Check Pipe Pitch?

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Burked1234

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Is there a way to tell/trick of the trade/ to see if a buried pipe is pitched properly?

I have a floor drain in my basement that i want to convert to use for the washing machine discharge (it's cast-iron pipe, the bell trap came out cleanly so going to use a fernco doughnut to a 3" ABS and go from there, i will also be using a sanitary tee and ptrap to install a new floor drain that will flow into this)

my only concern is that when i dump a few buckets of water down it, there seems to be a little bit that sits in the elbow (that i can see) i can hear the water drain away, but just want to make sure I'm not setting myself up for issues later on. (this will be correctly vented, etc)
 

Jadnashua

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Run a camera down it...a good operator can tell. Some have transponders that help.
 

Shacko

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Is there a way to tell/trick of the trade/ to see if a buried pipe is pitched properly?

I have a floor drain in my basement that i want to convert to use for the washing machine discharge (it's cast-iron pipe, the bell trap came out cleanly so going to use a fernco doughnut to a 3" ABS and go from there, i will also be using a sanitary tee and ptrap to install a new floor drain that will flow into this)

my only concern is that when i dump a few buckets of water down it, there seems to be a little bit that sits in the elbow (that i can see) i can hear the water drain away, but just want to make sure I'm not setting myself up for issues later on. (this will be correctly vented, etc)

What are you calling a bell trap? It sounds like you could still have a trap down there. :confused:
 

hj

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There is no electronic device which is sensitive enough to measure 1/4" pitch over a short distance. A camera will show if there are pockets of water at low spots, but even that will not tell you how bad the situation is, if there are any.
 

Burked1234

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the trap i removed that was rusted out was a bell trap (but, good point). it had been plugged by the previous owner (i think they lost the bell at some point and the trap was not kept primed).

i think i'm comitted to excavatiing the first couple of feet of the pipe run and getting a level on it and see where it's pitching. (and assuming that it's not bent upwards!) i'm thinking that's the safest way to tell. and really, what's an extra bag of quickrete between friends.
 

hj

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"Bell traps" DO NOT have 'traps'. The bell IS the trap, so your definition is faulty. If there are low spots in the pipe, they were probably there when the pipe was installed, so they are not common.
 

Jadnashua

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If you decide to have a camera run, it would show standing water, and from that, you can assess if it has slope or not, and, if there are any broken parts or clogs.
 

Burked1234

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ok, fair enough, so that's a nomanclature issue on my part. what i removed was the rusted out pieces of what used to be a bell trap, stuffed with a plastic bag to stop gasses coming out by the previous owners that i am looking to make better use out of and rectify. So, i'll install a properly trapped and vented plumbing installation.

So is the only solution to the low spots to rip the whole thing out and re-install, if that is indeed the issue? What i was trying to determine is -at what point is that neccesary given the exitsting conditions (original pipe, 1916 contstruction, formerly used as a floor drain) and intended use (drain for washer) vs what is, if any, a standard deviation/acceptable tolerance for those conditions.

very much appreciate the input.
 

Burked1234

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ok, bit more on this. Since i have nothing better to on a friday night, i decided to use a still camera and shoot some pictures of the pipe to see what i can see. i saw some gravel, and some other bits that were causing the pipe to not drain right. after sticking my hand into the pipe, i realized that what i actually have is a 90 (pointing up to the floor) that is attached to what must be the main drain line out of the house.

so, the ponding water was caused by the gravel in the pipe. since the gutters used to drain into this pipe (we changed this when we moved in and capped the pipes where they enter the house) the gravel and bits are most likely from that, and since this floor drian has probably not been used in 15 years, nothing has been flushed from this junction.

i'm going to excavate this out tomorrow and make sure the connection from the 90 to the main is still sound and then plumb in my 3" line as planned.
 
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