shower drain

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My contractor came to rough in the plumbing for our new bathroom and when we measured out the shower the edge of the drain sat over top of a joist. "No problem" he said and he chipped away some of the joist and used a couple of 90 degree elbows to reach the trap. Is this ok? I was worried that it would decrease the flow going out and also that it would be pretty hard to snake if there was a clog. What do you guys think?
 

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Jadnashua

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This isn't specific answer to your question, but may still be somewhat useful. In plumbing, you are only allowed so much change in direction before you are required to have a cleanout. I don't remember the total angle...but, I think you're close if not over that . Second, it will probably work, but it would be better if it were directly under then drain in the shower. The longer the pipe is before the trap, the more opportunity there is for soap scum, hair, oils, etc. to potentially accumulate on the inside of the pipe. The trap is what stops any of those nasty smells from coming out of the drain, so ideally, the shorter it is, the less of that would be available to smell.

Third, while plumbers do it a lot, you NEVER should notch or cut the top or bottom edge of a joist! Think sort of like an I-beam...I'm sure you've seen some (a truss is similar) that are quite small in the middle, or maybe even a lattice - solid lumber is similar. It is the top and bottom that provide the strength, the middle is mostly (not entirely on a solid wood lumber) there to hold the top and bottom edges in place. The strength comes from the compression on the top being offset by the tension on the bottom when there is a force applied (gravity) pushing down. Code allows any holes to only go in certain places in a joist (essentially, in the middle between the top and bottom), limits how close to the end of a joist they can be, and also limits their size. Especially underneath a shower that could get quite heavy, you don't want to lose that strength. You need to reinforce that cut joist. One way around that would have been to box it out with some headers and joist hangers...then, you'd have an open area and wouldn't have needed that offset.

A plumber would know the max angle before cleanout requirement, whether that is acceptable, and should know about notching joists (but it seems to often be ignored!). An inspector might have something to say about it (did you pull or have a plumbing permit pulled?). A licensed plumber should produce work that will pass an inspection, but that is also why you get a permit to get a second opinion and verify it was done right. Other than the joist, I'm not sure.
 
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Two 45's would have been better.

John

I agree. Is it worth cutting the whole thing out and doing it with two 45s? Is it a flow issue or just more likely to get clogged? It's a shower and my wife is pretty good about not letting hair down there. And I on the other hand haven't had to worry about hair down the drain in many years!
 

hj

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Your problem, if you "cut it out", is that the will not be any pipe sticking out of the joist, or anything below the drain to connect the new piping to. I would have no qualms about shaving the top of the joist, because unlike an "I" beam, the compression and tension are distributed throughout its depth.
 
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Your problem, if you "cut it out", is that the will not be any pipe sticking out of the joist, or anything below the drain to connect the new piping to. I would have no qualms about shaving the top of the joist, because unlike an "I" beam, the compression and tension are distributed throughout its depth.

You can't see in the pic but there's no ceiling underneath so I have full access to the next bay. I would cut the 2" pipe over there. The only issue I see with cutting it out and redoing it is that the height of the 2 45s might be different than the 2 90s he used. And if it's not the same height I'd have to get pretty lucky with couplers to make it work or make an even bigger hole in the joist to accommodate it which I definitely don't wanna do.

Maybe I should just see how tough it is to get my snake through it before I bother?
 

Reach4

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I would consider screwing and gluing another piece of wood to the non-cut side of the joist. Without analysis, 3 feet long sounds good to me. That may well be longer than needed, but the wood cost and effort would not be affected much by using something shorter. I would use 3/4 plywood or heavier. You could also use a piece of 2x6 or bigger. Whatever wood you use, push it up to align the top with the subfloor.
 
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