sewer line

[washerboy]

I own a 1924 craftsman...last summer I had the clay sewer line replaced..what a mess!!!! my back yard was dug up from the back of the house...through the patio... to the alley. All has been fine until this past weekend...the new line was backing up. I called the plumber and they ran the line..the blockage was combination of coffee grounds (yes...I dump them down the sink...I figured as much washing as I do the water from the washer would keep the line flushed...okay I was wrong..and I'm dumping them in teh compost heap now) and dog hair. The dog hair has to come off sheets and towels. So I'm going to shake out everything my dogs come in contact with before going into the washer. Does anyone know if there's something I can buy that would filter the wash water before it goes into the main line. Do I just have a freak of a house or has anyone elese had this problem?

 

[rocketeer500]

Do I just have a freak of a house....

Hey washerboy, that's a common problem in laterals, especially if you have pet dander and other solid debris going down the pipes... (remember, laterals are designed only for water, dissolvable solids (but not grease) and poop, nothing else!) You can get a screen that fits over your washer drain hose from your local hardware store. Just remember to clean it it out frequently. My mother use to use her old stockings... ok, so I have a wierd family, but it worked! I hope this helps.

 

[toggleswitch]

I had a problem with my house that was built in 1946. Combination of flushing foods down the toilet, whole baby wipes and the major problem.............. sticking build-up remover down the drains. Oh, it opened up the pipes all right, but the huge chunks that were lining the pipes for decades came up and couldn't get past the final U-shaped "trap". The petrified gunk snagged the food and the baby (@$$) wipes that snagged even more.

My washer pumps water UP to the sewer line. It it therefore the lowest point in the line. Waste water was shooting out of the sewage pipe all over my new W&D (UGH).

So I put on my macho attitude, slipped off my fuzzy pink bedroom slippers for construction boots, then opened the trap and dug out all kinds of sh---- well nasty stuff.

Lessons learned:

1-Wipes get shredded into TINY pieces before use.
2- All food goes through the disposal.
3-I use boiling hot salted water once in a while to keep the pipes open, rather than the "good" stuff which in my house is TOO effective.
4- I am just as macho as any plumber and probably a lot more verstile in my skills. Hell I charge way less!

I don't know, I think it's odd that the new pipe would give problems. How long had it been in service? I am assuming the pitch is the same in that the house's discharge and the sewer's inlet are in the same position that the were before. Or are they? HMMMMM

My parents were hung-up about coffee grinds down the drain. What is up with that? I just don't get it.

 

[toggleswitch]

Grease? Greece? Grease?

I'm having a problem with my basement kitchen's grease going into the laundry-tray pump which pushes the effluent up to the sewer. The grease sits on the float preventing it from starting when full.

*HELP* I'm thinking I needs a good grease trap. What to do? what to do?

 

[rocketeer500]

What to do? what to do?

Toggle, get a grease trap. But, whatever you do.... get the number of the plumber before he leaves *wink*

(ducks and runs)

 

[DADoES]

1-Wipes get shredded into TINY pieces before use.

Huh? Before use??

 

[58limited]

I shake out my sheets and towels and blankets to get cat and dog hair off, but often I will throw them in the dryer with a dryer sheet on low temp setting before washing. This gets most of the hair off, then I just wipe the interior with a clean damp rag to clean it.

 

[whirlcool]

Where is a good Filter Flo when you need one?

When washing sheets and rugs with dog hair, we use a 4 inch circular screen to skim the top of the wash and rinse water in our TL machine with. It kind of acts like a FF. In a TL machine, the dog hair floats to the surface and you can catch it there.
Now with a FL machine, I understand the dog hair stays with the clothing and relies on the dryer to remove it.
Most houses in this area don't have a basement due to the high water table. What's worse than a clogged srain is a broken one! I have known several people who have had their drain pipe under the slab of their house break. It's a ROYAL and expensive mess to have fixed. They have to dig out under the slab and sometimes even through the slab in your home.

