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Thread: Help with clogged kitchen sink

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    Default Help with clogged kitchen sink

    Hey guys, so over the summer my parents got their kitchen redone in an older home. During the freezing cold temps last week my mom tells me their sink is clogged and has no idea why. I tried plunging it but that didn't work. I took the p trap out and it wasn't clogged there either. It's a double sink and I checked to make sure everything up to the p trap isn't clogged. Apparently my dad tried to feed a snake through but I'm not sure how far he got. The house is a bungalow, all the other drains and toilets in the house work as well as all the water supply lines.

    Yesterday i took out the dishwasher to see if there was another section of pipe I could remove to check if the clog was there but the pvc pipe and sections/bends seem to be welded together.

    My mom seems to be convinced the drain pipe is frozen. It's never happened in the house before and I'm pretty sure the contractors that redid the kitchen didn't mess with the piping other than add the new sink and p trap in. Is there any way to test if it indeed is frozen and not just clogged somewhere deeper down the line? If it is frozen what can they do besides wait for summer?

    Thanks in advance guys. Any help is greatly appreciated

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    Are you sure everything else is good? Usually it all comes out at the lowest point... which would probably be a floor drain or basement shower... all those drains dry?

    I had a weird thing with my house where the kitchen sink was fully backed up, on the main floor... basement washroom looked fine, till I ran a bunch of water down there, then the shower backed up. still not sure HOW the sink upstairs wasn’t draining into the basement... but yeah, was my main line... fed like 150ft down it from the main cleanout in the basement before I cleared it

    Other option could possibly be the vent? Would explain why it’s only that sink... if it’s a bungalow chances are good that your vent would only service that one sink... all this snow, and cold would ice it up pretty good if it was covered

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    We had a backed up kitchen sink a few years ago in our older bungalow, couldn't figure it out but the saving grace was that the 95% of the sewer pipes in our home are copper (except for the rebuilt bathroom downstairs). Being copper allowed me to figure out where the blockage was by tapping the pipes with a hammer and soon enough I found a section where it rang loudly (clear pipe). Of course it was at an elbow and my snake wasn't long enough to reach that elbow. Now because everything was copper, I knew that taking apart the joint and redoing it would be a pain in the ass so my made up solution was to drill into the elbow to let it drain, clear the clog and then repair the drilled hole. Amazingly this worked like a charm although I did get sprayed with some debris - the patch, a piece of 1/2" copper tubing, cut, bent to shape and sweated back on to the elbow.

    Anyhow, if the sewer pipes are accessible, tap them to see if you hear any sound differences. Our clog - fish bones because someone had the brilliant idea to put them down the garburator and for some unknown reason, all the fish bones accumulated right at the affected elbow.
    Will fuck off, again.

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    Quote Originally Posted by ercchry View Post
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    Other option could possibly be the vent? Would explain why it’s only that sink... if it’s a bungalow chances are good that your vent would only service that one sink... all this snow, and cold would ice it up pretty good if it was covered
    This was going to be my guess as well. I know on our bungelow, the kitchen sink vent is the closest and highest vent attached to the main stack, so would likely be the first to get frozen and then air locked.

    Could also be a combination of clogged drain, then it started draining out the vent, which froze.

    It's also possible the reno guys removed the vent altogether. Take a photo of what's under the sink OP.
    Last edited by Tik-Tok; 01-05-2018 at 10:25 AM.

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    I had a vent clog as well at my rental which caused a similar symptom, most likely caused by tree debris and other shit over many years. I snaked the entire system from the roof and it fixed the problem.
    I like neat cars.

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    Is the vent pvc pipe as well? I'm not familiar with plumbing but when I did move the dishwasher, the pvc from the sink joins a pvc pipe that goes up and down. I'm assuming the down part is to the main drain but I couldn't figure out why the pvc went upwards too since it's a bungalow

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    Quote Originally Posted by 90_Shelby View Post
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    I had a vent clog as well at my rental which caused a similar symptom, most likely caused by tree debris and other shit over many years. I snaked the entire system from the roof and it fixed the problem.
    I was thinking this as well, clogged vents could be an issue.

