Chronic Main Line Clogs
#1
My main line clogs about five times a year. I have had the pipe replaced between the foundation and city street. During this process I learned the drain line pitch between foundation and street is almost level. Is there a pump I could connect to my drain system to periodicly flush it?
#2
Join Date: Dec 1999
Location: Northeastern NC On The Albemarle Sound
Posts: 10,701
Upvotes: 0
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I'm not a plumber, but I think that there should be at least a 1/4" drop per foot for proper drain flow. Your drain was installed level?? How did your plumber get that past the building inspector that should have inspected this work?
There are pumps made for basements that may help you, but I think that I would call that plumber back. Good Luck!
There are pumps made for basements that may help you, but I think that I would call that plumber back. Good Luck!
#3
Old guy's right,
this sewer should have 1/4" per foot slope. Puting a pump in the basement will not do much to solve the problem, you will always have problems with a flat sewer,like old guy, I'm suprised an inspector would let this pass.
-plumber john
this sewer should have 1/4" per foot slope. Puting a pump in the basement will not do much to solve the problem, you will always have problems with a flat sewer,like old guy, I'm suprised an inspector would let this pass.
-plumber john
#4
Define what you mean by "almost level". John and Old Guy both mentioned 1/4" per foot, which is right. To some people, that may look "almost level". If you have 4 or 5 feet of the line exposed, lay a 4' level on it. How far do you need to raise the street end of the level to make it read level? If you need to raise it an inch or more, you're ok. The problem with checking it with a 4' level though is that you have only looked at 4' of the pipe. If the trench is still open, look at the entire pipe. First, does it drop at a pretty even rate, or does it have hills and valleys in it? Second, use a string line with a level hung on it to determine how much fall you have between the house and the street. (10" in 40' is 1/4" per foot).