Any plumbers posting here?

greenspun.com : LUSENET : TimeBomb 2000 (Y2000) Preparation Forum : One Thread

We live in a small town. The city has gotten generators to help with the sewer if there is a power outage. But, they also stated that if residents run a small stream of water so pipes don't freeze, we could run into problems. In our basement, we have one toilet, one shower, one main drain and stainless utility tubs. Question is, what do we install to prevent sewer back-up? Appreciate any good help on this. Karen

-- Karen (barbinst@wcta.net), July 22, 1999

Answers

Hi Karen,

I'm not a plumber, nor do I play one on the net. I have seen info out on previous threads about something that can be installed, called maybe a flow-check valve. I'm sure some people will post here with additional info about what they are, what they do and so forth. If not, though, put a call into your local hardware store or plumber or even the city sanitation dept

Do you have back-up (no pun intended) plans for water/sanitation should the city's generators fail or are re-assigned or ... ? I'm guessing the generator is only at the sewage plant or lift station and not to keep water services on-line as well, though I could be wrong. (I'm trying to work through these things right now, too, only I don't have to worry about any help from a municipality...)

One other thought about your city's concerns about people running a small stream of water to keep pipes from freezing-- if the city needs to run the generator due to a power outage, then people in homes won't have power to keep their water trickling (I think). Of course, that doesn't negate other problems leading to sewage back-up (just look at CA).

Somewhat scattered thoughts,

-- winter wondering (winterwondering@yahoo.com), July 22, 1999.


Here's what we are doing: We are getting something called "flood guards" which fit into the drains, and when the screws are tightened water can go down but nothing can come up (a little plug seals it). For our shower we will take off the grill over the drain, put rags in, cover with plastic, and screw the grill on again. For the toilet we will stuff an old rag in as tight as we can and pray! Fortunately the lay of the land goes downhill slightly from us, so gravity may be on our side. Any plumbing mart can sell you the flood guards. Too much to think about isn't it? I'm numb almost all the time. Driving my family crazy. Good luck.

-- citygirl (citygirl@idirect.com), July 22, 1999.

My husband happens to be a plumber, so here is what he has to say. You can buy something called a plumber's test plug at your local plumbing supply/lumber/hardware store. You can insert this plug & inflate it (use bicycle pump) and it will block off sewage back-up into the house. When/if things return to normal, simply remove the plug. The plug is inserted in the clean-out, which is located where the waste pipe exits the building. There should be a Y--the waste pipe goes into one arm of the Y, and the other arm should have a plug. Remove this plug and put the test plug in far enough to block off the Y and inflate. If there is no clean-out, you can cut your pipe. If the pipe is plastic, cut it at the point after all plumbing appliances are connected. Then put a rubber cap on. When/if things return to normal use something called a fernco (sp?) as a coupling to reconnect the pipe portions.Materials available at plumbing supply store (probably advice, too!) More complicated I guess if you have to cut into metal, but can be done as well. From Deb, happy to be able to offer some help.....

-- Deb (deb@need.help.com), July 22, 1999.

PS Citygirl--please don't rely on that rag for the toilet! You can disconnect the water supply to the toilet, undo the two bolts that bolt it to the floor, and put your drain guard right into the pipe! My husband wasn't too sure about the drain guards working--do they have some kind of check valve that allows water down but not up? His experience is with the test plugs in prior post of mine--you might want to give it a try. Good luck!

-- Deb (deb@needhelp.com), July 22, 1999.

Hi Deb - These flood guards go in permanently. You tighten the screws which expands the rubber to a tight fit around. The centre allows water to drain down into the pipe. But if water comes up from the pipe it pushes up a plug device that seals it off. Apparently these were used in the hundreds during the floods out west and are pretty reliable. I know the rag isn't good enough for the toilet, but I thought it would be so hard to disconnect. Perhaps I should get an extra guard for the toilet too as sewage is one thing I definitely do NOT want to deal with.

Regards

-- citygirl (citygirl@idirect.com), July 22, 1999.



hey, citygirl! Should be fairly easy to remove the toilet, just need a wrench and a little muscle, I actually went upstairs (sans husband) & managed to get ours half-done (as an experiment) so probably you could too. thanks for the info on the drain guards, I like the idea! Regards,

-- Deb (deb@needhelp.com), July 23, 1999.

Buy a few bicycle inner tubes and stick them in your drains and pump up and then pray!

-- freddie (freddie@thefreeloader.com), July 23, 1999.

Owned a plumbing and excavating business for some years.

Back flow prevention device is the surest means to prevent flooding and not cause pluging of sanitary sewer lines in your house.

It is installed at or near the foundation wall just before your line exits. The fitting must be cut into you existing line. It will act similar to a air matress valve, in that the flow is controlled to a single direction by a flap.

Forget about plugs, tubes, rags, etc. The laws of hydraulics will quickly overcome these plugs. They are meant for testing not prevention.

I had not heard of the above mentioned flow guards, but they sound similar to back flow devices, except for the hole in the middle. This sounds to me like a possible clogging problem in an extended use situation, but I have not seen one. I'm sure it would be difficult for normal tissues etc to pass freely through a small hole for very long. Maybe there is more to it than I can visulize from the description. Worth checking out, but I know for certain the flapper devices have been around for many many years.

Respectfully: Michael

PS. Fernco is the proper term for the repair bands also called Caulder couplings. Akin to wide rubber bandaids the prevent leaking of effulents at connections of concrete, plastic, or metal pipes.

-- Michael (mikeymac@uswest.net), July 25, 1999.


Oh yea, You might as well consider the "praying" part anyway.

Respects

-- Michael (mikeymac@uswest.net), July 25, 1999.


Moderation questions? read the FAQ