    End of the day, may need to get a plumber with a proper roto-rooter in there.

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    Quote Originally Posted by JC522 View Post
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    Is the vent pvc pipe as well? I'm not familiar with plumbing but when I did move the dishwasher, the pvc from the sink joins a pvc pipe that goes up and down. I'm assuming the down part is to the main drain but I couldn't figure out why the pvc went upwards too since it's a bungalow
    Yes, the main stack (vertical section) should start on your roof as a vent, and continue down to the basement and eventually connect to the mainline

    If you get on the roof, see if it’s frozen, try some hot water down it... if it’s not frozen, but you suspect a block... run a snake down it... you can rent larger ones at Home Depot too, if you only have a little one

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    I'd try what Ercchry said.

    Could be an ice dam over top of it or it could also be an animal has made a nest over the opening. It'll be warm air coming out of it so that is why.

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    Try using Drano first. I didn't believe it but one day my sink was clogged (think it was carrot shavings). 30 mins and it was running good as new.
    If the Drano doesn't work then you can steer more towards the frozen theory

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    He plungered. If done correctly, that would push anything soft down the line.
    When you plungered, you filled sink with hot water, plugged the secondary sink and filled that with water too (if you have one) and plungered on the primary?

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    Quote Originally Posted by Asian_defender View Post
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    Try using Drano first. I didn't believe it but one day my sink was clogged (think it was carrot shavings). 30 mins and it was running good as new.
    If the Drano doesn't work then you can steer more towards the frozen theory

    NO!!!!!!!! Fucking hell!

    That shit is terrible, and see what the plumber says when he shows up to clear it properly after you tell him you just used a jug of that garbage

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    You can totally cover a vent, and the sink will drain.

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    The line is plugged and it’s not weather related. My bungalow has very little slope across the house and the garborator occasionally plugs it. Normally I can free it up by shaking the line downstairs.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Darell_n View Post
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    The line is plugged
    Yep. That simple.

    Anyway, there's obviously a lot of misconception to the function of a drain vent. The purpose of the vent is to equalize pressure so the trap doesn't siphon out and allow sewer gasses to enter the home. Without a vent, the liquid will drain, albeit a little slower, and also drain the trap which will allow sewer gass to vent into the home.

    Last edited by Seth1968; 01-07-2018 at 10:17 AM.

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    Quote Originally Posted by mr2mike View Post
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    He plungered. If done correctly, that would push anything soft down the line.
    When you plungered, you filled sink with hot water, plugged the secondary sink and filled that with water too (if you have one) and plungered on the primary?
    The only way to seal the secondary for plunging, would be another person holding down the secondary plug.

    With that said, you might have just found the plunging inefficiency that I missed. That is, the OP saying that it was a dual sink, and no mention of the other half being sealed for the plunging to work.
    Last edited by Seth1968; 01-06-2018 at 04:17 PM.

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    Hey guys,

    When I plunged it I had both sinks filled with water and had my mom hold down the drain plug on the secondary sink while i plunged the main. Although I did try plunging it first without sealing the second sink and just noticed me pushing air into the second sink.

    I'm afraid of heights so I didn't climb up on their roof to check if the vent is clogged. I talked to my dad about how far he got the snake and he said pretty far, well enough into the basement. Still not solved but getting close to calling a plumber

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    Checked the drainage pipe from the sink in the basement if basement is not developed and find the access port and remove and snake it usually plugs at the bends with grease and sludge. When removing the the square access cap or snaking the pipe water may shoot out ( due sink and lines still holding the water) and smells terrible and extremely dirty so be prepared.

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    Your Mom must be very, very, very patient bcause I'd be sleeping in the dog house if a clogged sink were to exist more than 24 hours in our home.
    Will fuck off, again.

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    Quote Originally Posted by JC522 View Post
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    I'm afraid of heights so I didn't climb up on their roof to check if the vent is clogged. I talked to my dad about how far he got the snake and he said pretty far, well enough into the basement. Still not solved but getting close to calling a plumber
    With this weather, it's definitely no longer an ice issue anyways.

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