snaked it with a drill attachment which seemed to do the trick. Two weeks ago it plugged again. The stopper had a huge amount of black and green gunk growing on it. I took off the plastic catch pipe under the sink and cleared more of the gunk out of it. The pipe in the wall goes horizontal to the stack. I scooped out all the gunk that I could get to at the opening of the pipe in the wall. Amazing how much a plastic spoon can sneak in and pull out. Tasty! For the remainder I used the snake attachment on the drill and it worked fine for a week.
Now it's in worse shape than before except when I take it apart there is no gunk built up anywhere that I can see. I used the baking soda/vinegar/hot water fix with no improvement.
I read somewhere that the black gunk is a bacterial problem and tried one of those bacterial eaters with no change. I tried that 4 to 5 times over a period of a week.
I threw in the towel and one local plumber recommended from the hardware store doesn't have evening hours. I'm not talking after 8 or 9pm either. I'm talking at 6pm! He must be rolling in the cash or my business isn't important enough. Typical roto guys want $130 to come out so I'm back to giving it another try.
I want to just replace the pipe unless someone else can suggest an attachment to my snake that spins like a propeller and can cut through the sludge...if that's what's even causing the issue blockage.
I can't get to the pipe from under the sink because the cabinet has a plywood back and there is no budging it without ripping it off the floor along ripping the caulking barrier on the top. Since the lower half of the kitchen side of the wall has a decorative covering I figured I'd take that off and cut through the dry wall to get a look at the pipe.
I was thinking my snake was hitting a bend in the pipe in the wall but the pipe(looks like cast iron) is straight about my arms length in length. The snake seems to make it near the end which is troubling to me as what's causing the clog.
I removed enough of the wall to see a bigger problem. The builder has the pipe wedged in the stud by cutting a wedge out of it where the wedge opening is on the bathroom side! It's only one stud but if I cut through it I still have to deal with the pipe being butted up against the plaster on the other side of the wall. I think it's plaster because I tried chiseling out around the pipe and there is some type of thin metal support made in it.
I have great access to the pipe near the stack but sawing through the pipe and having enough room to work may be a problem. I could try to saw through the plywood backing and the wall in the bathroom and try to unscrew the pipe. I just don't know what's my best plan to attack.
What the heck would a professional do in my case? It's 1.5 inch pipe. Would they use a camera? Would they have a better snake attachment? What bums me a little bit about the professional is from what I can tell is that they have different fees. An hour for unclogging isn't the same as pipe work. If it was the main drain to my house it would be a no-brainer for me to hire someone. I can't believe this arm's length of pipe is causing me so much of a problem.
If anyone finished reading....any help is appreciated!
Now it's in worse shape than before except when I take it apart there is no gunk built up anywhere that I can see. I used the baking soda/vinegar/hot water fix with no improvement.
I read somewhere that the black gunk is a bacterial problem and tried one of those bacterial eaters with no change. I tried that 4 to 5 times over a period of a week.
I threw in the towel and one local plumber recommended from the hardware store doesn't have evening hours. I'm not talking after 8 or 9pm either. I'm talking at 6pm! He must be rolling in the cash or my business isn't important enough. Typical roto guys want $130 to come out so I'm back to giving it another try.
I want to just replace the pipe unless someone else can suggest an attachment to my snake that spins like a propeller and can cut through the sludge...if that's what's even causing the issue blockage.
I can't get to the pipe from under the sink because the cabinet has a plywood back and there is no budging it without ripping it off the floor along ripping the caulking barrier on the top. Since the lower half of the kitchen side of the wall has a decorative covering I figured I'd take that off and cut through the dry wall to get a look at the pipe.
I was thinking my snake was hitting a bend in the pipe in the wall but the pipe(looks like cast iron) is straight about my arms length in length. The snake seems to make it near the end which is troubling to me as what's causing the clog.
I removed enough of the wall to see a bigger problem. The builder has the pipe wedged in the stud by cutting a wedge out of it where the wedge opening is on the bathroom side! It's only one stud but if I cut through it I still have to deal with the pipe being butted up against the plaster on the other side of the wall. I think it's plaster because I tried chiseling out around the pipe and there is some type of thin metal support made in it.
I have great access to the pipe near the stack but sawing through the pipe and having enough room to work may be a problem. I could try to saw through the plywood backing and the wall in the bathroom and try to unscrew the pipe. I just don't know what's my best plan to attack.
What the heck would a professional do in my case? It's 1.5 inch pipe. Would they use a camera? Would they have a better snake attachment? What bums me a little bit about the professional is from what I can tell is that they have different fees. An hour for unclogging isn't the same as pipe work. If it was the main drain to my house it would be a no-brainer for me to hire someone. I can't believe this arm's length of pipe is causing me so much of a problem.
If anyone finished reading....any help is appreciated!
