Clay in Sewer Line Causing Backup - Conflicting Evidence btw Plumbers/City

[jackodylan]

Had backup in basement. Got 2 plumbers in with power augers, first one w/75 feet , second one w/100feet - Neither hit anything, told me that plug must be on city side... so got City in for 2 days with their equipment.. but plug still remains.. City claims at 63 ft mark from house they pulled back clay - but could not get thru it - told me to get drain service co with high pressure washer in to blast thru clay...I am confused - how could plumbers with their augers get thru that clay plug so easily they didnt think there was even a plug at 63 feet while next day the city cannot even get thru the alleged 63 ft mark clay plug? Would an acid chemical treatment remove the clay ?
UPDATE - The hydrojetting is a no go because its minus 10 here and will be even colder fornext 2 weeks so alternate way to remove clay plug must be found...Plan to replace line in spring when ground is thawed olut - but still need to get clay out so l i can have water in house until that time ... Any insights or ideas on what is going on here? and what to do next?

 

[FishScreener]

I would have someone who specializes in drain clearing, and who has the ability camera the line come clear it out and do an interior camera inspection of the line.

You may have a deteriorating line which is starting to cave in. Thus the clay.

 

[CT18]

Camera with locator will tell you what you need to know

 

[jackodylan]

I would have someone who specializes in drain clearing, and who has the ability camera the line come clear it out and do an interior camera inspection of the line.

You may have a deteriorating line which is starting to cave in. Thus the clay.

city tried to do camera but the dark murky water backed up in line made visibility near impossible they claim...I have read that a chemical treatment with some type of acid will eat the clay buildup away - is that safe to do with either cast iron or galvanized steel sewer line?

 

[Jeff Handy]

What is your sewer made of?
Pvc?
Cast iron?
Clay tile?
Orangeburg?

 

[jackodylan]

Camera with locator will tell you what you need to know

City tried to do that but dark water backed up in line made for zero visibility for camera

 

[jackodylan]

What is your sewer made of?
Pvc?
Cast iron?
Clay tile?
Orangeburg?

i believe its cast iron - house is 114 years old...stack inside house is cast iron

 

[jackodylan]

What is your sewer made of?
Pvc?
Cast iron?
Clay tile?
Orangeburg?

I think its cast iron...stack inside house is definitely cast iron...house is 114 years old

 

[jackodylan]

UPDATE 2...I have read that muriatic or hydroflouric acid works against clay...sewer line is cast iron.....City claims their auger could not get thru this clay blockage at 66 ft from house but day before plumbers put out 75 and 100foot power augers to the end of each and encountered nothing - from same end of the line that City put both manual and motorized power augers and could not get thru at all at that 66foot mark....very confused how that could be?...am wondering if chemicals might erode clay enough for auger to break thru plug? I know line must have hole or collap;sed if clay there and plan to replace line in sp;ring - so just need a temp fix right now for a few months>Hydrojetting no go due to minujs 10 and belolw weather here in canada for next 2 weeks...Any ideas on how to get past that clay plug??

 

[Jeff Handy]

In houses that old, sometimes the first few feet of the sewer lateral are cast iron leaving the house, then it changes to clay “tile” pipe sections.
114 years is an old sewer!

 

[sawguy]

The plumbers snakes might have gone through the break into the soil itself and gone a further distance. My guess is clay tile sewer line.

 

[jackodylan]

The plumbers snakes might have gone through the break into the soil itself and gone a further distance. My guess is clay tile sewer line.

UPDATE - another crew from a drain cleaning company went 100feet from house with a power auger and encountered nothing...so thats 3 different plumbers with power augers going 100ft and hitting nothing on one side...& the city saying there is an unpassable clay plug at 66ft from house on the other side...both the city and the various plumbers did augering from house out.....water in sewer line has went down 3 or 4 metres but still remains..so cannot flush toliets or use showers etc.....Drain cleaning companies says blockage must be on the city side but City says their camera put in from the street shows nothing out of ordinary...am now at complete loss on what to do....

 

[Jeff Handy]

What are you doing in the meantime, as far as flushing toilets, using shower, doing dishes?

 

[jackodylan]

Had backup in basement. Got 2 plumbers in with power augers, first one w/75 feet , second one w/100feet - Neither hit anything, told me that plug must be on city side... so got City in for 2 days with their equipment.. but plug still remains.. City claims at 63 ft mark from house they pulled back clay - but could not get thru it - told me to get drain service co with high pressure washer in to blast thru clay...I am confused - how could plumbers with their augers get thru that clay plug so easily they didnt think there was even a plug at 63 feet while next day the city cannot even get thru the alleged 63 ft mark clay plug?
UPDATE - The hydrojetting is a no go because its minus 10 here and will be even colder fornext 2 weeks so alternate way to remove clay plug must be found...Plan to replace line in spring when ground is thawed olut - but still need to get clay out so l i can have water in house until that time ... Any insights or ideas on what is going on here? and what to do next?

 

[jackodylan]

What are you doing in the meantime, as far as flushing toilets, using shower, doing dishes?

Bought a couple of small portable toliets...showering in bathtub with drain plugged then emptying it out into back yard with pots...not doing dishes...female tenants getting ready to mutiny haha

 

[jackodylan]

The plumbers snakes might have gone through the break into the soil itself and gone a further distance. My guess is clay tile sewer line.

wouldnt that have involved them pulling back clay/dirt though? they said they didnt see any of the clay that the City claimed is so thick in the line that its unpassable to their power snakes....

 

[jackodylan]

Camera with locator will tell you what you need to know

City tried that but claimed the backup liquid is so dark and murky it completely renders the camera's ability to "see" to nil...

 

[jackodylan]

city tried to do camera but the dark murky water backed up in line made visibility near impossible they claim...I have read that a chemical treatment with some type of acid will eat the clay buildup away - is that safe to do with either cast iron or galvanized steel sewer line?

No I found out that cast iron line would be ruined by chemical treatment so that is out as an option now too

 

[Jeff Handy]

Maybe you could run some kind of home made super long wet vac hose down there, to remove the water to allow camera inspection.
Join six or seven shop vac hoses together with Gorilla tape.
The hose should stop going in at 66 feet if the city is right.

 

[jackodylan]

No I found out that cast iron line would be ruined by chemical treatment so that is out as an option now too

So the situation as it stands today is that i have 3 different people with 100 ft power augers going to full length from house out encountering nothing and telling me the plug must be on the city side...versus...the city telling me there is a impassable clay plug at the 66ft mark well within my property side...that they cant get an auger thru nor can use camera on.....and the line still backed up ...what the hell do i do with two conflicting stories being told to me?