Major/Minor quandary

Users who are viewing this thread

Cacher_Chick

Test, Don't Guess!
Messages
5,458
Reaction score
213
Points
63
Location
Land of Cheese
My 4" CI stack enters the building drain (above the floor) via the side inlet of a cottage fitting. On the upstream end of the cottage fitting is the building drain cleanout.

What I would like to do is add a 4x4x1.5 wye in the building drain between the cleanout and the existing cottage fitting for a laundry tray drain pump. This would be at the highest point of the building drain and would have to flow past the side inlet from the 4" stack. The drain pump will have it's own separate vent.

My gut says I shouldn't have the drain pump discharge flowing past the main stack inlet, but I'm not a plumber. I don't see that it would cause a problem, but Is this acceptable or not so much?
 

Basement_Lurker

One who lurks
Messages
664
Reaction score
1
Points
0
Location
Victoria, BC
Can you provide a picture? From what you describe, it sounds like you want to add in another branch where the existing top mount cleanout is; which should be fine, but you have lost me with the description of the cottage fitting installation.
 

Cacher_Chick

Test, Don't Guess!
Messages
5,458
Reaction score
213
Points
63
Location
Land of Cheese
I can't do a picture right now, but maybe this will help-

The 4" house's vertical drain/vent stack enters the tee (cottage fitting) via a 1/4 bend into side inlet "A". I want to install the wye as shown for a drain pump .
 

Attachments

  • plumb.jpg
    plumb.jpg
    10.7 KB · Views: 327

Basement_Lurker

One who lurks
Messages
664
Reaction score
1
Points
0
Location
Victoria, BC
Ahh, so you have a side inlet tee..what a bizarre way to install when you have all of that open space to work with. I can't forsee any problems with your drain stack addition provided that you vent it correctly, but why can't you wye into either one of the existing drain branches?
 
Last edited:

Cacher_Chick

Test, Don't Guess!
Messages
5,458
Reaction score
213
Points
63
Location
Land of Cheese
The top inlet of the tee is an unvented 1.5" line from the kitchen sink. The only other branch line in the house is a 1.5 from the tub/lav that enters the stack up between the floor joists. This is all original from 1960 and is functioning well.

The only alternative I have is to cut the 4" c.i. building drain downstream of the stack to install the wye there. I will do that, but not without good reason.
 

Basement_Lurker

One who lurks
Messages
664
Reaction score
1
Points
0
Location
Victoria, BC
Uh oh....that side inlet drain for the kitchen sink changes things; I was under the impression that it was a proper drain stack. You should either branch off the main 4" run (easier), or redo the entire section properly. In either case, that side inlet tee should not be there as that is not how it is intended to be used. As it is now, the kitchen sink is more or less wet vented, and the only reason there might not be any problems is because it is installed in a massive 4" pipe.
 
Last edited:

hj

Master Plumber
Messages
33,600
Reaction score
1,037
Points
113
Location
Cave Creek, Arizona
Website
www.terrylove.com
I am not sure why you would worry about making a "legal" connection, because there is NO inspector who would ever have approved installing a cottage tee that way. (The top inlet may NOT have a sweep to it, even though your drawing does show one, and you CANNOT use a sanitary tee in a horizontal line in the first place. If the sink drain is unvented, that is another situation, but could also be improper.) But, since I hope the main line is vented, the pump would not have any effect on the system.
 

Cacher_Chick

Test, Don't Guess!
Messages
5,458
Reaction score
213
Points
63
Location
Land of Cheese
I am not sure why you would worry about making a "legal" connection,

Simply put, it's because the inspector will be concerned with MY work, not what has been in place and working well for 50 years.

Wisconsin has it's own plumbing code, and I am following it to the best of my understanding. When I get to a grey area, I come here to look for advice. The local plumbing inspector will have the last word.
 

Shacko

Master Plumber-Gas Fitter
Messages
559
Reaction score
1
Points
0
Location
Rosedale, Md
...Simply put, it's because the inspector will be concerned with MY work, not what has been in place and working well for 50 years...

Hope that's true, but a lot of codes require existing plumbing to be brought up to current codes when you modify it.
 

hj

Master Plumber
Messages
33,600
Reaction score
1,037
Points
113
Location
Cave Creek, Arizona
Website
www.terrylove.com
That installation was NEVER legal, regardless of whose code it was, unless it was a code put together by the building contractors, such as the BOCA code.
 

Cacher_Chick

Test, Don't Guess!
Messages
5,458
Reaction score
213
Points
63
Location
Land of Cheese
I have no reason to doubt what you say.
From what I have read, Wisconsin did not have a system of licensing plumbers until a few years after this house was built. It's amazing to think of how the world has changed since then.
 
Top
Hey, wait a minute.

This is awkward, but...

It looks like you're using an ad blocker. We get it, but (1) terrylove.com can't live without ads, and (2) ad blockers can cause issues with videos and comments. If you'd like to support the site, please allow ads.

If any particular ad is your REASON for blocking ads, please let us know. We might be able to do something about it. Thanks.
I've Disabled AdBlock    No Thanks