How Do I Know If There Is A Grease Clog In The Kitchen Line?

Posted on October 2, 2020 | by JD Precision Plumbing & Air

Grease clog in kitchen line illustration, before and after plumbing solution.

It is almost impossible to know if it is a grease clog without getting a look in the pipes themselves. Without the proper tools it will be hard to determine if the clog in your kitchen sink is grease clog or food clog. Check out this link for more information of what causes kitchen clogs.

We recommend never putting grease type products down the drain, but it does end up happening sometimes and there are solutions!

Should I Use A Liquid Drain Cleaner?

There are many reasons we never recommend a liquid drain cleaner, it could potentially poorly effect your fixtures, your skin, lungs, and might not even work. Check out this page about safety risks associated with using these products.

Is There A Natural Option To Drain Cleaning?

Short term, yes!
Long term, no..

Combinations like those found here are great all natural solutions

Mixtures like salt and baking soda or vinegar and baking soda will work for simple problems, but if you have a grease build up that’s been growing for years a natural product like these will not be the forever solution for you. As long as there is grease in the pipe the accumulation of build up will continue to come back time again.

What Are The Long Term Kitchen Grease Clog Solutions?

Cabling the line will be able to break through the problem most times, but if it break through the build up it may leave the residue on the sides of the pipe. If you hire a plumber to cable the line for you they will be able to cable in a fashion that will get more of the grease of the sides of the pipes giving you a better chance of the problem leaving, but even still-as long as there is grease on the sides of the pipe there is a chance more grease will attach to that grease and cause the same problem for you over time.

What is The Best Solution To A Kitchen Sink Grease Clog?

Best option is to have it hydro-jetted! A jetting machine will use 4,000 psi to remove every single thing in your pipe! This will remove the problem completely. Click here to learn more!

Why Does My Shower Back Up When I Flush The Toilet?

Posted on September 28, 2020 | by JD Precision Plumbing & Air

Why Does My Shower Back Up When I Flush The Toilet?

Sometimes you get a back up when you flush the toilet because there is a clog in the main line or the branch line having to do with both that toilet and the nearest shower.

Main Lines are the sewer pipes that take all the waste from your entire homes plumbing to the city sewer or septic system.

Branch line is the sewer pipe that connects one plumbing fixtures sewer line to another on its way to the main sewer line. It has this name because some sewer piping under homes looks like a tree.

You know it is the main line if you go to another bathroom and turn the water on and see that the shower once again has a back up.

You know its the branch line if you turn water on elsewhere in the house and the backup does not occur. When you've narrowed the problem down to the branch line it could be the fixture itself with a backup or it could be anywhere in the branch line between the fixture and the place where this line connects to the main line.

What is a clog?

A clog is a shoe with a wooden sole. For more info on that go here: https://didyouknowfashion.com/the-evolution-of-the-wooden-clog/

But, seriously, a clog is officially an encumbrance or impediment. In the plumbing world a clog is a mass of waste/debris built up hindering the water and sewage from traveling down to the city sewer pipes, also called a backup.

What causes a shower back up?

A clog can be caused by many things from something other than human waste going down the drain to something being wrong with the sewer drain lines themselves- for more detailed information on what could be causing the clog visit our sewer backup page.

What can be done to fix the shower back up?

The smallest fix would be cabling the sewer line from the shower drain line if possible to clear any debris that is causing the back up. After cabling the line we recommend putting a sewer camera down the line to ensure the problem is gone for good. Worst case scenario would be something wrong with the sewer line itself. To learn more about our camera inspection services please click here.

Why Is My Toilet Overflowing?

Posted on September 10, 2020 | by JD Precision Plumbing & Air

We had a customer call in our office with the problem of a spare toilet overflowing. She said even when her husband turned the main water off to the entire home the toilet was overflowing out of the bowl and even seeping out of the base of the toilet, between the toilet and the floor.

Anytime something is coming out of the bowl the only explanation is a toilet clog. Our dispatch team knew instantly to send a technician with a toilet auger.

cleared out toilet — Toilet after cable was put through to clear line.

Photo showing the stoppage after a simple toilet paper test.

When he arrived he ran the toilet auger and was able to remove the blockage. We always like to check our work, so he followed that up by flushing some toilet paper down the toilet. Not too much, just about as much as any average flush. When our technician did this test- the toilet backed up again immediately.

Having another backup immediately after clearing the line is an indication that there is a bigger problem than just a simple tissue blockage.

The technician then pulled the toilet from the floor and called in a drain specialist. Our drain specialist arrived on the scene with his sewer camera.

This is a special tool with a camera on the end of a long reel that can go into the sewer line to show us exactly what we're looking at under the home. To learn more about this click this link.

When he put the camera in the line you can see here in the video, he saw water standing in the pipe.

In a typical homes sewer pipe you should not be able to see any water standing, but this was about 4 inches of water standing in at least 25 feet of this families line under their home. We knew from just looking at it the problem was a belly in the line. A belly in the line is most likely caused by a foundational shift. To learn more about the things that cause backups click here.

gap between drit and foundation — In this after photo of the new sewer line you see the black shadow showing the separation between the foundation and the clay under home.

Once we explained to the homeowners what exactly was going on and had the OK we hired a professional excavator team to dig under her home giving us a 39 foot working space. When these excavators had performed their job you could see 6 inches between the base of the foundation and the clay under the home. See photo to the right.

There is no denying at this point that there is definitely a foundation issue. Because of the excavation we had to do in order to access the pipes we were able to alert the homeowner to the larger problem that was the foundation issue so they could address it properly.

