# Solved: Tub drain issues



## ckphilli (Apr 29, 2006)

Hi all,

I have a problem that I'm afraid will cost me money. I wanted to get your opinion before I call someone.

The facts:
1) Tub drains very slowly. ex. when you take a shower water is up to your ankles by the end of it.
2) Everything else in the house drains fine.
3) The tub plug is MIA. The chain or rod that connects to the handle simply isn't there.
4) All I have is a toilet snake. It goes about 4 feet and pulled out some hair, but that's it.
5) I've plunged and done Drano.
6) I don't have any trees and can't see how a root from another yard would clog just the tub drain.

Any ideas? I could go get a longer snake, but it may be a waste- don't know that's why I'm posting.

Anyway, thanks for any help-

Chris


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## mtzlplex (Aug 5, 2002)

I just had almost the exact problem, I also have no plug, no chain or rod, and no handle. I also had very slow draining like you, up to your ankles or higher by the end of a shower. I too had tried plunging with a drain plunger, and drain cleaner, both of which did not work. This may, or may not work for you. It did for me. I purchased a product called "Air Force"(might have a different name in various stores), it is compressed air in a can, and has a few attachments with it for use with various drain types. Pretty sure I bought this at Kroger/Wal-Mart, or it might have even been at Marsh, or Ace Hardware, and I believe it was located in the area where the drain cleaners are, but you might have to ask. I am sure it was less than $10.00. What I had to do was plug up the sinks in the house, and put some water in them so they seal good, then I took some wet rags, and stuck them in the vents in the bathroom sink and in the bathtub. Look around, anything that looks like a vent hole on the tub or sink is what you want to put the rags in. This is important, what this does is sort of keep the compressed air you are going to be shooting into the bathtub drain from escaping out the vents so it can force the clog out. Then I put about 8 inches of water into the tub, placed the can of compressed air on the drain, push down on it, and the compressed air is released into the drain. Now I had to release the compressed air 6, or 7 times into the drain, you may have to do it more, but eventually my drain responded. Like I said, this worked for me, might not for you if you have severe problem, or one that is more than a clog, but for $10.00 it was the cheapest solution for me at the time. Good luck, I know how it feels, especially when you have tried several things, and nothing has worked, and as we all know calling a plumber at their hourly rates is last on the list if we can help it.


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## ckphilli (Apr 29, 2006)

IMP49 said:


> I just had almost the exact problem, I also have no plug, no chain or rod, and no handle. I also had very slow draining like you, up to your ankles or higher by the end of a shower. I too had tried plunging with a drain plunger, and drain cleaner, both of which did not work. This may, or may not work for you. It did for me. I purchased a product called "Air Force"(might have a different name in various stores), it is compressed air in a can, and has a few attachments with it for use with various drain types. Pretty sure I bought this at Kroger/Wal-Mart, or it might have even been at Marsh, or Ace Hardware, and I believe it was located in the area where the drain cleaners are, but you might have to ask. I am sure it was less than $10.00. What I had to do was plug up the sinks in the house, and put some water in them so they seal good, then I took some wet rags, and stuck them in the vents in the bathroom sink and in the bathtub. Look around, anything that looks like a vent hole on the tub or sink is what you want to put the rags in. This is important, what this does is sort of keep the compressed air you are going to be shooting into the bathtub drain from escaping out the vents so it can force the clog out. Then I put about 8 inches of water into the tub, placed the can of compressed air on the drain, push down on it, and the compressed air is released into the drain. Now I had to release the compressed air 6, or 7 times into the drain, you may have to do it more, but eventually my drain responded. Like I said, this worked for me, might not for you if you have severe problem, or one that is more than a clog, but for $10.00 it was the cheapest solution for me at the time. Good luck, I know how it feels, especially when you have tried several things, and nothing has worked, and as we all know calling a plumber at their hourly rates is last on the list if we can help it.


Thanks for the response. I saw something at Lowe's that seemed like it was what you were talking about. It's definitely worth a shot and I appreciate the detailed directions. I think I'm going to get what you said and I also saw a water flushing bladder that was around the same price. The way I see it...it's worth 20 bucks rather than the amount the plumber would charge- thanks again-


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## wacor (Feb 22, 2005)

Is this a bath tub or a shower? Just to be sure

Did you take the cover off of the drain? Lots of times hair gets caught in the drain and you need a pair of forceps or needle nose pliers to get it out. Draino IMO does not work much on hair if that is the problem.

