tedpenn
New Member
Hi,
I have a house built in '63 with old cast iron pipes. The kitchen drain line (covers sink w/ disposal and dishwasher) stops up about once a quarter, resulting in many, many plumber visits since 2006. Additionally, I have a mysterious, intermittent, sewage leak directly below the kitchen in the basement, which seemingly comes from ground level, underneath the baseboard, near where the chase for the vertical drain pipe runs.
Of all the plumbers I've had come snake the sink and try to diagnose the problem in the basement, none have been able to give me a definitive answer on where the problem is. They all want to just start replacing pipes (which I'm sure is where we're headed eventually), but they all have a different idea about how MUCH pipe to replace, and HOW to replace them (replace what's in the chase, vs. run new pipe in a new chase, vs. run new pipe outside), etc.
Here's where things get tricky: My drain pipes run across my yard, right by a tree, and then down a rocky hill and across a field about 400 feet before joining the sewer main. My problems could be due to old cast iron pipes crumbling, build up inside them, root encroachment (the snakes have pulled back what looks like tiny roots in the past), or some other problem I'm not even aware of yet. Before I go to the expense (and huge inconvenience) of busting open walls, digging up my yard, and replacing sections of pipe, I want to be absolutely positive where the problem is.
Here are the questions I have:
1. As far as I know, a video snake inspection is the only way to be sure where the problem is. Is that even possible with my old cast iron pipes which may be blocked or crumbling? Is there another method that would reveal where the problem is for sure?
2. My pipes are PVC in the kitchen, which joins a cast iron vertical section going downstairs, and then (I think) over horizontally in the concrete slab or right outside in the ground, then away from the house down into the field. If I start replacing pipes, what is the best way to do so? Replace what's there in the existing chase and slab/ground? Leave the old ones and box in the new pipes in new chases? Run them outside the house?
3.How screwed am I given the age of the pipes and that they're cast iron or clay (the pipes outside may convert to clay at some point; I'm not sure.)? Am I looking at eventually replacing ALL of the pipes all the way to the mains? If so, I'm assuming I'd have to install a new trench with new pipes, and somehow get down the eroding rocky hill (a small section of the old pipes is already exposed out there due to erosion). I assume doing all that would be very expensive and involve tearing up the yard to the point where I might have to rethink/re-landscape the back yard and hill.
Any advice you can offer is greatly appreciated. I hope I've explained clearly; let me know if pictures would help clarify. Thanks!
Ted
I have a house built in '63 with old cast iron pipes. The kitchen drain line (covers sink w/ disposal and dishwasher) stops up about once a quarter, resulting in many, many plumber visits since 2006. Additionally, I have a mysterious, intermittent, sewage leak directly below the kitchen in the basement, which seemingly comes from ground level, underneath the baseboard, near where the chase for the vertical drain pipe runs.
Of all the plumbers I've had come snake the sink and try to diagnose the problem in the basement, none have been able to give me a definitive answer on where the problem is. They all want to just start replacing pipes (which I'm sure is where we're headed eventually), but they all have a different idea about how MUCH pipe to replace, and HOW to replace them (replace what's in the chase, vs. run new pipe in a new chase, vs. run new pipe outside), etc.
Here's where things get tricky: My drain pipes run across my yard, right by a tree, and then down a rocky hill and across a field about 400 feet before joining the sewer main. My problems could be due to old cast iron pipes crumbling, build up inside them, root encroachment (the snakes have pulled back what looks like tiny roots in the past), or some other problem I'm not even aware of yet. Before I go to the expense (and huge inconvenience) of busting open walls, digging up my yard, and replacing sections of pipe, I want to be absolutely positive where the problem is.
Here are the questions I have:
1. As far as I know, a video snake inspection is the only way to be sure where the problem is. Is that even possible with my old cast iron pipes which may be blocked or crumbling? Is there another method that would reveal where the problem is for sure?
2. My pipes are PVC in the kitchen, which joins a cast iron vertical section going downstairs, and then (I think) over horizontally in the concrete slab or right outside in the ground, then away from the house down into the field. If I start replacing pipes, what is the best way to do so? Replace what's there in the existing chase and slab/ground? Leave the old ones and box in the new pipes in new chases? Run them outside the house?
3.How screwed am I given the age of the pipes and that they're cast iron or clay (the pipes outside may convert to clay at some point; I'm not sure.)? Am I looking at eventually replacing ALL of the pipes all the way to the mains? If so, I'm assuming I'd have to install a new trench with new pipes, and somehow get down the eroding rocky hill (a small section of the old pipes is already exposed out there due to erosion). I assume doing all that would be very expensive and involve tearing up the yard to the point where I might have to rethink/re-landscape the back yard and hill.
Any advice you can offer is greatly appreciated. I hope I've explained clearly; let me know if pictures would help clarify. Thanks!
Ted
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