[Shop-talk] Soil stack venting issue

[Jim Franklin]

I would have bet a case of beer the boiling water wouldn't work, because it would be too cool before it reached the grease attached to a giant cast iron tee, and also it wouldn't get splashed onto enough grease to melt it. However, a few gallons of hot sink water followed by a gallon of boiling water, all while plunging furiously, did absolutely nothing at first, but then a few hours later there was no gurgling from the tub and it's been silent for a few days. 

I'll get some of that bacteria/enzyme stuff as preventative maintenance. 

The scope sounds like a great idea but the only access I have is from the roof and it's about 12 feet from vent to to sink entry point. If there's a dry day I'll drop a rock on a string down there and see what happens. 

Thanks all!

jim

> On Dec 7, 2020, at 8:53 AM, Jimmie Mayfield <mayfield+shoptalk at sackheads.org> wrote:
> 
> If it's grease build-up, you might try periodically pouring a gallon or two of boiling water down the kitchen sink.
> 
> You might consider buying one of those cheap USB endoscopes from Amazon or Ebay.  I bought one for about $15 on Prime Day a couple years ago.  The camera quality is pretty bad but they're pretty long...mine is about 15 feet.  You could snake it down your kitchen drain clean-out and see for yourself what's going on inside your pipes.
> 
> 
> On 12/7/20 08:25, Jim Franklin wrote:
>> Maybe some of you have an innovative solution...
>> 
>> My house has a single cast iron soil stack that does both drain and vent. When I flush the toilet, it sucks air from the tub drain. The toilet and tub enter the stack separately, but at the same height, using an oddly specific T with a 4" toilet and a 2" tub inlet about 45 degrees apart. The tub does not have its own vent. 2 years ago I had a plumber snake the vent from the roof, he found "stuff", and it was fixed. Last week it started again.
>> 
>> My kitchen sink T's into the stack at knee height, so it's the highest item on the stack. My thought is, because it's a straight T, not a sanitary T, stuff from the sink is solidifying inside the T when the flow hits the back of the T, and eventually forming a cap of "stuff" just above the T entry, sealing off any venting. I can't tell if the sink is also being used as the toilet's vent because there are too many walls in the way to hear what's happening.
>> 
>> My other thought is that the "stuff" is growing like a mold, and sealing it off. Does stuff grow in drains?
>> 
>> Any thoughts on what it might be, and how to prevent it? I rarely put oils down the drain, and when I do they are cold and mixed with Dawn to emulsify it. There isn't enough canopy for leaves or squirrels to get in the roof vent.
>> 
>> thanks,
>> jim
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