Unused Drain Pipe for Washing Machine

[ziberteck]

For whatever reason, the hose drain for our washing machine that appears to of been built into the house was unused when we moved in. It appears that the previous owners, at some point, put a hole in the wall to put a drain hose through to the outside; Which after some distance lets out into the yard.

I have no real way to contact the prior owners to find out why this was done, but I'm sure there was some reason why they did this. If possible, I'd prefer to connect the drain hose into the original drain pipe and seal up that hole; also not letting the washer water into the yard. That being said, I have no idea how to verify if this pipe has issues, is clogged, etc. Not sure how I would verify that this pipe is useable.

 

[MicEd69]

Are you on city sewer or a septic system? I'm guessing a septic system, and the previous owner wanted to reduce the load on the drain field.

Use a hose, your cold-water line the washing machine would work, and see if the drain works. Just be prepared to turn off the water if the drain starts backing up. A bit of a problem is that the standpipe is only 1 1/2" and current code is 2". New washers really pump out the water fast, so that is one reason the code was increased to 2". That being said, there are thousands of exiting 1 1/2" washer standpipes in service today with no problems. The only way to see if you have a problem, after you assure that the drain is not clogged, is to try it out with the washing machine.