 

[DADoES]

I haven't hazarded to try it for the duration, but I can get a filter-flo type action in my F&P by turning on the pump and diverter valve during agitation via diagnostic mode. Would be interesting to see how much it'd catch. I have a Filter-Flo pan but it won't fit on the F&P agitator.

 

[gansky1]

We NEVER put grease down the drains in our house growing up, nor did my grandparents, etc. We kept an empty coffee can in the freezer for waste grease and then it was taken out to my aunt and uncles farm where it was either fed to the cats in winter or mixed in with the pig's food. We weren't allowed to put kleenex tissues in the toilet as they didn't dissolve as quickly as toilet tissue and would potentially cause a back-up in the drains. Any food waste that wasn't composted for my grandparent's garden was run through the disposer with LOTS of water following it. The washer drain water was always strained through an old nylon stocking first and under no circumstances would baby/butt wipes (had they existed then) been allowed to be flushed down any toilet.

I'm not quite as strict in my own house, but I never, ever flushed any wipes when I used them for my son.

 

[toggleswitch]

1-Wipes get shredded into TINY pieces before use.

Huh? Before use??


Well I for one am not about to shred them AFTER use!!!!!

 

[toggleswitch]

~We NEVER put grease down the drains.

I can't really either, either especially downstairs. The normal washing of pots by hand and running the dishwasher leaves QUITE a lot of grease and fat in the pump, which becomes problematic.

 

[toggleswitch]

oh Gawd I smell a joke brewing here.....

~I have a Filter-Flo pan but it won't fit on the F&P agitator.

Glenn:
I have a spare one with a larger-than-most opening that fits a 2.5 inch agitator top. Send a holler if this works for you. Will snail-mail.

[There HAS to be a better way to say that ]

 

[DADoES]

Won't work either. The top is ~4" diameter. (take that however you wish)

In regards to shredding the wipes .... aren't the resulting little pieces difficult to, uhmmmm, handle, for use?

Last I was told during one of the three-times yearly inspections, my septic system is one of the cleanest the techie-dude sees. Of course, it is only a bit over two years old, but take *that* however you wish as well.....

 

[mayken4now]

washerboy:

I may cross the line with the "Pet Hair". My take is as stated.

Consider the source then rid the cause. That comes from experience in this old broad's mind. No pets here.

 

[toggleswitch]

Mi cosita es tan tan tan pequena.

~In regards to shredding the wipes .... aren't the resulting little pieces difficult to, uhmmmm, handle, for use?

Due to the nature of the beast, they are the right size tool for the job.

(TRYING DESPERATELY TO KEEP A "STRAIGHT" FACE HERE!]

 

[exploder3211]

WHen i have to use wipes i throw them in the trash

 

[duetboy]

The queen comes out...

The SPEED QUEEN, that is! When I had my speed queen wringer, I had rigged up the drain hose to dump into a bucket (I didn't ahve the model with a pump on it) and then I purchased a small sump pump off of ebay (shipping cost me more than the pump!) and being the wizard that I am, rigged up a lint filter in the form of a little "sock" I sewed that went over the return line from the pump to the washer. It was AMAZING the amount of cat hair, dog hair, lint and bear hair that the little sack caught. If you weren't watching it and the washer was draining faster than the pump was pumping, it could be a mess, however, it was well worth it.

DADoES has the same idea that I had, only my Sped Queen didn't have diagnostics (at least not the computer controlled kind!) You just knew to hit the release on the wringer when you were elbow deep in it!

duetboy
aka jeff

 

[pturo]

Use lint condoms! They are the mesh rolled up things 2 for $1.99 that come with plastic ties to be put on the drain hose of the machine for safe laundering. Even with a filter flow and especially the new machines which have internal lint filters that eject the lint, you should see what these things pick after a few loads. After about 2 weeks, the mesh looks almost calcified with stuff that would be calcifying in your main sewer line, where you cant get to it. Toss in the trash and strap on another. I have a dog and love her, she is worth the extra effort to protect the sewer.