Bathroom sink clogged but water filling up and overflowing!
#1
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Bathroom sink clogged but water filling up and overflowing!
Yikes, I really hope someone can help us!
An upstairs bathroom has had a clogged sink for a while - we're super busy with a new baby, and there are other bathrooms in the house so we've unfortunately kind of ignored it for a couple of weeks. Tonight, however, it reared its ugly head and actually overflowed. There was no water in it earlier today and nobody has turned on the tap. (this would seem to explain the old water stain on the ceiling of the room below and the old owners will have some serious karma to deal with, but that's another story entirely...)
We scooped most of the water out and used a plunger on it and some really nasty looking black gunk popped into the sink through the safety drain - looks like slimy stuff that's been building up, but probably not what's responsible for the clog. There were brief moments that the suction seemed to be working but it wouldn't drain, and we seemed to have accomplished nothing at all and abandoned it. A little while later, the water level was higher than it had been.
What's going on and what should we do? I'm game to get under the sink with a large wrench and bucket and see if something's in that crook, but my fiance's not so keen to jump into it...he's nervous that the refilling indicates a worse problem than just a clog.
Thanks so much for any help!!
An upstairs bathroom has had a clogged sink for a while - we're super busy with a new baby, and there are other bathrooms in the house so we've unfortunately kind of ignored it for a couple of weeks. Tonight, however, it reared its ugly head and actually overflowed. There was no water in it earlier today and nobody has turned on the tap. (this would seem to explain the old water stain on the ceiling of the room below and the old owners will have some serious karma to deal with, but that's another story entirely...)
We scooped most of the water out and used a plunger on it and some really nasty looking black gunk popped into the sink through the safety drain - looks like slimy stuff that's been building up, but probably not what's responsible for the clog. There were brief moments that the suction seemed to be working but it wouldn't drain, and we seemed to have accomplished nothing at all and abandoned it. A little while later, the water level was higher than it had been.
What's going on and what should we do? I'm game to get under the sink with a large wrench and bucket and see if something's in that crook, but my fiance's not so keen to jump into it...he's nervous that the refilling indicates a worse problem than just a clog.
Thanks so much for any help!!
#2
Welcome to the forums! Get your bucket, unscrew the two nuts on the ptrap (crooked thingy) and let it all flow into the bucket. That should solve your immediate problem with water in the sink. Now, how is it getting there? You may have a venting problem, and it is not allowing air on top of the water to force it downward to the main drain. Only if you feel comfortable doing this, go up on the roof with a garden hose and run it down the vent pipe(s) in order to unclog the vent. Quite often squirrels and birds will deposit nuts, branches, leaves, etc in the pipe and it will pack up. To explain further, place a straw in a Coke, place your thumb on the top of the straw and withdraw the straw. The liquid remains in the straw until you release your thumb, allowing air from above to equalize and the liquid will leave from the bottom. That is possibly what you have.
One other thing, you mentioned the "safety drain" and I am assuming you are talking about the overflow in the front of the sink. This is quite out of the ordinary. While you have the ptrap off, make sure you clean out the gunk in the waste arm going to the wall. It will be messy, so wear gloves and eye protection. You don't want this stuff in your body, especially with a new baby. Post back if we can help further.
One other thing, you mentioned the "safety drain" and I am assuming you are talking about the overflow in the front of the sink. This is quite out of the ordinary. While you have the ptrap off, make sure you clean out the gunk in the waste arm going to the wall. It will be messy, so wear gloves and eye protection. You don't want this stuff in your body, especially with a new baby. Post back if we can help further.