Dual Vanity Sink Clog

[williwyo]

I have two single vanity sinks in my bathroom that share a main drain and vent, both in the wall. When I run the water in one sink, the other sink fills. When I try to snake the drain, the auger runs from one sink drain line through to the other and never diverts down the main drain. Any advice on how to clear this?

Thanks for your help!

[kingsotall]

Put a kink in your "snake." See how this one has a kink at the end¿

http://www.natureinc.biz/Small%20Rodder.JPG

This will allow the cable to travel verticle. Hopefully down! :rolleyes:

[cwhyu2]

open the wall just below the cross. Install a cleanout tee .And auger it from there.

[SewerRatz]

Or get a drain rodder with a drop head auger on the end. You feed it in by hand till you feel you reached the cross, then put a little pressure on the cable then run the machine. Be very careful though these drain cleaning machines can hurt you. The Sparten 100 pictured above if ran on reverse , can cause the cable to shoot out of the drum. I met a lady that said she had a plumber out 4 years ago to rod her kitchen sink line. The plumber made it look so easy, so when it clogged three years later she rented a rodder. As she was cleaning the drain, the cable wrapped around her glove, and her reaction was to pull her hand away. Only problem was she pulled her hand out of the glove and lost a couple fingers. While she said that she took of her leather gloves to show me the damage.

http://images.grainger.com/B273_23/images/products/1VUW8.JPG

[Winslow]

I have two single vanity sinks in my bathroom that share a main drain and vent, both in the wall. When I run the water in one sink, the other sink fills. When I try to snake the drain, the auger runs from one sink drain line through to the other and never diverts down the main drain. Any advice on how to clear this?

Thanks for your help!

hopefully whoever installed the plumbing in your house used a drainage fitting instead of the vent tee pictured in the photograph. Even a drop head auger or a bent cable will be difficult to snake through the one in the picture. If that is a picture of your configuration then putting a cleanout tee either above or below the double fiting is the only real option.

[cwhyu2]

hopefully whoever installed the plumbing in your house used a drainage fitting instead of the vent tee pictured in the photograph. Even a drop head auger or a bent cable will be difficult to snake through the one in the picture. If that is a picture of your configuration then putting a cleanout tee either above or below the double fiting is the only real option.

Thank you !

[jar546]

I hope they fixed the 3 code violations before they sheetrocked that wall.

2 plumbing, 1 electrical

[cwhyu2]

I hope they fixed the 3 code violations before they sheetrocked that wall.

2 plumbing, 1 electrical

specfiy the volations please.

[williwyo]

Looks like I have more problems than I thought. What exactly are the code violations?

I will open the wall and install a cleanout, but would like to fix the code violations while I am in there if possible...

Thanks for all your input.

[hj]

That is a drain fitting, not a vent cross, but it is still the wrong one for that location and an inspector should not have approved it, if it was inspected.

[jar546]

Good morning and Merry Christmas.

1) Protector plate for your waste stack is required to extend 2" above the sole plate. Same goes for the top where it must extend 2" below the top plate.

2) NM cable for wiring is not secured within 12" of the device boxes.

3) Fernco coupler has no reason to be where it is. That should have been a PVC coupler. Fernco couplers above ground are not allowed except with the approval of the AHJ and in this case I would have not approved it because there was no need beyond laziness to use it. ICC-ES Legacy report from 1997 and re-issued in 2007 covers this.

What this means is that if you called for an inspection you would have failed but the issues are not big issues and since everything is covered up, I would not worry about it at all. These are minor, detailed oriented codes that are not a true worry for health and safety issues.

Enjoy the holidays. I will go now as I smell breakfast cooking and the 5 kids are all on their way home for Christmas breakfast (all older).

[williwyo]

Thanks for clarifying the code issues, and I'm glad that they are not major safety issues. What do you think about snaking the drain from the roof vent? I will eventually install a cleanout tee, but I would like to get the drain workable in the mean time.

Live and learn! I appreciate you all taking the time to help, especially during the busy holidays.

Have a Merry Christmas!:D

[WV Hillbilly]

If the vent pipe goes straight up through the roof , wouldn't hurt to try . Don't fall off the roof .

[Terry]

http://www.terrylove.com/images/lav_rough_double_b.jpg
This, but with a cleanout added in the middle.

[williwyo]

That is actually the picture I went off when I plumbed the sinks. Obviously I had never done any plumbing before. Should the cleanout go above or below the drain cross?:confused:

[SewerRatz]

That is actually the picture I went off when I plumbed the sinks. Obviously I had never done any plumbing before. Should the cleanout go above or below the drain cross?:confused:

I like the clean outs above the cross. This way when I get the drain open I can run water while I am rodding to ensure a proper cleaning of the pipe.

[williwyo]

That makes sense. I will try to unclog from the vent, then work on the cleanout. Thanks again for all your help!

[williwyo]

Ventured to the snowy roof and snaked the vent/drain from above and 'viola', success! The drain is open. I will eventually add a cleanout tee, but for now, it works.

Thanks for all of your help and
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

[Basement_Lurker]

hmm I can't tell from the picture, but I hope those outlets are gfi protected.

[williwyo]

They are GFI protected at the fusebox...

[Basement_Lurker]

Ahh, hopefully your entire bathroom is wiring into that gfci breaker then! Good for you, I rarely see bathrooms wired up with a gfci breaker like they should be in my opinion!