Contractor walked out, left me to finish my basement...need some help


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Old 04-12-13, 05:36 PM
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Contractor walked out, left me to finish my basement...need some help

Hey All,

So the contractor I hired was doing really good.... but what happens happens..... towards the end of the job he started showing up only once a week and not answering his phone or texts.

So we wanted to finish our basement and add a full bathroom down there since my mother was gonna move in. So he broke the concrete and replaced the cast iron pipes with PVC. (One pipe had a hole in it).

The dimensions of the bathroom is 70" by 60". she wanted a shower instead of a bathtub(60"X30") so I decided to get here a wide shower so she could fit more comfortable.

you can see by the pics I added that the job is not complete. I wanted to know if where he put a 4 "drain pipe with a reducer 2" drain, can I change that section for a 4 in. PVC DWV Double Sanitary Tee that will reduce to 2" for shower and 1.5" to the sink?

Also he said that the toilet didn't need to be vented... is this correct? if not how do I correct this issue??


Steve
 
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Old 04-12-13, 06:06 PM
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can I change that section for a 4 in. PVC DWV Double Sanitary Tee that will reduce to 2" for shower and 1.5" to the sink?
No..... After looking at these pics I wonder how much you paid him that he is not showing up.... Bad plumbing from what I can see so far.

Also he said that the toilet didn't need to be vented... is this correct? if not how do I correct this issue??
You need to vent everything. You need to get that vent up through the roof most likley. You cant use the main waste stack as a vent...

Please tell me permits were taken out?

You may want to consult legal action or cut your losses if the payment damage is not too bad.

If you could sketch the plan out and post I can help on the right way it needs to be done.
 
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Old 04-12-13, 06:45 PM
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Yup, what's there isn't right from what I can see. The 4x4x2 tees should be wyes.

All fixtures need to be vented, and as Mike said, would need to go up to the roof.

Also, how is the PVC connected to the cast iron? It looks like it's just stuck in.


At least you have the hard part taken care of, all the concrete is up. And I'll second Mike's comment - be sure you pull permits and have it inspected before you close it up.
 
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Old 04-12-13, 07:38 PM
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um.... no permits... we already cut our loses.

I've attached my CAD Drawing of the basement, with detailed basement.

You need to vent everything. You need to get that vent up through the roof most likley. You cant use the main waste stack as a vent...
My house is a townhome and was built in the 50s. I don't even know if it has a vent stack....

how is the PVC connected to the cast iron? It looks like it's just stuck in.
There's a Rubber Coupler between the Cast iron and PVC pipes.

you both said basically it's bad plumbing....can you tell me what makes it bad?

Steve
 
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basement plans.pdf (24.2 KB, 156 views)
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Old 04-12-13, 08:43 PM
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Your attached pdf file is only the bathroom. Maybe a second page didn't get attached ?
 
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Old 04-12-13, 08:54 PM
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Sorry I thought you guys only wanted the bathroom CAD.... here's the full Basement....

it's a simple basement finish the bathroom was the difficult part of the job....


Steve
 
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Old 04-12-13, 09:08 PM
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He used regular fernco couplings, Must be no hubs . I could go on and on....
 
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Old 04-12-13, 09:14 PM
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so what type of couplings do I need?? what do you mean by "No Hubs"

The Coupling is a no-hub coupling...
 
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Last edited by dasaint80; 04-12-13 at 09:53 PM.
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Old 04-14-13, 05:18 AM
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A shielded no-hub is what's required (I believe under concrete - Lawrosa, can you confirm?)
[ATTACH=CONFIG]11470[/ATTACH]

I would take a 4x4x3 wye off the main drain for the toilet, then use a closet bend with 2" vent to go to the toilet and then vent up through the wall.

Take another 4x4x2 combo wye, reduced to 1.5 to the sink, go up the wall to a 1.5" sanitary tee, then keep going up for the vent.

The shower I think would be easiest to take off the branch to the toilet using a 3x3x2 combo wye. By coming off the toilet branch, you can use the same vent as the toilet and not separately vent the shower. The shower needs to be a 2" drain, to the trap.

Alternatively, the shower could be taken directly off the main 4" line, but it would need to be vented separately, up the wall, then tied into the toilet vent above 42" high.

Making some more sense?
 
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Old 04-14-13, 08:46 AM
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Yes it does... but the problem is that my house has no separate vent pipe.... so I would have to connect to the main drain which goes up out to thru the roof.

If anyone lives around Delaware county in PA, and wants to come over and have some beers.... you're welcome!!....



I attached a final plans for bathroom.... since that huge shower was way to big.... well that's what I get for trying to do something nice for my mother!!


Steve.
 
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Old 04-14-13, 09:22 AM
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Sorry but if you dont vent then its a wet vent and thats not to code. You will siphon the traps and have deadly sewer gas released in the home.

real quick this is how it needs to be basically.
 
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Old 04-14-13, 12:23 PM
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I got it I'm gonna be breaking some walls in my living room and upstairs so I can tap into the original Vent pipe (if there's one?!?) Fingers crossed.... my wife is gonna love this....
 
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Old 04-14-13, 02:03 PM
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Often it's easier to just make a new hole in the roof and add a rubber/aluminum boot than tying into what's existing. Either is fine (in the attic).

You may also be able to vent outside through the wall. You'd need to find an area that doesn't have a window nearby, but it's possible that it's easier.
 
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Old 04-14-13, 02:07 PM
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You may also be able to vent outside through the wall. You'd need to find an area that doesn't have a window nearby, but it's possible that it's easier.
I dont think you can do that.....
 
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Old 04-14-13, 02:09 PM
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I can t cause I'm in a town home so I got windows close by
 
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Old 04-14-13, 02:13 PM
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You may be able to use a studor vent... What you really need to do is talk to the town inspector and ask...

What ever you do take out a permit... Its for your protection.
 
 

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