# A 2" CO for a 3" drain.



## Best Darn Sewer (Dec 23, 2012)

These new construction plumbers in Houston are great at keeping us repair guys busy. This is at a brand new restaurant that is set to open in a week and they had a major clog. To be honest, the building was existing but the new owner did a complete overhaul including sub-slab work to relocate some drains. The problem is that they never ran a camera to inspect all the drains prior to the renovation. Then a handle on a brand new toilet got stuck and the drain filled with water over the next few hours. The water backed up into the bathroom and three floor drains. It also flooded the new office. That's when i was called out and found a 2" CO for both of the restrooms. Basically, a useless CO. Very long story over the course of the last two days cut short: 
All the lines connect to the grease trap line and go to the grease trap. The lines are full of rocks, sand, very heavy grease from the old Thai food place that used to be there, and utensils. Oh, we also saw broken pieces of PVC. 

The GC was the one we dealt with being she was in charge of the renovation. After a lot of investigation and wasting time running a sewer cable I told her in order to fix the issue I will have to run a camera from another cleanout and completely jet the line as it is not an obstruction that a cable can deal with. It took forever to get to this point being I am dealing with an undersized cleanout that my normal camera could not go thru and having to pull a toilet to run the right size cable thru. So I left it last night and said I will resume work in the morning. 

This morning she calls and says that the plumbing contractor told her that I didn't know what I was talking about and that you didn't need a camera or a jetter, just a sewer cable. He said he would send his guys. I still had to collect for all my work so I still went back. The new guys are already there when I arrive and they are running a ⅝" cable thru the 2" cleanout for a 3" line. I told them they won't get it that way being I had already put my ¾" cable down the closet bend and couldn't get it because it is sludge and buildup, but whatever, its not my problem now. 

I decided I would wait until they finish and run a camera to see if they actually got it. It is easy to think its cleared because the water will drain at first but once you run a lot of water it will eventually back up. You just have to run a whole lot of water. Much more than the 1.2 gpf Kohlers they had. 

So I waited and they said, as I suspected, "Yup, we got it", and drove off. I ran my camera and of course the clog still existed. I ended up collecting for my time but showed the GC what we found on the camera and told her that it needs to be jetted and everything runs to the grease trap which is a whole other problem. She said she has to get approval first. Good luck. In all fairness she wanted me to continue working and fix it but she was bound by her boss's decision.


----------



## rjbphd (Feb 5, 2010)

Best Darn Sewer said:


> These new construction plumbers in Houston are great at keeping us repair guys busy. This is at a brand new restaurant that is set to open in a week and they had a major clog. To be honest, the building was existing but the new owner did a complete overhaul including sub-slab work to relocate some drains. The problem is that they never ran a camera to inspect all the drains prior to the renovation. Then a handle on a brand new toilet got stuck and the drain filled with water over the next few hours. The water backed up into the bathroom and three floor drains. It also flooded the new office. That's when i was called out and found a 2" CO for both of the restrooms. Basically, a useless CO. Very long story over the course of the last two days cut short:
> All the lines connect to the grease trap line and go to the grease trap. The lines are full of rocks, sand, very heavy grease from the old Thai food place that used to be there, and utensils. Oh, we also saw broken pieces if PVC.
> 
> The GC was the one we dealt with being she was in charge of the renovation. After a lot of investigation and wasting time running a sewer cable I told her in order to fix the issue I will have to run a camera from another cleanout and completely jet the line as it is not an obstruction that a cable can deal with. It took forever to get to this point being I am dealing with an undersized cleanout that my normal camera could not go thru and having to pull a toilet to run the right size cable thru. So I left it last night and said I will resume work in the morning.
> ...


Knowily you didn't install it but how did it pass inspection, if any?


----------



## Best Darn Sewer (Dec 23, 2012)

In the county. No formal inspection required. I take that back, health dept has one but I doubt they care about COs.


----------



## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

Everything runs to the grease trap? That's terrific! Glad to hear it....:laughing:


----------



## rjbphd (Feb 5, 2010)

Best Darn Sewer said:


> In the county. No formal inspection required. I take that back, health dept has one but I doubt they care about COs.


Thought Harris county pretty strict, assuming that's where the job is..


----------



## Best Darn Sewer (Dec 23, 2012)

rjbphd said:


> Thought Harris county pretty strict, assuming that's where the job is..


You're correct, it is. To be honest, I didn't ask how it passed and have no clue. So often I run into this kind of stupidity that I quit asking how it passed. I just roll my eyes and say, "Yup, that's about right." I assume payoffs or bad inspectors.


----------



## Best Darn Sewer (Dec 23, 2012)

Tommy plumber said:


> Everything runs to the grease trap? That's terrific! Glad to hear it....:laughing:


I was pretty surprised. The GC kept telling me that the one 4" CO they had was only for the grease trap. I still video inspected it because I couldn't figure out how the drains ran and finally after tons of time we concluded that sure enough, everything ran to the grease trap. I am curious to see if the place opens in a week. If they care than they will fix it all before opening or else it will be much worse once they are in operation.