One thing I did was to force water down the drain. I stuck a hose down the drain and plugged around the hose with a small towel. Then put a towel over the vent. In my case I had somebody turn the hose on and I crimped it first. then would open up the crimp. *NOTE: This can be a little dicey if your drain lines are weak as you are putting pressure on drain piping which is not rated for pressure. So don't complain if your drain pipe has a leak afterward. I was not concerned as I assumed the pluggage was near the drain opening. If the plug is down the line then you have a concern.

*Are you able to follow the piping to see where it tees off??


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## ckphilli (Apr 29, 2006)

Hi Bill,

First, it is a bathtub.

Second, I took off the piece behind the tub and made sure I could get to the tub drain, no problems.

I can't follow the drain, it's all under concrete. I'll try the water thing, but if it doesn't work first or second shot, I'll quit. I know whatever is in there is over 4 ft. because that's as far as I snaked. I have a sneaking suspicion the chain and plug slipped down there and got lodged. 

Thanks for the help-

Chris


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## hewee (Oct 26, 2001)

Where I used to live the toilet would have a hard time flushing or flush very slow. Did have a broken line outside where the tree roots got to it but that was fixed. But it still acted up now and then and what worked for us that may or may not work for you was taking a water hose up on the roof and putting the hose down the air vent pipes to clean them out. It's easy to wash down anything that is in the air vent pipe and it will go right into the drain and get washed away. I think it was the birds that were getting in there and trying to build a nest that was the trouble we had.


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## wacor (Feb 22, 2005)

ckphilli said:


> Hi Bill,
> 
> First, it is a bathtub.
> 
> ...


I am not sure I would try that in your case. If you blow a line apart it would be a disaster being under concrete. Hate to say it but I would call in a pro. You could cost yourself some serious cash if that line gets ruptured under concrete..


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## ckphilli (Apr 29, 2006)

wacor said:


> I am not sure I would try that in your case. If you blow a line apart it would be a disaster being under concrete. Hate to say it but I would call in a pro. You could cost yourself some serious cash if that line gets ruptured under concrete..


Sounds like solid advice. Whatever is down there doesn't seem too quick to move. I'm going to give it a couple of weeks to work itself out then I'll call a darn plumber

At least with this problem it isn't urgent you know? Like when the a/c goes out or the toilet goes on the fritz. We can deal with a slow drain for a little while.


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## ckphilli (Apr 29, 2006)

hewee said:


> Where I used to live the toilet would have a hard time flushing or flush very slow. Did have a broken line outside where the tree roots got to it but that was fixed. But it still acted up now and then and what worked for us that may or may not work for you was taking a water hose up on the roof and putting the hose down the air vent pipes to clean them out. It's easy to wash down anything that is in the air vent pipe and it will go right into the drain and get washed away. I think it was the birds that were getting in there and trying to build a nest that was the trouble we had.


Thanks for the suggestion Hewee, but I think I have something solid in the line. At this point I'm hoping it just gradually floats out. I really wish I had a crawl space under this house, then I could take care of it myself. Oh well, plumbers need to eat too.


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## wacor (Feb 22, 2005)

why not see if one of the rental places have regular snakes. if you only went 4' and it is further on it might be just a matter of you not getting far enough. if you hit a hard obstruction and think it is the plug or the chain then you could try putting a magnet on the end of the snake. doubt it would work if it is lodged but maybe you can get into it with the snake. just be careful what ever you do to not get the snake stuck down the pipe or you will have a very expensive fix. 

and if you hire a plumber make sure you don't get a rookie. you need somebody seasoned who won't go in there like a bull in a china shop

Good luck


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## iltos (Jun 13, 2004)

you might consider just buying a 15' hand snake
you said you pulled out a clump of hair with a short one, but it doesn't sound like it helped at all...double check (a very subjective thing to do)....did it help a little?

if it seems to have helped even a tiny bit, you're probably at the back end of the blockage....and a simple hand snake may be all you need.....most tub blockages are hair and sludgy soap, etc, that just form a big mat of junk in the drain, usually just passed the trap, where the small tub drain t's into the larger house drain.


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## DotHQ (May 6, 2008)

Normally a tub drain will tie into a toilet drain as soon as possible. So 4ft might be right where the two do tie together. 
I agree with the others that said to be careful, but I've heard good results from those using water or air pressure to clear stubborn drain clogs. That drano gel has done a good job for me. How long do you leave the drano in the line? Do you know if you are dealing with plastic or metal drains? Hopefully plastic!!!!


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## wacor (Feb 22, 2005)

I would guess a really professional plumber would take it gently at first on this due to the slab condition. if one did not easily get thru an obstruction then I would think a camera might be in order to see if that chain and plug is visible. you pay a premium of somebody having a camera but one also could spend thousands tearing up the concrete and restoring everything if the sewer line is damaged.


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## ckphilli (Apr 29, 2006)

Hey thanks for all the info guys. I'm not giving up yet. 

