View Full Version : Washing Machine Drain
MrBrown
07-17-2009, 05:04 PM
Here is my situation. I have recently moved into an older home and have my washing machine in the basement. The current drain set up is out of the bottom of the washing machine into flex pipe that clamps onto galvanized pipe that goes up the wall and levels out about waist high. The galvanized pipe then dumps into the main drain stack. The reason the galvanized pipe is waist high is because the main drain exits the house just below waist high in the basement.
So far everything seems to be working fine, but I have concerns. Could this setup cause problems in the future. Do I need a lint trap on the drain somewhere?
Thanks in advance for your thoughts.
What's not included in your description is a regular "P" trap.
FloridaOrange
07-17-2009, 05:34 PM
You do not need a lint trap, I would hope that the machine waste dumps into a trap though. Washing machines typically pump "up", the washing machine box in my home is a little above waist high.
MrBrown
07-17-2009, 06:15 PM
So am I to understand that some sort of Trap or P Trap is needed in the setup? There is some sort of contraption that has been installed inline, but identifiing it is above my pay grade.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3129/3730234909_55004ff9cb_m.jpg
If the insert image feature worked for me, maybe someone can identify it for me.
FloridaOrange
07-17-2009, 06:30 PM
That's a cleanout. If your line were to get clogged it gives a plumber a place to snake it.
This is a p-trap. Typically you have a p-trap with a 2" pipe up to a washing machine reciever box for lack of a better term. I've seen plenty where there is just a trap and the washing machine line drains into it.
http://www.partridges.uk.com/catalog/images/SC10_P_Trap.jpg
This is a typical installation with a washing machine box.
http://www.callablefirst.com/WashingMachine.bmp
FloridaOrange
07-17-2009, 06:31 PM
The P-trap creates a water seal and prevents sewer gasses from coming into the home.
MrBrown
07-17-2009, 08:17 PM
And the drain hose from the washing machine does not have to be clamped onto the drain standpipe?
Gary Swart
07-17-2009, 08:57 PM
No. Washer drain hoses are shapes to hook on the open end of the 2" standpipe and just hang there. There are not to be connected with a solid connection. All fixture in the home must have a trap to block sewer gas from entering the house, and all fixtures must be vented. You can see the P trap under every sink in the house. Dishwashers use the kitchen sink trap. The ones under tubs and showers often are not readily visible, but they are there. The toilet has its trap built in. Vents usually are not visible except in unfinished rooms. You obviously do not have much experience in these matters, and I would suggest you hire a plumber to analyze and make the necessary corrections to you drain system. Just because something seems to be working OK does not mean it is properly plumbed and safe to be using the way it is.
And the drain hose from the washing machine does not have to be clamped onto the drain standpipe?
From your description of your setup, it does need to be clamped because it's built as a pressurized connection (pressure supplied by washing machine pump). The previous occupant cobbed together a "solution" to tap directly into the vertical stack without benefit of a trap, and is totally wrong. I'm guessing that the only reason you're not getting sewer gas smell is that the water that remains in the bottom of the washer serves to block it.
Post pics to show the connection to the vertical. Include one where you step back to show the entire floor to ceiling.
jimbo
07-18-2009, 07:59 AM
You have a serious problem. You apparently have a direct path for sewer gas into the washing machine, and even worse, it you ever have some kind of blockage on your main drain, you will wake up one morning to discover that your toilet has flushed into the load of whites that momma left in the washing machine.
That "device" is a check valve and without it, any sewer backup would flood your washing machine, and then the basement with sewer water. It is not a proper connection, but any "proper" connection would also be an overflow point in case of a sewer stoppage.
MrBrown
07-26-2009, 02:43 PM
You obviously do not have much experience in these matters, and I would suggest you hire a plumber to analyze and make the necessary corrections to you drain system. Just because something seems to be working OK does not mean it is properly plumbed and safe to be using the way it is.
Just to be clear, I am well aware of what a p-trap is and where they are located. My whole point of asking my initial question is that I know that this connection is wrong and my experience is limited. My main issue is that the washing machine drain is lower than where the main drain leaves the basement wall out to the road I have some gravitation issues. The washing machine drain is going up about 3 feet to connect to the main drain leading out of the house. In this situation how would one make this connection correct?
-Gary, if I find I cannot get a correct answer I suppose I will then pay the $200 to get someone to give me some sort of answer. Isn't that the point of this forum to get understanding and answers? In the future please try to be a bit more polite.
FloridaOrange
07-26-2009, 02:51 PM
Try posting pictures of the entire setup. The more we see the more we can offer suggestions.
J
-Gary[.....]In the future please try to be a bit more polite.
There was absolutely nothing even borderline rude in what Gary wrote. Apparently, if someone isn't admiring your handiwork effusively, you call them impolite.
MrBrown
07-26-2009, 03:25 PM
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2591/3759636914_90c334fe70.jpg?v=0
The hose runs out of the washing machine along the floor and up the wall at this point.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2652/3758840175_acdfe9ca40.jpg?v=0
It runs along the wall at about a chest high level and connects into the main stack just above where the main drain exits the house.
I hope these pictures help to explain my dilemma.
How's (where) the laundry tray drained?
MrBrown
07-26-2009, 04:07 PM
Well what the laundry tray drains into is a bit of a question and an entirely different issue. We believe it drains into the sump drain, but that is not clear.
Well what the laundry tray drains into is a bit of a question and an entirely different issue. We believe it drains into the sump drain, but that is not clear.
If it connected properly to the sanitary system, it would be a solution to the clothes washer problem.
MrBrown
07-26-2009, 07:23 PM
If it connected properly to the sanitary system, it would be a solution to the clothes washer problem.
You're right about that being a solution, but from the evidence, I have to assume at this point that it is not.
I suppose one solution could be that I run the Drain Standpipe up the wall to give me enough gravity to make it all work.