Slow double kitchen sink drain

Plumbing Forums

Help Support Plumbing Forums:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

M_susbilla

New Member
Joined
Aug 9, 2019
Messages
4
Reaction score
1
Location
California
hi everyone,

First timer here. I’m hoping someone can shed some light on my slow drain issue. Here’s the details:

-both sinks drain slowly
-disposal side will drain while on. Water will spew back in when off
-drano helps for s few days
-weird knocking noise after using drano

Things I’m going to try:
-check p trap
-use hand auger if p trap is clear

I found a weird plug under the sink that has a slow leak. Not sure what it is. Any thoughts? See pic. Open to any suggestions as well.

Thanks in advance,
Marc
 
Thats what is called a clean out, so you can run a power snake down the drain pipe to clear the blockage,
that is 10 or 15 feet down the pipe further then draino or other such products can get though standing
water, think about it these things have NO motive power to get down the pipe !
that is why you need a Electric POWER Snake to reach all the way to the main drain pipe
 
Good morning
First...not a fan of Draino/acid type cleaners. Have been burned by customers neglecting to inform me that they have poured a half gallon of this stuff down their drain before they called me.
If it's not completely stopped up I would try this:
ZEP Enforcer 64oz Drain Cleaner ZLDC648 or something comparable before trying to snake it. You can Google "Drain Care" to find it. Follow the directions and 90% of the time it will clear the drains. (Those enzymes are voracious little suckers!)
It may take a couple of "treatments" but I've used and recommended it for years with good results. It's also great for preventative maintenance every month or two.
 
Thanks for the input so far.
Update:
-p trap is clear
-all piping flows well to drain

Next step:
-hand auger or snake down cleanout

Questions:
-would you recommend power snake or auger?
-the cleanout is so close to the ground, I can’t put a bucket. Any ideas to catch water?
-or should I just hire a professional at this point?
-should I keep trying chems?

Did some research on the cleanout. Looks like if the drain is clear, I should be able to see the water flow through the cleanout. Problem is clearance to catch water if it’s not clear. Maybe I’ll just lay down a bunch of rags. Again, open to more ideas. Thanks again.
 
use a wet vac if your comfortable with tools you could rent a small power snake 1/4 by 35 or 50' should do it wear gloves and have patience pull the cable out of the drum slowly and feed it into the drain...when you feel resistance stop pushing and stay there for a bit....then try pushing.....not forcing again then pull it back a few feet then push it in repeat this until the cable is all the way out pull it back....and repeat the process a few times then run hot water and see what happens
 
that looks a test cap it should have been removed before the cleanout fitting was put on its used for testing the drainage system for leaks you could get a hole saw a little smaller than the cap and drill it out or chip it out with a small chisel or screw driver
 
Ah, wish I read this before sealing up the clean out plug. That test cap Is def sealed. Looks like it’s not supposed to come out. Thanks for confirming geofd.

Update:
-no more slow drain
-used 25’ hand auger (found at least 3 good blockages, many small ones)
-ran out of wire but did feel another blockage. Should I go back in with a longer wire?

Thanks everyone for the help so far.
 
If you don’t have a small hole saw, you can get that test cap out of the way by drilling a series of small holes all around the edge in a circle, almost but not quite touching each other.
Don’t make any contact with the threads of your clean out fitting.

Then put the bit back in any hole, run the drill at high speed, and apply gentle side pressure to connect the holes together.

Like a poor man’s RotoZip tool.

Drill your first holes at the bottom, and have old towels ready to collect any water that trickles out.

Congrats on becoming a drain snaker.
That nasty stink is the smell of victory, and of money still in your wallet.
 
Forget all that drill bullsxxt, Just take a hammer and a flat blade screwdriver and knock it out,
used to do that all the time,
#2 Forget that 1/4" cable Shxt you need at least a 3/8" cable "POWER" Snake that can go at leaST 50',
#3 Go to your local Home Depot Tool Rental and get a Electric EEl power snake and run down that drain,
#4 If you look from standing in front of your kitchen sink over to the nearest bathroom thats
HOW FAR YOU NEED TO RUN !
A Masters Degree in Drainology, ! been snaking since 1975
Been a CA. Licensed C-36 Plumbing Contractor since Jan. 1989
 
Kitchen blockages where I come from mostly form in the outside overflow relief gully. Fat is most common, followed by rocks,toys,sticks from kids or tree roots. Fat blockages depending on tools u have which is not likely a 4inch plunger or gully scoop which is what I use. A combination of boiling water, rodding gully with garden hose or removing foreign item with homemade scooping device be creative lol....or just call the plumber by the time u finish disturbing all your seals under the kitchen sink then going mad with plumbers tape and silicone to fix all the leaks only to finally admit deffite and call the plumber and make his job more difficult trying to clean everything up
 
Why couldn't the man just put the cleanout cap back on and run the snake through the pipe that's shown above???
 
Hey MASTRPLUMB, where is that "plug" going to go when you "Just take a hammer and a flat blade screwdriver and knock it out"? Is it just going to jump back into the cabinet? You and I may know what precautions to follow, but some rookie reads that and now has a plastic disk stuck in his drain. :eek: What I've done is to drill a small hole, insert a large sheet metal screw (with wire/string) then knock it out. If it pops in, I've still got it.:)
 
Last edited:

Latest posts

Back
Top