Tub & Toilet Drain Mixing, Leaking

[Danny Yoerges]

I recently discovered sewage in the P trap beneath my tub.


The tub drain line connects to the main sewer at a junction just beneath the toilet before the sewer line drops to its lowest point and passes out of the house.

If there's sewage in the tub P trap, I suspect that means there's a backup in the main sewer line (though to be clear, sewage has never come up into the tub or under/around the toilets or sinks). I know for a fact there are roots in an old unused toilet drain line that connects to the main sewer line, and this may be the cause for this backup.

Lastly, the reason I was checking the P trap in the first place was because the tub drain seems to be leaking into the basement when I stop the drain to fill the bathtub. This does not appear to be happening at the P trap, that's just the first place I checked. The source of the leak might be the nut below the tub basin (pictured). Strangely it doesn't leak when we take showers or simply run the water without filling the tub, but only when the drain plug is engaged.

I'm having trouble attaching a video. I'll try it in a response post on this thread.

 

[Danny Yoerges]

Here's the video. I had to drop the resolution down to 480p. Hopefully it's still legible.

 

[CT18]

That heel outlet for the toilet is not legal. You are getting sewage from that direction. The roots are causing the toilet flush to back up and is pushing into heel outlet, would be my guess from the pictures.

 

[TomFOhio]

You might want to get your drains cleaned out professionally. Its backed up sometime or another in order to get
sewer in the p-trap of the tub. Also I would change that tubular p-trap to a 1 1/2" tub trap with a union.