I just started redoing the kitchen floor, and I used the thin set mortar and backer boards first. I cleaned the thin set off the tools in the basement wash basin that is right next to the washing machine. Both drain into the same floor drain with their own PVC piping. Since that night the washer has been overflowing through its PVC pipe and the basin fills up when we wash clothes. Could there be mortar that hardened where the two pipes empty into the floor? I have zero plumbing skill or experience, so I'd rather not remove anything. Can I use muriatic acid in the drain to try and dissolve the mortar? Is there a potential that it backs up into the washer? Does muriatic acid damage PVC? Any other ideas that don't involve me taking apart the pipes? I'm worried that would have me right back on here asking how to assemble the plumbing I've destroyed.

 

Never going to make an omelet without cracking some eggs.
I'd start by removing the trap under the sink to see if that's where it's plugged up.
That's a DIY 101 job.
Post a picture under the sink so we can see what your seeing and any issues you may run into.
DO not pore any chemicals down the drain!!
All that's going to do is make snaking out the drain a toxic mess.

 

Don't have any good suggestions, but I echo Joe's advice to NOT pour acid in the drain!

FYI, and I'm sure you know this now...but always clean painting, tiling, and plastering tools in a 5 gallon bucket of water, at least to get almost all the gunk off. Let the stuff settle out in the bucket over a few days, pour off the clean water and dispose of the gunk in the trash.

 

Thanks. I'm at work, but I will send pics when I get home. Can I post them in the message?

 

Give this a shot: http://www.doityourself.com/forum/el...-pictures.html

May have to re-size cell phone pics.

 

The main issue with thinset is the sand that makes up a large portion of the mix. If you clean your tools in a 5 gallon bucket, and do not rinse out the bucket, the sediment will solidify on the bottom of the bucket. So you may very well have cemented the drain line. Sounds like you have two separate lines, so the trap under the sink will not clear out the slow drain at the washing machine.

 

Stickshift, thanks for the link, but the insert pictures feature isn't anywhere on my screen. Where should I be seeing these icons?

 

Here are the parts I was able to take off

 

This is what is left. I can't get any of the rest apart with my hands. Does the purple sealant make it harder to unscrew?

 

The purple is the remnants of PVC primer...those joints are solvent welded together and won't come apart without cutting them out.

 

Stickshift, sorry, I was on the mobile site. The full site had the info you mentioned.

Does anyone know what I can use to get the rest of the PVC pieces apart? They aren't as easy as the other pieces. I'm worried that using a pipe wrench will tear up the pieces.

The pieces I already removed had no mortar, but I figured it was past the Y with the washing machine since that is backing up.

 

Thanks, Carbide. A guy at work told me it was sealant and it shouldn't be a problem to take it apart. Should I just grab a hacksaw to cut it? Or should I be able to clean it out from where I am. I don't have a snake. Anyone have any home inventions with wire hangers?

 

Never mind. I broke the PVC trying to unscrew it. There's nothing at the surface that suggests a blockage. I'm going to test it out by emptying the washer directly into the floor. We will see how the flow is and whether it needs professional snaking.

 

Just make sure you have room to glue pieces back on if you cut it. As for the mortar, I'm guessing if you don't see traces you may have to hire a pro with a camera snake to further assess the damage. If it's to bad it may need cut out. Don't use a hanger or anything like that as you may lose it down the drain.

 

I have found that most of the blockage will occur in traps more than straight runs, although it can happen. I agree with having a plumber run a camera through it all to see where it is. Working on a commercial site at our local college, all the tile guys rinsed their thinset and grout buckets in the tubs of 56 dorm rooms. After the sheetrock ceilings were finished.....oops.......many of the drains were clogged solid. We had a contractors meeting one morning and the GC showed us cross sections of the traps. The tile guys wanted to hide, but couldn't. Imagine the chargeback on that

 

If that was mine I'd be cutting off elbow where it connects to the sink drain and replacing with one like this.
https://www.google.com/search?q=sani...F6hFVDpecSM%3A
Add a male drain adapter on the left where your sink drain connects and a slip to threaded adapter with a pipe plug so would would have a clean out, and get rid of that 90 that should not have been there in the first place.