I'm almost certain I'm dealing with metal. This house is old. I'm going to try to snake it with a longer snake even though I'm pretty snake challenged. Don't know what it is, I'm good with my hands but a snake will take me to the cleaners. For instance...I thought I'd be crafty and get the 20 dollar drill powered snake from Lowe's, snapped it in two. I'm pretty sure it was operator error. even though I blamed it on cheap equipment

But seriously, what's the deal? Anybody good with these things? Aren't you supposed to just push it in and twist so that it finds its way through the pipe?


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## hewee (Oct 26, 2001)

Too bad it was not like the Apartment I live in where someone knew how to do things. 
Where most places in the bath you had the sink, toilet and tub plumbing all on the same wall.
This place the tub/show plumb was on the other wall back on the back side of a closet.
You had a big closet by the front door and it was a deep closet too. 
But it had a plywood board that was a good size all screwed on to the wall there so you could take it off to get to all the plumbing and drain. 
Very smart way to do things because you can do it all from the back side and even replace the plumbing without cutting into the wall from the front side. As that place gets older and added work needs to be done how they have it setup will save them a lot of money doing repairs to the tub/shower and walls because they can do it all from the back side.


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## wacor (Feb 22, 2005)

you could try something like this

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=100802-319-LX-83200&lpage=none

I have one like this. never used it. it was my dads and I took it when we cleaned up the place after he died years ago. I am guessing that you can and should twist it gently as you push it into the pipe.

did you have the same thing that was attached to a drill? if so it probably is quite similar and I would suspect that it would be turning as you insert. thus the reason for the drill


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## hewee (Oct 26, 2001)

A plumber will also have other tips to put on a snake and also just the right size for the pipe. After the $20.00 at lowes and what ever other money you already spend maybe calling a plumber to start with would be cheaper.

You can also go to places that you can rent an Power Auger like the plumber uses.


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## wacor (Feb 22, 2005)

hewee said:


> A plumber will also have other tips to put on a snake and also just the right size for the pipe. After the $20.00 at lowes and what ever other money you already spend maybe calling a plumber to start with would be cheaper.
> 
> You can also go to places that you can rent an Power Auger like the plumber uses.


In most cases a power auger would be a good idea but in this case one can not be too aggressive. not a good idea IMO


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## ckphilli (Apr 29, 2006)

Yea Hewee the thought crossed my mind to rent a power auger...but I think I should be proficient with a regular snake first

As far as the money goes...20 dollars for a snake and probably 10 in Drano is all I'm under. I think a plumber would be much more. I'll try a few more gentle, cheap things and hopefully clear it up.

It is pretty frustrating though. I've been doing some serious DIY kitchen remodeling and then the a/c capacitor goes out(200 well spent in LA) but then a day later the drain slowed down again. Such is life


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## ckphilli (Apr 29, 2006)

wacor said:


> you could try something like this
> 
> http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=100802-319-LX-83200&lpage=none
> 
> ...


That looks like the same thing I had...except powered with a drill. Here's how I went about it...

1) Pushed the snake down as far as I could
2) Had my wife give a little trigger on the drill while I kept pressure
3) Un-kinked the snake because it kept twisting up
4) Repeated steps 1-3 about 4 more times
5) Wife got bored, I got irritated and gave the drill a little too much trigger, it snapped

So, the one you pictured may be better for me


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## hewee (Oct 26, 2001)

Well I wish you the best and hope you get it cleared.


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## calvin-c (May 17, 2006)

First thoughts are trying a longer snake & if it's not a plug in the drain then it's likely a plug in the vent tube. Second thought is a possible crimp in the line, which would take a professional & a lot of work.

Happened to a friend of mine with a new house. He checked everything & no joy, hired a 'pro' & still no solution-so he went all the way. Hired a *real* professional who put a remote camera down the line & found that it was crimped where it passed thru the concrete foundation of the house. Believe the repair cost him a couple of thousand but in his case he was able to recover from the builder. Hopefully your problem won't be quite so bad.


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## hewee (Oct 26, 2001)

I worked a house track years ago that has only 3 inch drain lines on the toilet and and even the main drain lines to the street were only 3 inches. Lot of troubles.
But worse was homes that keep having trouble over and over where after many times of trouble they dug up the line at the street to find 2x4 boards that had been there from when the homes were build.