To make sure that our repair stands the test of time regardless of what is happening to the foundation in the future we use a special type of hanger to secure the pipe to the foundation itself. This secures the pipe from moving up or down, as opposed to the other option to use a hanger that only prevents a downward motion, our team here at JD precision knows these tend to fail so we avoid using the teardrop hanger. After we laid the new pipe and secured this pipe with the hangers we installed two additional clean outs for any future issues that may arise so that the homeowner will not have to tunnel under the home for any clogs.

If you believe this might be a problem you are experiencing, if you find your toilet overflowing constantly or just occasionally, in your home please don't hesitate to reach out to us. We are always a call or text away, or if you'd rather have us reach out to you please fill out the schedule now form and our office will call you!

What Causes The Sewer Line To Back Up?

Posted on August 25, 2020 | by JD Precision Plumbing & Air

What causes the main line to back up?

There are many things that cause a main line to back up. Some of those could be a belly in the line, roots, bad glue joints, burrs from a cut pipe, no fall in the line, or foreign objects in pipe.

What is a belly in the line?

A belly is any lower portion of a drain line that holds small or large amounts of sewage. This will cause any solid that hits the belly to slow down or stop causing a stoppage or slow drain.

How do roots cause a main line back up?

Roots get in the pipe at any connection point. As the root grows inside the pipe they will begin to catch solid objects and hold back the proper flow of the drain.

How can bad glue joints effect my sewer line?

A bad glue joint results in a poor connection for the pipe. This poor connection leaves room for roots to grow, cracks to form, or if the pipe separates- accumulation of solids.

What is a burr?

A burr is any unsmooth area of cut pipe. This jagged edge can grab onto toilet tissue and other solids to prevent them and things behind them from moving down drain line.

What does proper fall in the line mean?

Proper fall means when a level is placed on the pipe there should be a 1/4” to 1/8” fall on 4” and 3” pipes and 1/4” fall on 2” pipes angled down until the city connection point. If this proper fall does not exist you can have backups from improper flow.

What foreign objects should not go down the drain?

Anything beyond human waste, toilet tissue, and the small scraps you put in your garbage disposal.
See these two links for more explanation of why check out these other blogs below.

https://www.jdprecisionplumbing.com/what-can-i-flush-down-the-toilet/

https://www.jdprecisionplumbing.com/what-can-i-put-down-the-garbage-disposal/

What Can I Flush Down The Toilet?

Posted on August 25, 2020 | by JD Precision Plumbing & Air

White toilet with text discussing what to flush down the toilet and preventing plumbing clogs.

What can I flush down the toilet?

What can you flush down the toilet and what should you flush are two very different questions with very different answers.

Toilets are built to flush anything that will fit down them, which is an amazing feature! Some toilet manufactures even boast that their toilets can flush golf balls and other odd objects. But, we should be focused on what the drain lines of your home can handle instead of what the toilet can.

Most residential drain lines in the Houston region are 3 or 4 inch pipes. When you consider what is being pushed through a hole of this size if puts things in perspective. When we discuss what should or shouldn’t be flushed our main thought is how will that item do in the drain lines, will it do as it should or could that cause a clog or blockage?

Blockages and drain line issues can be some of the most expensive plumbing repairs needed in a home, and as a homeowner its best to equip yourself with the knowledge to avoid these when possible.

Here is a cute video or owner, Jerrys, grandchildren demonstrating what not to do.

Below are a few of the samples we have seen in the past.

Can you flush DENTAL FLOSS down the toilet?

As convenient as this would be, it can wrap around other items that have been flushed and create large masses in your drain lines that aren’t easily made to go all the way to sewer.

Can you flush DIAPERS down the toilet?

Diapers are very absorbent and can cause a blockage very quickly if flushed down the toilet. It is more common than you might think especially in a commercial environment, but they do not break down and are much thicker and sturdier than toilet paper.

Can you flush COTTON BALLS/ COTTON SWABS down the toilet?

When flushed these items do not break down like toilet paper is designed to, they can clump together and attach to other flushed items, they can also collect in corners of pipes and cause issues for drainage.

Can you flush BABY WIPES down the toilet?

Even though most packaging states they are flushable we advise not flushing them! They do not break down and will cause a clog.

Can you flush CAT LITTER down the toilet?

Cat litter has sand and clay that will clog pipes. Even the fancy stuff is never recommended to be flushed.

Can you flush PAPER TOWELS down the toilet?

Flushing paper towels down is not recommended, they are not built like toilet tissue and do not break down in drains.

Can you flush BANDAIDS down the toilet?

This is not recommended because they are sticky, and they are plastic. They will stick to the walls of the drain line or attach to other debris causing blockages.

Can you flush TAMPONS down the toilet?

It is not recommended. We have seen time after time a build up in drains due to this product being flushed, the plastic portion as well as the cotton portion WILL cause problems. It is best to always dispose of any feminine hygiene product in the trash.

What CAN I flush down the toilet?

Human waste and toilet paper are the ONLY things we recommend flushing down the toilet. All homes should be well suited to handle these things. Should you find yourself in a situation where this is not the case, please call a plumber to camera your drain lines, a properly plumbed home should be able to tackle this. Any other found object you can think of should not be flushed down the toilet.

Are you finding yourself in a clogged drain situation because you found this page too late? No problem, Click below to learn more about our drain cleaning services.

https://www.jdprecisionplumbing.com/plumbing/drain-cleaning/