Shower drain help!

[BostonDIYer]

Lol thank you for the advice.

I think this will be my last question, I swear. Can that vent tee on its back be anything less than 90 degrees? I am a little concerned with the added vertical distance and turning it slightly toward the wall would get me closer to comfortable. The previous install was configured with a slight turn which they made up with the short 45 degree connector into the 1.5" vent.

I am going to tackle the drain line next. Been working on the pex water lines so far. Check this sh*t out... Ignore that it looks slightly like a crack den, I wasn't trying to burn this place down just yet!

I tested them with some water pressure coming in, no leaks yet. I will run a significantly longer test after I finish fishing the pex through the existing penetrations and get to terminate everything. I've soldered electronics before. Doing it with a blow torch makes it 10x more exciting!

OK, your vent has to come off the drain line vertically, or no more than 45 degrees off vertical which is the way your original vent was done. So at least by the pictures, it appears you will have to use the existing vent line and the original path of the drain line. If you do have issues being able to fit the piping layout in your existing space and depending on the elevation of the drain line relative to the shower floor, you possibly could use a 22.5-degree street elbow right at the hole in the joist to begin the turn towards your shower drain. You just need to be sure you can clear the shower floor with the vent line and not drop the angle more than 45 degrees off vertical.

You can get a 2"x2"x1 1/2" combo fitting at a plumbing supply store.

View attachment 41689

But you can use a 2" combo and bush the branch down to 1 1/2" for the vent line. However, Home Depot does have a 2"x2"x1 1/2" reducing wye, and with a 1 1/2" street 45 on the branch, it might fit better in the space you have than a 2" combo. That is provided you don't want to use a Sanitary tee like you had before. I personally would use a Sanitary tee there, but others would say to use the combo or wye assembly. Home Depot does have a 2"x2"x1 1/2" reducing Sanitary tee.

To install all this, it is just a matter of cutting the pipe to the correct lengths and making sure you have the 1/4" slope from the P-trap weir to the vent connection, and at least a 1/4" per foot slope in the line after the vent to the sewer connection. It may help you to add a few wood pieces between the joists and some shims to help you establish and maintain the slopes.

Dry fit everything but remember once you prime and apply the glue to the joint, the pipe will go farther into the hub of the fitting than it will when it is dry fit. A 2" pipe will go into the hub about 3/4" until it bottoms out in the fitting. So, your dry fit assembly will not fit in your space.

You'll have a few seconds to play with the joint before it sets, and you need to hold the pipe or fitting tight into the hub being glued for around 30 seconds or so, or it will squeeze itself out and you will say bad words.

 

[BostonDIYer]

Also, yeah, this ain't gonna work! They didn't have one with 1.5" branch so santee it is! Going back to the original configuration with the tee and a 45 to tie me back into vent, I suppose. Will wait to hear from you all on cheating it so the branch is slightly less than 90 degrees. I'm not sure I have any other options.

 

[MicEd69]

The code for a dry vent is that as long as the vent line isn't more than 45 degrees off vertical, it is considered vertical. The issue the code is addressing is should something cause a backup in the line, once it is cleared, the stuff in the vent line will drain out by gravity and will not sit in the piping. Logic says that 30 degrees would also work just fine in many instances when you are only talking water, but they had to draw the line someplace. Vent lines can actually be horizontal/flat (with a slope of 1/4" per foot towards the drain line) if they are a wet vent. For instance, should you plumb a sink drain into the vent line of your shower, the vent line could be "flat" which would make your plumbing a little easier here. The thought process of that is that the draining of the sink will flush out anything that may build up in the horizontal portion of the vent line.

 

[BostonDIYer]

Ladies and gents, I think I got it?!?!?

Please please please tell me I got it!

I am going to move that hot water line and extend trap arm out another few inches to get me center but this is basically my dry fit. I don't know the exact pitch but the level off center pitched towards the drain on each leg. I will tie into the vent last and maybe shorten the piece connected to the santee another quarter inch. I tapped everything in with a rubber mallet to get me and close as possible to a cemented fit but that santee branch is crammed up against the wall stud. I tried to account for any length I would lose by cementing it all together.

Thank you all for the help so far. Not sure why I was panicking so much about this pitch. I now see how easy it is to tweak the heights of things when they're connected.

You too can do things that make you nervous!

 

[Twowaxhack]

That would work but I would’ve used a long radius St. 90 where I marked in red and this would allow me to straighten my p-trap out more rather than making a 90 with it. Horizontal to horizontal calls for a long sweep 90 in this case.

 

[BostonDIYer]

That would work but I would’ve used a long radius St. 90 where I marked in red and this would allow me to straighten my p-trap out more rather than making a 90 with it. Horizontal to horizontal calls for a long sweep 90 in this case.
View attachment 41701

Ah, I can totally do that! The only reason I have my trap turned that way is because the center of my shower is a couple of inches back. The long sweep street 90 will gain back the space. Great idea! Now, let me see if I have one in the mess of random pieces I have in front of me!

UPDATE:
I definitely don't have one! do have a long turn 90 elbow. Any issues with me sticking a 1.5" piece between the tee and long turn 90 or will the street elbow be better? Here's a pic, looks like it will move me an inch or so closer to center.

 

[Twowaxhack]

Ah, I can totally do that! The only reason I have my trap turned that way is because the center of my shower is a couple of inches back. The long sweep street 90 will gain back the space. Great idea! Now, let me see if I have one in the mess of random pieces I have in front of me!

UPDATE:
I definitely don't have one! do have a long turn 90 elbow. Any issues with me sticking a 1.5" piece between the tee and long turn 90 or will the street elbow be better? Here's a pic, doesn't look like it will move me and inch or so closer to center.View attachment 41702

That’s fine.