What is that under my kitchen sink??

[Maria Starkey]

While trying to figure out WHY my soap dispenser is not working correctly on my farmhouse sink (but IS over on the island at the prep sink) I discovered something that I'm not sure WHAT in the HE-DoubleL this pipe is??

It looks like a vent . . . but WHAT is it venting and to where??? I can honestly say I have NEVER seen this before and we'v owned a multitude of rental properties and lived in 3 states. But, this is a new home in South Carolina and there are so many things that I'm trying to 'fix' since the builder got his money and he is like a ghost now. Shoulda known . . .

Anyway, can anyone shed some light on this pipe with the funny vent on top of it?
And if you can tell me what the heck to do about my soap dispenser from Belle Foret (#BFNKSDCP) I'd be thrilled to fix that as well . . . . myself.

Good thing I LOVE diy'in.

PS
#1 Pic - shows the 'vent pipe' coming out of the wall behind the sink and 'vents' to the underside of the sink cabinet??
#2 Pic - shows the drippy soap dispenser??
#3 Pic - shows the soap even around the opening at the top of the sink - but ALL of this is tight!!! Did my plumber forget to put a rubber gasket or something there to keep it from dripping???

 

[Reach4]

1. AAV installed in an unusual way -- not done right I suspect.
2. soap dispenser,
3. soap dispenser again. I suspect the sealing is done up top, but I am not sure. Do you know how to refill it? You might clean it up up top, and use a funnel when you refill. When I say top, I mean the upper surface which is not shown in these photos.

I am not a plumber.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Maria Starkey]

1. AAV installed in an unusual way -- not done right I suspect.
2. soap dispenser,
3. soap dispenser again. I suspect the sealing is done up top, but I am not sure. Do you know how to refill it? You might clean it up up top, and use a funnel when you refill. When I say top, I mean the upper surface which is not shown in these photos.

I am not a plumber.

Thanks! I have cleaned the top out right after I refill. The crazy thing is the one on my prep sink doesn't look like this and I do the same there. Will again 'wipe it all out and try to see if the whole thing is lose in the hole.

And what is an AAV? and what do you mean 'installed in an unusual way'?

 

[Reach4]

AAV is Air Admittance Valve. Search on the term for details. Basically it is a one-way valve to allow air in to break a vacuum. That is allowed in many places instead of a vent. Usually the route is pretty much straight up from the trap arm rather than the path being routed through the wall. It does have to be accessible, because they can go bad. Yours is accessible. I am not saying this won't work great, but I think the path to the AAV is supposed to be vertical if the AAV is under the sink. While 45 degrees is considered vertical, it looks like the path is horizontal through the wall.

The symptom that this thing is there to prevent is sewer gasses from coming out of the sink drain due to the water being siphoned out of the trap. This is mostly a smell problem.

 

[Maria Starkey]

I just watched tons of Youtube videos explaining what this was. I'm gobsmacked. In a brand new home with state of the art features in it the plumbers chose THIS as an option?? And now the ONLY way to 'vent this through the roof' is to carve into walls etc. (move cabinetry to GET to the wall first). Why am I not surprised, after all isn't this what an 'air gap is! They had those in Lexington KY where we lived before. I remember telling the guy who remodeled our home that I didn't want one of those so now I wonder if I had one of these way back behind my farmhouse sink there.

Builders just slay me . . . . our home was built by one I now refer to as the 'salesman'. Interesting discussions with him when we 'saw & questioned' things like this and he would say, "you are right, and I wouldn't want that in my house either." This is probably one of those things, but I'm CERTAIN that his brand new home won't have some of these lovely 'features' that our house has.

I don't know why our culture is just 'take all the shortcuts you can to save 2 minutes and about $20 of pipe' when the KNOW issues can occur later. Needless to say, when I build my NEXT home, I'll be sure to have it built the 'good old fashioned . . . maybe a bit more expensive way!'

And thank you Reach4

Over and out,
Signed - Massively annoyed new 'custom home buyer'
(who is redoing a lot of the 'custom' in her home)

 

[DonL]

When I was a kid, we took the short path to the Outhouse, And the long way home to get some more corn.

Then the Sears catalog came along.

Those safety devices are so that you can not share waste water sources with each other.

You should have planned your custom home to meet your needs, Did you specify no leaks ?


You need to put everything in small print like they do.

 

[FullySprinklered]

There are groups of folks who swarm through towns and subdivisions in this state, ripping off old people and widows with bogus sightings of decrepit fascia boards and so forth. They set up and make a lot of construction noise, then disappear with the start-up draw after going through the motions of doing repair work. They all come from South Carolina. So, Maria, take care.

 

[Jadnashua]

There are ways to vent an island sink without using an AAV, but, if they are allowed where you live, that is a viable option. They can last a long time, but the moving part can wear out and then the whole thing would need to be replaced. That's actually pretty easy and quick.

 

[Terry]

#1 Pic - shows the 'vent pipe' coming out of the wall behind the sink and 'vents' to the underside of the sink cabinet??
That is an AAV, and it looks correct. Nice job really.

2 and 3, The soap dispenser fills from the top. Lift out the pump with nozzle and dump more soap in there. It looks like it needs filling.
Overfilling though can cause the soap to overflow the threads and drip down like that.
There is no washer for that, the bottle just spins into the threads at the top.

 

[Reach4]

#1 Pic - shows the 'vent pipe' coming out of the wall behind the sink and 'vents' to the underside of the sink cabinet??
That is an AAV, and it looks correct. Nice job really.

The vent pipe to the AAV is not required to be "vertical"?

 

[hj]

quote; Then the Sears catalog came along.

The farmer called Sears and said he needed a box of toilet paper. The person asked for a catalog part number. The farmer said, "If I had a catalog, I wouldn't need the toilet paper."

 

[DonL]

quote; Then the Sears catalog came along.

The farmer called Sears and said he needed a box of toilet paper. The person asked for a catalog part number. The farmer said, "If I had a catalog, I wouldn't need the toilet paper."

That was Great. LMAO

When they started waxing the pages that messed up every thing.