Fingers Crossed, Fingers Crossed, Fingers Crossed…

There is a plumber in our house right now. He is running a cable into our indoor “clean out” that is “at the bottom of our stack”. Things are draining, just hearing some weird gurgles and seeing some random backflow now and then.

I’m very hopeful that we’ve caught it in time. Very hopeful.

I’m tempted to live blog the plumbing. I’ll spare you the details. I’m sure there will be updates.

UPDATE: Plumber just left. Coming back tomorrow to flush the line and run a camera down it. Will hopefully be less expensive than the last time we did this. The drains are running tonight, so that’s good, right?

  • johnmayersquare

    Oh nooooo……..not again with the plumbing……..YIKES! Plumbers are expensive……Are you on septic??? I dream of the days I am NOT! Hope all goes well!

  • MonicaC

    What is with you guys and the plumbing?! What the heck are you trying to flush?! Good luck.

  • Lesley

    I recall the mega disaster with the toilets at your old house. Is this a Utah thing?

  • http://johnlejeune.com/The_Blog/The_Blog.php JohnLeJeune

    Jon is hairy. ’nuff said?

  • Yolanda

    Time for another one of these: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dooce/sets/72057594113177895/

    Make it super-sized. Your wife is pregnant this time.

  • thewalrus

    Speaking as a drain tech, I’ve never understood the importance of the camera. Other than a tool to extract dollars from curious customers. Either the mainline is blocked or it isn’t. It almost always is roots, unless the line is somehow broken, but you’d know it was broken because a cable wouldn’t go through it. Roots in the sewer line are VERY common in Utah (as well as other places I’m guessing), and while I know that you’ve had weirdness in the past, I would guess that this is just roots as well. You could dig up the line and replace it, but that’ll cost a small fortune. Just listen for gurgling from the basement toilet or floor drain. If you hear it call the rooter guys and have them do their thing. If they’re out more than twice a year then it probably should be replaced. BTW, running a cable shouldn’t cost more than $250 in extreme cases (over 150 feet) and under $200 for most services. Don’t get fleeced, it can be a dirty business.

    • http://blurbomat.com blurb

      Given our history of replacing one sewage line in an older house, we decided to pay the extra (they threw in the blading/cabling) for the high pressure cleanout and camera. I was happy to pay the extra $$$ for the camera so we could gauge the condition of our line. I never want to hear a tech say “this is the worst line I’ve ever seen” or “I would guess this line hasn’t been cleaned in at least 20 years.”

      Now that I know the maintenance required, we’ll likely blade every year and treat for roots every couple of years. That should free us from having to run a camera down the line or do another high pressure cleanout for quite some time.

      Fingers crossed, of course.