I acidentally hosed down the water heater's vent on the roof...

[woodsperson]

initially, my toilet's water level was low so i figure I'd go up to the roof and hose down the plumbing vent....buuuut, I hosed down the wrong vent. I hit the vent for the gas water heater in the garage...completely soaking it. and now there's no hot water. Is this something I can fix with letting it dry and re lighting the pilot light or is this a really dangerous situation? Should I just get a new water heater?

And yeah I realize this was such a dumb mistake

 

[Mr_David]

Is it a sealed combustion chamber, meaning that the only means to look inside the combustion area is to look through a small glass view port.
Or is it open where you can stick a match in to light the pilot.
You may have some serious issues if it is a sealed chamber.
If it's and open chamber it will probably me okay just to let it dry out.
If it is a standard water heater with a standing pilot and no electronic controls, blowers or electrical components that may have gotten damaged.
Have a professional inspect it just to make sure

 

[Matt30]

Toilet water level is low...hose down the vent? What?

 

[havasu]

Toilet water level is low...hose down the vent? What?

Yeah, I was also scratching my head on that one.

 

[frodo]

I think you need a time out!!. dont get upset,its joke!!!!

i'm laughing here, please explain what you were trying to do?

 

[woodsperson]

David, It is a sealed combustion chamber :/

For those wondering wtf I was trying to do...

[ame]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=q1uqqBnx0-Q[/ame]

 

[frodo]

I love you tube, you have guys making videos that do not know there hat from a tire.

look at the above picture. most clogs, are below the floor
in the horziontal drain line, or, in that Y-fitting that the picture shows.

if you fill the pipe with water, it will fill the sink up with water and flood your home.

"btw, that y-fitting is illegal,needs to be a san tee, for the sink drain. it is legal for the upstairs waste line,"

just to show you, you cant trust the internet,

a hose is for washing cars, get a snake from plumbing supply

 

[havasu]

I remember as a small child, my dad would always go up on the roof with a garden hose doing the same exact thing. I also remember that about 1/2 hour after he came down from the roof, a plumber's truck would be in our driveway... and this was many years before YouTube began.

 

[woodsperson]

Why is that video full of people saying that method works? And other sites?

http://homeguides.sfgate.com/clean-plumbing-vent-pipes-20748.html

Yeah I'm still an idiot for hosing down an an entirely different vent, but is this vent method Something that's never really done amongst respectable plumbers? My uncle swears by it, but then again he's not a plumber

 

[phishfood]

You can take it from the expert plumbers here, or you can take it from those who don't spend their working lives diagnosing and fixing plumbing problems. If you have a health concern, would you trust a video made by a plumber, or a website full of doctors?

Vents being the cause of drainage problems is exceedingly rare. In fact, a trap on a fixture does not need a vent to drain. The vent is there to prevent the trap from being siphoned or expelled. What the guy in your first video was experiencing was a classic case of a clogged main drain. He will be experiencing problems again.

 

[Mr_David]

My dad used to clean the kitchen drain like that through a cleanout on outside wall just below the kitchen sink.. Had a customer do the same thing once and got the head of the hose jammed in the pipe and could not get it out.. The guy in the Video just got lucky.

Who remembers those blow bags?? Those will make a big mess. I have never used one but I have seen the after math of someone who did!!

WOW The Big Orange Box store still sells them.

 

[Mr_David]

If it's on YouTube it must be legit.

How to unclog a Toilet

Click on me >

 

[Matt30]

I have one of those blow bags....or poor mans jetter as I call it.

Used it a few times with success to clear a plug in places a couldn't use a cable snake. Not without making a god awful mess though.

 

[frodo]

the blow bags are helpful to locate a sewer if not to deep. shove down the pipe and listen for that chatter