Several years ago I went to my local tool rental to get a drain snake. 'The tip's broken off but hang on a second and I'll weld it back on for you' the guy at the counter said. I took it home and sure enough, on the way back out, the tip broke off two feet down the old iron drain pipe from my ground floor lavatory. The lavatory drained OK, and I couldn't figure out what to do, so I hoped the plumber elves would take care of it and I put it out of my mind. Now suddenly water from the lavatory won't go down at all. Or, a full basin might take 24 hours to drain. When I try to insert a snake it hits a hard blockage which I assume is the old coiled tip of the broken snake. So what to do? All I can think of is to go into the crawlspace and cut the old iron pipe, pull down the vertical part and replace it with ABS and a no-hub. In the picture below you see the layout. My question is... If I cut the pipe at the red line will it drop down, or is it likely fastened inside the wall somehow? Advice? Other ideas? Many thanks.
Drain pipe blocked with hard debris
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Breplum
Licensed plumbing contractor
Normally the pipe going up the wall goes all the way up the wall to connect with other vents or through the roof.
The fitting would normally be a tee at the trap area.
Normally the upper parts of the piping have some strapping.
Consider hiring a licensed plumbing contractor who will know what they are doing and properly deal with every aspect.
The fitting would normally be a tee at the trap area.
Normally the upper parts of the piping have some strapping.
Consider hiring a licensed plumbing contractor who will know what they are doing and properly deal with every aspect.
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In order to remove that section of vertical pipe, you will need to cut it above the obstruction and below as you have pictured. If you're cutting open the wall to cut and ultimately repair that section, its likely the full extraction could occur in the wall only. But... maybe not.
But if you're going to be opening the wall to do that work, you may as well open it above the trap arm and replace that entire vertical section into the crawlspace so that you have modern plastic that tends to clog way less than old galvanized steel and durham fittings do.
A small hole in drywall is as easy to repair as a slightly larger hole that is easier to work in.
But if you're going to be opening the wall to do that work, you may as well open it above the trap arm and replace that entire vertical section into the crawlspace so that you have modern plastic that tends to clog way less than old galvanized steel and durham fittings do.
A small hole in drywall is as easy to repair as a slightly larger hole that is easier to work in.
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