LikeABigFriedEgg
Member
Hey everybody,
I want to snake a drain line, through a cast-iron cleanout tee just above my basement floor. The inlet to the tee is a vertical 1-1/2" copper line about 8 feet high. The cleanout has a 2" black plastic plug. I tried to remove the plug by turning it with an adjustable wrench, and I cracked it in doing so. In one picture you can see a stream of water springing from the crack, as the pipe is plugged downstream of the cleanout. And you can see that the corners of the plug's knob are deformed. They were like that before I tried to remove the plug. I have some questions.
What material is the plug made of? What is the best way to remove the plug without making things worse? What major mistakes are possible, and how do I avoid them?
Other notes:
I had tried to replace the plug when I removed it maybe 15 years ago, but wasn't able to thread the new (PVC) plug into the cleanout hole, I guess due to corrosion or fouling of the threads. The old plug went back in pretty easily, as I recall, so I just put the old one back in. Knowing less then than I do now, I don't think I used tape or pipe dope to seal the plug. Likely the threads have been wet and are in worse shape now than they were then. The stoppage is not total, so if I let it set for awhile, the crack stops leaking.
Please advise and mention anything you think is relevant.
I want to snake a drain line, through a cast-iron cleanout tee just above my basement floor. The inlet to the tee is a vertical 1-1/2" copper line about 8 feet high. The cleanout has a 2" black plastic plug. I tried to remove the plug by turning it with an adjustable wrench, and I cracked it in doing so. In one picture you can see a stream of water springing from the crack, as the pipe is plugged downstream of the cleanout. And you can see that the corners of the plug's knob are deformed. They were like that before I tried to remove the plug. I have some questions.
What material is the plug made of? What is the best way to remove the plug without making things worse? What major mistakes are possible, and how do I avoid them?
Other notes:
I had tried to replace the plug when I removed it maybe 15 years ago, but wasn't able to thread the new (PVC) plug into the cleanout hole, I guess due to corrosion or fouling of the threads. The old plug went back in pretty easily, as I recall, so I just put the old one back in. Knowing less then than I do now, I don't think I used tape or pipe dope to seal the plug. Likely the threads have been wet and are in worse shape now than they were then. The stoppage is not total, so if I let it set for awhile, the crack stops leaking.
Please advise and mention anything you think is relevant.
Last edited: