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Sorry, I know this must be a common problem but I've run some searches and I'm not getting exactly the answer I'm looking for. Our sink backed up today and I ignorantly used a plunger. The result was that waste water ended up in the dishwasher, which overflowed into the kitchen. (Our drain hose from the dishwasher had been hung with painter's tape instead of a proper bracket, which must have fallen down sometime recently, so there was no longer an air gap.) I used a wet/dry vac to drain the dishwasher and to clear the drain hose, and I've successfully cleared the sink and garbage disposal. I've re-looped the dishwasher's drain hose. However, I'm reluctant to run the dishwasher again until I've confirmed it's draining properly. I tossed a potful of water into the bottom and it's not going anywhere. I read a page on the Bob Vila website that seemed to indicate this is normal after a repair and that running the dishwasher will get everything draining again. That seems really risky to me though! Here's the question: What do you all advise I do to confirm that the dishwasher is draining properly?
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Sep 4, 2020 23:40
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On my dishwasher, if I start and then immediately cancel a run, it will cycle the pump several times. If you can figure out how to do that on your dishwasher, it's an easy way to test. And yeah, dumping water into it won't trigger the pump just like that.
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Sep 5, 2020 00:02
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resting bort face posted:Sorry, I know this must be a common problem but I've run some searches and I'm not getting exactly the answer I'm looking for. Ja; start it up and cancel it, it should drain what's in there.
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Sep 5, 2020 02:42
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Thanks to both of you for confirming that. Things seem to be back to normal!
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Sep 5, 2020 03:27
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I was thinking I would preemptively replace my homes ancient lead drum trap for the bath tub with a PVC trap since I want to replace the tub drain and everything from the tub to the cast iron is lead and soldered together. So towards that end, I was just in the crawlspace taking some measurements and I noticed a very slight wet blister right where the the cast iron bell tapers down to the pipe. What I'm wondering is, what are the chances that the damage is limited to that section of the pipe, and not the entire pipe? The leak is right where I was planning to cut through to use a 2"x1-1/2" fernco coupling. So if the leak was just caused by water getting stuck where the lead meets the cast iron inside the bell, I'd be fine. However, if I cut into it, and during that process something goes terribly wrong, I am probably turbo-hosed and am going to have to call a plumber to probably redo the entire sewer system of my house, which I realize is an inevitability with 70 year old cast iron, but I'd rather put that off to later if possible. Compounding issues is that my house has 1 bathroom, and all the fixtures waste goes through the tee that I would be trying to tie into.  This page makes it sound like some pieces of cast iron just need to be swapped out from time to time until a major failure, at which point you replace. https://8pointshome.com/aging-cast-iron-drain-lines/ SpartanIvy fucked around with this message at 06:35 on Sep 5, 2020 |
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Sep 5, 2020 06:21
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If a bolt came loose from the flange on my toilet I’m just going to have to take the whole drat thing off aren’t I? I tried to work it back in but it every time I think I have it and start to tighten it it slips again.
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Sep 5, 2020 20:03
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Drunkboxer posted:If a bolt came loose from the flange on my toilet I’m just going to have to take the whole drat thing off aren’t I? I tried to work it back in but it every time I think I have it and start to tighten it it slips again. Is your issue just getting the bolt holding the flange down to tighten in the slab? Or the bolt connecting the toilet to the flange?
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Sep 5, 2020 22:50
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tyler posted:Is your issue just getting the bolt holding the flange down to tighten in the slab? Or the bolt connecting the toilet to the flange? Its one of the two bolts on the side that tighten the toilet to the flange. I think the flange broke, I’m just going get a new wax ring and replace it.
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Sep 6, 2020 15:55
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Yep, you're going to have to take that toilet up and find out why the bolt isn't staying put.
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Sep 6, 2020 19:30
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The toilet shut off valve only leaks when I turn it off. When I turn on the water, the leak goes away. What's up with that? I tried tightening it but it doesn't make a difference. Is this something that should be addressed?
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Sep 7, 2020 00:57
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Leaks from where? Out the exit or out the valve stem?
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Sep 7, 2020 01:32
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kid sinister posted:Leaks from where? Out the exit or out the valve stem? The water comes from the valve stem. It's a steady drip, nothing too severe.
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Sep 7, 2020 01:44
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Bioshuffle posted:The toilet shut off valve only leaks when I turn it off. When I turn on the water, the leak goes away. The packing nut needs to be tightened. You usually have to take the handle off of the valve to get to that. It may or may not be a thing you can actually do depending on the valve itself.
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Sep 7, 2020 02:22
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Bioshuffle posted:The water comes from the valve stem. It's a steady drip, nothing too severe. Motronic is right. First try tightening the packing nut. If that doesn't work, you'll need to turn off the main valve (hopefully it still works), take off the packing nut/bonnet, under the handle to unscrew the stem out, then go out and find a new packing washer.
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Sep 7, 2020 02:40
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Every two years, my kitchen sink drain develops a leak, I spend a week trying to chase down my super, he takes it apart and packs it with more putty before putting it back together. We're now on the fourth time. I'm bored of this cycle and I also don't want him in my apartment during coronavirus (we're in Queens). I bought a new drain (and putty) hoping to prevent the same thing from happening again in two years. It looks pretty okay in youtube videos. Any horrific possibilities I should be prepared for? Anne Whateley fucked around with this message at 05:27 on Sep 7, 2020 |
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Sep 7, 2020 05:24
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i like nice words
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Motronic posted:The packing nut needs to be tightened. You usually have to take the handle off of the valve to get to that. It may or may not be a thing you can actually do depending on the valve itself. So basically, I want to remove the handle, then tighten the packing nut, right? Mine looks just like this picture here. 
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Sep 7, 2020 15:39
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Bioshuffle posted:The valve stops leaking when I open it back up. Should I still look into this? Yep, that's how this particular annoying failure/adjustment works. It's your early tell that the valve needs attention and may get a lot worse by the next time you really need to use it. Bioshuffle posted:I wouldn't even have noticed if I didn't have to shut off the valve to install a bidet attachment. I want to plan for the worst case scenario, so I'm going to buy a water main shut off key before I mess with this further. Good plan, just in case. Plus it's useful for other things. Bioshuffle posted:So basically, I want to remove the handle, then tighten the packing nut, right? Mine looks just like this picture here. Yep. And if it looks like that I guess you do'nt even need to remove the handle. Go real gentle, shouldn't need much. Move it a little, see it it stops leaking. If not, try a bit more. Don't force it - as kid sinister said, they can simply go bad as well, in which case you can likely replace the damaged/worn pieces rather than the whole valve. Typically if it's too worn out you snug it up enough to stop leaking but now the valve itself is too stiff to turn. So do make sure you operate the valve after the adjustment to make sure it fully closes and fully opens still. Motronic fucked around with this message at 16:07 on Sep 7, 2020 |
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Sep 7, 2020 16:05
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Bioshuffle posted:I want to plan for the worst case scenario, so I'm going to buy a water main shut off key before I mess with this further. Just be careful with this if you're shutting off the curb stop before the meter. Typically, the city/water co owns that valve. If you break it, you bought it, and may get fines. If you don't have a shutoff upstream of the meter, you may want to have one installed. The water co will turn off the curb stop for you, for a small fee. If they break it, they'll fix it. That said, it's good to have a main key for emergencies. I'll take my chances with breaking the valve if my basement is filling with water.
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Sep 7, 2020 17:04
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Anne Whateley posted:Every two years, my kitchen sink drain develops a leak, I spend a week trying to chase down my super, he takes it apart and packs it with more putty before putting it back together. We're now on the fourth time. I'm bored of this cycle and I also don't want him in my apartment during coronavirus (we're in Queens). Ouch. COVID is kicking NY's rear end. Is this a slip joint drain? Those are pretty straightforward to repair. Just watch yourself cutting off any burrs. I wonder how bad the sewer gas would be in NY?
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Sep 9, 2020 00:43
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I'm getting ready to replace the toilet supply valve, but I noticed the water that's dripping contains some black particles. What could this be? Whatever it was, it was causing water to leak from the toilet tank float cap by breaking the seal with the rubber gasket. Should I call a plumber out? 
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Sep 9, 2020 20:51
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Bioshuffle posted:I'm getting ready to replace the toilet supply valve, but I noticed the water that's dripping contains some black particles. What could this be? Whatever it was, it was causing water to leak from the toilet tank float cap by breaking the seal with the rubber gasket. Should I call a plumber out? That's likely pieces of the packing/gasket inside the valve. If you're not comfortable pulling it all apart, then yeah, call a plumber.
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Sep 10, 2020 01:41
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I'm looking at altering the natural gas service to my house, and looking at the Green Book, PG&E wants an accounting of all of my gas appliances and their BTUs to do that. I have an old Weber Genesis 3000 LX natural gas grill that I bought secondhand, and the data plate on it is long gone. Searching for information by the model number has been fruitless. How the hell to I find the spec on this grill?
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Sep 10, 2020 13:44
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Skinnymansbeerbelly posted:I'm looking at altering the natural gas service to my house, and looking at the Green Book, PG&E wants an accounting of all of my gas appliances and their BTUs to do that. I have an old Weber Genesis 3000 LX natural gas grill that I bought secondhand, and the data plate on it is long gone. Searching for information by the model number has been fruitless. How the hell to I find the spec on this grill? It's not in the manual, so I'd go with a conservative estimate of 36,000 BTU (12,000 BTU per burner). If you've got the pot heater thing on yours those aren't usually quite 12,000 BTU but maybe at another 10,000 for it. This is before manufacturers started bench racing grills and all the BTUs are up and probably inflated.
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Sep 10, 2020 14:40
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Replacing a rear discharge toilet. I have 3/4" and 1" neoprene gaskets (wasn't sure which one to get, so bought both). How do I proper determine which one is the proper thickness to use? I'm guessing that it all comes down to how far the flange is from the toilet? Couldn't use the old gasket for reference as it was rotted to hell.
melon cat fucked around with this message at 20:18 on Sep 10, 2020 |
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Sep 10, 2020 20:11
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Need to do something about an old cast iron pipe in my house... not really excited about the thought of the serious demo, disruption, and cost of having the pipe excavated and replaced. That said, I see that there are a few companies in my area that do pipe lining with guarantees of 50+ years... is this a solution that anyone would recommend? It seems to be significantly less costly and invasive.
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Sep 10, 2020 21:23
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I've got a guest bath/shower that doesn't get used much (might be relevant). It has a Moen single-handle bath/shower control knob. When the knob is pointing down (6 o'clock), the flow is off, and as you rotate it counterclockwise you get cold water first, then increasingly hot water. I think it's referred to as a posi-temp style valve. Problem is, when I start turning the knob to activate flow, I just get a unusable trickle of cold water until about the 90 degree/3 o'clock position, when the pressure and flow suddenly increases but the water temperature is much too hot. Basically, it seems like the valve is not mixing in enough cold water to moderate the hot water. Is there an adjustment to increase the cold water flow/proportion? All I've found online is how to adjust the maximum hot water temperature by limiting how far the knob will turn to the hot side, which isn't what I want to do. I need more cold water mixing through the range of operation. I've found some other tips relating to a balancing valve. But in my simple mind it seems like there ought to be a simple mixture or control that lets you manually adjust the ratio of hot/cold water... The water temp from my water heater is about 125 F. Any ideas?
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Sep 11, 2020 21:50
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I have a bathroom sink with an overflow drain hole that keeps filling with water that won't drain out. It makes the bathroom smell foul after a bit and I have to siphon it out but I'd rather it just didn't do it in the first place. What should I be looking at for a possible culprit?
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Sep 11, 2020 22:29
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poo poo POST MALONE posted:I have a bathroom sink with an overflow drain hole that keeps filling with water that won't drain out. It makes the bathroom smell foul after a bit and I have to siphon it out but I'd rather it just didn't do it in the first place. It's clogged. Clean it out. You're going to need a bucket, rags, and a strong stomach. Bucket under the ptrap, unscrew both sides, drop it into the bucket. Stuff a rag in the wall. Clean everything out until water flows freely, re-assemble remembering to remove the rag. Hand tight is fine. Test for leaks by filling the sink all the way up and then draining it quickly with the water still running.
