Semi Emergency

[ultrarunner]

Had my first experience with this stuff last week. Grrrrr! It just crumbles. Every joint had roots infiltrating the pipe.

Removing sod for a shallow 8" wide trench to plant tulips. Pulled up the sod and saw gray water. Hit the washing machine drain line the previous owner had installed just a few inches deep out to a mystery drain field. I managed to pull out several reducers he had installed and piece together some rubber reducers, band clamps and a piece of 4" pvc to patch it. Ground is already frozen 2" down. I'll dig it all out next summer and put in some PVC drain line and 55 gallon drum dry wells instead.

The late 1950's was the heyday here for Orangeburg because it was cheap and easy to handle.

It does make for easy burst pipe method to pull new seamless plastic...

 

[MossRoad]

The late 1950's was the heyday here for Orangeburg because it was cheap and easy to handle.

It does make for easy burst pipe method to pull new seamless plastic...

I never knew the name of it until today. I looked up bituminous pipe, only because that's what it looked like to me... layers of delaminating tar paper.

This is the first thing that came up....

Orangeburg pipe - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

If we only knew how well things would hold up 50-100 years out...

 

[ultrarunner]

I never knew the name of it until today. I looked up bituminous pipe, only because that's what it looked like to me... layers of delaminating tar paper.

This is the first thing that came up....

Orangeburg pipe - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

If we only knew how well things would hold up 50-100 years out...

Only one home with it and as luck would have it the run is 300+ feet.

I bit the bullet and replaced with plastic and 2 years later the city declared it a priority due to leaching into the seasonal creeks and opted to replace at no cost all my neighbors Orangeburg...

If only I had waited I could have saved myself a lot of hillside digging and about 3k in expense...

 

[MossRoad]

Grrrr!

 

[ultrarunner]

Grrrr!

I became tired of snaking so much line every 3 to 4 months from root problems...

I'm hoping the OP had a little luck today retrieving the stuck cable especially being the property is occupied...

 

[RayIN]

I was using a friends 50' power snake on a problematic yard drain, it had roots invading it. Anyway, he calls and said son in law coming over to get it for his house. Fine, I asked him to return it here when done as I was not finished using it. I came back with the snake all Fed up, actually reversed direction mid feed when recoiling. I wound up pulling the whole 50' out and rewinding properly. It works like a charm. Dunno if this helps

To clear a drain of roots, use copper sulfate crystals on a periodic basis, perhaps a hand-full a month.. Be aware if that is tree roots it will kill the tree too if too much copper sulfate is used.
I have a white oak in my yard that has never fully recovered from copper sulfate I used 20 years ago; about half the branches have died and fallen off through the years, but the trunk is now 3' diameter @ 5' high. I have to pick up dead branches before every time i mow.

 

[Williy]

Where the drain pipe comes down from upstairs you should have a clean out?? and this would enable to help get the snake out, There should be a clean out some place before the line goes outside the house.

willy

 

[1Mech]

A real "semi" emergency.

View attachment 2032680

My son, an OTR driver says SWIFT is an abbreviation for Sure Wish I Finished Training! Looks like this guy needs to go back to truck driving school!

 

[Streetcar]

Orangeburg, Sections of Clay, Cement Asbestos, Plastic, Cast Iron, Galvanized, Black Pipe, Copper and Lead all used around here for sewer pipe… about the only thing I have not come across is wood pipe.

Every sale here means lateral replacement if not plastic.

As a property manager no matter what’s down there it starts out as my problem…

Back in the days of cloth diapers kids would flush them and then the fun begins.

I’m guessing no amount of pulling has been able to get the cable to budge?

I have found wood pipes for drains in some hundred year old houses. Also seen remains of wood water main

 

[sixdogs]

Any updates on the drain situation? I can empathize with the situatuation.