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## iltos (Jun 13, 2004)

ckphilli said:


> Hey thanks for all the info guys. I'm not giving up yet.
> 
> I'm almost certain I'm dealing with metal. This house is old. I'm going to try to snake it with a longer snake even though I'm pretty snake challenged. Don't know what it is, I'm good with my hands but a snake will take me to the cleaners. For instance...I thought I'd be crafty and get the 20 dollar drill powered snake from Lowe's, snapped it in two. I'm pretty sure it was operator error. even though I blamed it on cheap equipment
> 
> But seriously, what's the deal? Anybody good with these things? Aren't you supposed to just push it in and twist so that it finds its way through the pipe?


i don't know if i'm good with 'em, but watching the pros and my own experience has shown me that working a snake takes a little finesse....remember....you can't see what you're actually doing in that pipe....

if you've got a blockage that's severe enough to keep water from finding its way out, just jamming a snake into it can easily lock up the head, while the body keeps spinning.....eventually, it'll snap....

same thing can happen when it runs into a change of direction

a little trial and error and you'll start to notice when you run into resistance....it the snake has cutters (some of the inexpensive ones just have a sort of cone shaped spring at the end), let it work a bit and pull it out -especially if it's not too far downstream.....take a look at what you're up against

depending on the situation, it can be surprisingly touchy-feely


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## valis (Sep 24, 2004)

I think your original assessment of the drain plug going down there would do it. That would not be drill through-able, and would cause the snake to snap as well.

Two things I know to call the pros on; anything having to do with electricity, and any major plumbing issue. To me, yours would qualify as major; to wacor, it's probably just an afternoons work. 

Remind me to tell you about the time my toilet exploded.


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## wacor (Feb 22, 2005)

I used to enjoy such challenges. not any longer. a picture tells a thousand words. in this case it could save thousands of dollars if the wrong action is taken 

anybody interested can have my job. talk about a fubar. nobodys fault just a convergence of the devil from all directions at once. only good thing is the customer is really nice, and really understanding. both which are rarer and rarer these days IMO.


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## valis (Sep 24, 2004)

heck, I'm nice when it comes to things I don't understand. I want it fixed correctly, and hopefully learn something along the way.

Plumbing and electricity, however, I've given up on. Damn near killed myself with electricity, and anytime I try to fix plumbing I end up with a LOT of water everywhere and calling a pro in the end, so I usually just try to eliminate the middle part.


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## wacor (Feb 22, 2005)

electricity is your friend as long as you treat it nice. I hardly ever turn the power off to change plugs. I just don't hold anything with a tight grip. 

i had a guy get japped by an small air compressor one time. only 110 volt but he had a hard time letting go. 

on the other hand we had a guy do something around 40,000 volts back in the 60's. A really sad case as he lived for a month but was severely burned and lost all his limbs. so I have a very healthy respect for it. Today it would put me out of business. Even though it was all his fault and he knew what he was trying was a taboo.

years ago there was an old timer that worked for us who never used a voltage tester. he would lick his fingers and then quickly pinch the end of a wire. even 460 volt. i hear he was quite accurate 

Still what gets me is DC. I can't stand it when I try to test a spark plug to see if it is working. no matter how i try to hold it I get japped. and trying to work on a phone line is fun when there is an incoming call


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## valis (Sep 24, 2004)

ALL of which is why I don't trust electricity. Those and CRT's; came within an eyelash of getting bit by a CRT until coworker who HAD been bit said "Jesus, STOP!"

he then proceeded to show me how much charge those can hold.


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## ckphilli (Apr 29, 2006)

Ok...you guys aren't going to believe this. After I broke the snake, I took a break from the tub. The drain wasn't pressing so I just left it alone. Whatever was down there is gone! I think the plug was down there and either shifted or dislodged and moved to the bigger drain. As soon as I saw progress, I pored another bottle of drano down and voila! It's good!

I consider myself VERY lucky.


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## wacor (Feb 22, 2005)

Nah you probably just had the draino rot thru the drain pipe and it is seeping into the ground


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## valis (Sep 24, 2004)

wacor said:


> Nah you probably just had the draino rot thru the drain pipe and it is seeping into the ground


ever the optimist. 

congrats on the fix.....let's hope it stays that way.


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## wacor (Feb 22, 2005)

valis said:


> ever the optimist.
> 
> congrats on the fix.....let's hope it stays that way.


what can I say 

I was testing you tonite.

are you on your toes??

and draino will rot thru steel pipe if the conditions are right.


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## ckphilli (Apr 29, 2006)

I'll put it like this...I could give two feces how it happened. The tub drained and I don't have any water where it isn't supposed to be. If it hurts in the future, it hurts.

But the Drano was after it started draining faster Wacor...so I shouldn't have to worry...right? right? right?

Hopefully my house doesn't float away because the tub is draining under it

Thanks guys


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## wacor (Feb 22, 2005)

Might be a bit premature to call this thread solved


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## hewee (Oct 26, 2001)

Hope you did get it fixed like you said.


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