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Sep 11, 2020 22:44
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Number_6 posted:I've got a guest bath/shower that doesn't get used much (might be relevant). It has a Moen single-handle bath/shower control knob. When the knob is pointing down (6 o'clock), the flow is off, and as you rotate it counterclockwise you get cold water first, then increasingly hot water. I think it's referred to as a posi-temp style valve. Problem is, when I start turning the knob to activate flow, I just get a unusable trickle of cold water until about the 90 degree/3 o'clock position, when the pressure and flow suddenly increases but the water temperature is much too hot. Basically, it seems like the valve is not mixing in enough cold water to moderate the hot water. Is there an adjustment to increase the cold water flow/proportion? The cartridge is bad. Replace it.
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Sep 11, 2020 23:52
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H110Hawk posted:It's clogged. Clean it out. You're going to need a bucket, rags, and a strong stomach. Bucket under the ptrap, unscrew both sides, drop it into the bucket. Stuff a rag in the wall. Clean everything out until water flows freely, re-assemble remembering to remove the rag. Hand tight is fine. Test for leaks by filling the sink all the way up and then draining it quickly with the water still running. Ok I'll give it a shot. It's strange that it would clog. It's the bathroom we use the least and it was completely remodeled three years ago. It is a basement bathroom and one of the last stops on the main drain pipe before it leaves the house, but I've run every faucet in the house at full blast and I don't see any sinks or tubs backing up anywhere in the house.
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Sep 12, 2020 00:44
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poo poo POST MALONE posted:Ok I'll give it a shot. Other alternatives are worse so start there. You might find a critter or something oddball stuck in there.
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Sep 12, 2020 00:49
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I hate cleaning food out the fridge when it needs to be done, the smells get to me, but unclogging shower/sink drains and the horror that comes from them never makes me flinch. Something satisfying about pulling a massive glob of hair al in one shot.
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Sep 13, 2020 00:46
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does anyone have one of the bidet toilet seats? I only have a cold water supply right by the toilet, the warm connection is under the sink in an enclosed cabinet. No outlet next to the toilet either of course. I've heard that even with that, the water spray tends to be more lukewarm / room temp so that it's fine. The only other option would be to have an outlet installed right by the toilet, but I'm guessing that's easier said than done. example product https://www.homedepot.com/p/KOHLER-Puretide-Non-Electric-Bidet-Seat-for-Elongated-Toilets-in-White-K-5724-0/206689232 actionjackson fucked around with this message at 21:51 on Sep 13, 2020 |
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Sep 13, 2020 21:48
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actionjackson posted:does anyone have one of the bidet toilet seats? The cold water is refreshing, especially in winter.
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Sep 13, 2020 22:08
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therobit posted:The cold water is refreshing, especially in winter. do you have one of these seats?
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Sep 13, 2020 22:18
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actionjackson posted:do you have one of these seats? I've got one that attaches under the seat, the cold water is fine.
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Sep 13, 2020 23:49
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actionjackson posted:does anyone have one of the bidet toilet seats?
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Sep 13, 2020 23:52
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good points, thank you! I assume the ones that you plug in are able to give you warm/hot water on demand?
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Sep 14, 2020 00:40
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So, Galvanized pipe. I have a few lengths of it between my brand new water main and the copper system that feeds my fixtures. It's all behind drywall though (finished basement) except for the one small hole made to hook up the new water main. They said that to put in a ball-valve shutoff would require tearing out the wall to remove the full length of pipe and screw in new stuff, but I've seen compression fittings and other ways to replace sections of galvanized. So, if I had a plumber come out and put in a large access panel there, could they cut the galvanized pipe and splice in a shutoff or is that too much work to be worth it? Right now the only way I can turn off my water is via the water meter outside.
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Sep 14, 2020 06:28
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How old is the galvanized pipe? It's probably close to it's end of life anyway. I would (and did) have it torn out and replaced with copper or PEX. Compression fittings aren't a great solution at all. There were several on my old galvanized pipes and they all showed evidence of leaks.
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Sep 14, 2020 06:34
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