Jadnashua
Retired Defense Industry Engineer xxx
30' is at least 7.5" drop required. That drop has to be continuous...no flat spots or back slope. More is okay.
1" in 10' is not allowed!
Whether or not it is "allowed", 1" in 10' can be an acceptable mechanical mimimum if the line is straight and well-bedded. At least in part, steeper slopes are "required" to cover installed sags and/or eventual settling. I have one line (about 10' long) that was set at only a mere 1/4" in 4' several years ago, and it is still just as clean on the inside as on the day it was installed. A few months ago, I was shocked to learn storm drains are often set at far less than even that, but those lines usually experience long and heavy flows in comparison to the flush of a toilet.
If the main line was flooded, I assume that he would be able to see the level of the liquids in that basement toilet drain pipe when the toilet was removed. Am I wrong about this?
When we uncovered the tank fully this time, the backhoe operator and my father immediately noticed that the line running into the tank was angling slightly upward into the tank ...
We did flush an upstairs toilet a few times to see what was happening and it did appear some minor solids were getting hung up in water the main line. Nobody thought that this water standing in the pipe would be enough to cause any problem.
Redwood: You are saying things I did not even come close to saying or to even thinking about merely implying. What we have here is a situation where just about any fall gained at all could be sufficient for avoiding a very expensive repair. "Codes" are not mechanical absolutes without which nothing at all would ever function.
If your proposed pitch was acceptable then the code would mearly specify ...
1/4" per foot is an ideal slope, but 1" in 10' can be an acceptable minimum.
There is no such thing as a acceptable minimum less than the specification of the code.
Ryan100...seeing as your post is a decade and a half old, this is kind of a shot in the dark but I figured what the heck. You're describing my current situation to a T. Like down to plumbers coming and just saying things aren't properly vented or suggesting my traps are dried out (they're not) and otherwise offering no tangible solutions. Also had my tank pumped hoping it would fix the problem, but no luck, if anything it got slightly worse.Split level house in the country--approximately 30 years old
Septic system--1500 gallon tank
I've lived in house while renovating for about 2 years. My parents owned it previously. House was unoccupied for approximately 5 years to me moving in and renovating.
First noticed very strong septic gas smell from lower level bath vanity (vessel bowl.) Happens only when water is run and gas immediately breaks or "belches" past p-trap seal. This is where the worst gas problem occurs.
Later noticed this was happening in kitchen sink on main level of house. Gas is not as strong, but still very evident.
Finally checked main bath on upper level (two basins on vanity) and smell is very faint. Same belching condition.
There is no siphoning of water from p-traps. Bubbles "belch" through p-trap when water is run from fixture and runs into drain.
The home never previously had problem to my knowledge prior to the 5-year period house sat unoccupied. My parents lived here and I grew up in the home. The original homeowner (who my parents purchased house from in early 1980's) also built the home primarily himself. While most construction was outstanding, I question his understanding of plumbing. None of the individual fixtures in house have their own vent branch into the main stack with the exception of the kitchen sink, which actually has its own vent (through roof.) The main stack actually serves as a long wet vent into which most of the waste lines drain into. Neither vent through the roof is clogged...they have both had a hose run down and verified water runs freely through. In the crawlspace below the kitchen I opened a cleanout which is directly below the sink and water from the kitchen sink vent was very visibly running clean through.
I had a plumber out. He had no answers other than "most fixtures were not properly vented." He could not explain why kitchen sink emitted the gas because it did seem to be vented.
But wait, there's more: I had the septic tank pumped about 3 months ago. I learned later that the tank probably had 3 access points (1500-gallon concrete tank) but we only dug down to the center. Therefore, the inlet and outlet were not inspected. This was the first time in 30 years the tank was pumped. The "pumper" said that it seemed surprisingly not overfilled with solids. Additives like Rid-X were used throughout the years, including recently.
This septic tank is buried right behind the home, and to my knowledge is attached to the usual drainfield. However, one unique (and probably unlawful) feature is that several hundred feet away in a small primarily dry creek an overflow pipe peeks out which I'm told is an overflow from the septic system. When excessive rains came, it was uncapped to provide a release point for an apparently overtaxed drainfield. This has been uncapped since I've lived here (2 years) and probably a number of years prior. There doesn't appear to be much dampness coming from it, however I haven't tested it by running massive amounts of water in the tank and seeing if there is any "overflow" from this drainpipe.
The lower bath (where gas odor is worst from sink) is the last stop on the main waste line that runs out towards septic system. I removed the toilet (the very last fixture draining into the waste line before heading out towards the septic tank.) I had someone run water from the kitchen sink (main level of house) and a massive amount of gas was emitted from the toilet pipe (as waste water ran down main stack and down towards this line on its way towards septic tank.)
So...barbaric septic gas seems to be creeping up into the main stack and the various waste lines to fixtures, and most of the sink p-traps appear to fail to keep it in check.
As I mentioned, this was not problem in the past to my knowledge. Therefore, although I recognize the system is not properly vented, why did it become a problem at some point? The septic odor is unbelievably rank. By the way, I worked as a licensed embalmer for a number of years, so I know a bad smell when I'm exposed to it!
Could the septic drainfield be failing/clogged to some extent and not absorbing gases? There has been no problem with waste water backing up.
Obviously it's as if the gas is trapped throughout the stack and doesn't fully release through the roof vent(s).
Anyone? Anyone?
Many thanks in advance. I'd be glad to answer any specific follow up questions. I'm starting to lose sleep over this after having nightmares about trying to re-vent the system, only to learn the septic tank (drainfield) is the culprit. Or how about vice versa? Either way, I know I'm talking about a decent sized investment to rectify this.
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.