----------



## rjbphd (Feb 5, 2010)

Best Darn Sewer said:


> I was pretty surprised. The GC kept telling me that the one 4" CO they had was for the grease trap. I still video inspected it because I couldn't figure out how the drains ran and finally after tons of time we concluded that sure enough, everything ran to the grease trap. I am curious to see if the place opens in a week. If they care than they will fix it all before opening or else it will be much worse once they are in operation.


At least u can hire the unemployed one from here to clean it daily..


----------



## JWBII (Dec 23, 2012)

Anytime I've done work in Harris County I don't recall any inspectors. I could be wrong though since I don't pay much attention to where we are working very often. 

Also I'm in new construction but when something needs to be serviced I listen to service guys. If they say a 3/8 cable won't get it for the most part I believe em.


----------



## Best Darn Sewer (Dec 23, 2012)

JWBII said:


> Anytime I've done work in Harris County I don't recall any inspectors. I could be wrong though since I don't pay much attention to where we are working very often.
> 
> Also I'm in new construction but when something needs to be serviced I listen to service guys. If they say a 3/8 cable won't get it for the most part I believe em.


And when I hear a new construction guys tell me a better or more efficient way to run the ground lines for a rough in I listen. My skills lie and service, not new construction. The guys who were there did not speak much English and just stared at me when I told them that they needed to run a jet in order to clear the line.


----------



## MACPLUMB777 (Jun 18, 2008)

*Thats what gets to me some construction plumbers come by to get their 3/8" or 1/2" cables or machines worked on, because they been running them into a 4" or 6" sewer and are wondering why they can't get it open, ?  or they they got the line with water running but don't understand that they did not completely clear pipe !*


----------



## Best Darn Sewer (Dec 23, 2012)

A lot of times egos get involved and guys think there's nothing more to drain cleaning than putting a cable down a clean out. Of course, if that were the case, jetters, cameras, and locators would not be necessary.


----------



## 504Plumber (Jan 26, 2011)

JERRYMAC said:


> Thats what gets to me some construction plumbers come by to get their 3/8" or 1/2" cables or machines worked on, because they been running them into a 4" or 6" sewer and are wondering why they can't get it open, ?  or they they got the line with water running but don't understand that they did not completely clear pipe !


All we run through 4" is a 1/2" cable with blades...


----------



## Best Darn Sewer (Dec 23, 2012)

504Plumber said:


> All we run through 4" is a 1/2" cable with blades...


Its not as likely as with a ⅜" but you may one day get your cable bound up and end up having to dig up the line to retrieve it. Typically if you have heavy root build up a ½" cable can't effectively do the job. Course, I don't know what you run into where you are. If it does work then great.


----------



## MDPlumber1977 (Mar 4, 2013)

I feel your pain Bro... I have worked in every facet of this wonderful trade and know that service guys as well as jetting and snaking are often looked down on by new construction gents. I would be lying if I didn't say that I held the same view until I landed in a service division and learned what is truly takes to be a great problem solver. This view is also held by many commercial new con. plumbers when talking about residential new con. I have done both and I have seen how hard some guys struggle when they are dropped in a 5 bed 3 bath house with no P-1 through P-10 drawings to guide them. Just an architectural plan view and some fixture cuts. Every pro deserves respect if he's good at what he does. On another note, the pic is not clear but does the establishment have a separate ADA bath because it doesn't appear to be large enough for wheelchair accessibility. As for the grease trap, I hope you bid "REAL HIGH" for the maintenance contract on that puppy. :laughing:


----------



## phishfood (Nov 18, 2012)

MDPlumber1977 said:


> I feel your pain Bro... I have worked in every facet of this wonderful trade and know that service guys as well as jetting and snaking are often looked down on by new construction gents. I would be lying if I didn't say that I held the same view until I landed in a service division and learned what is truly takes to be a great problem solver. This view is also held by many commercial new con. plumbers when talking about residential new con. I have done both and I have seen how hard some guys struggle when they are dropped in a 5 bed 3 bath house with no P-1 through P-10 drawings to guide them. Just an architectural plan view and some fixture cuts. Every pro deserves respect if he's good at what he does. On another note, the pic is not clear but does the establishment have a separate ADA bath because it doesn't appear to be large enough for wheelchair accessibility. As for the grease trap, I hope you bid "REAL HIGH" for the maintenance contract on that puppy. :laughing:


A big fat "AMEN" to that!!

I started out doing apartments, learned to "VE" almost from day one. Every fitting, every inch of pipe, every second, it all counts. Then new houses, while material was important, getting it done in a day (while still passing inspection) was king, because return trips would kill the margin. Into a little bit more of a commercial line the last few years, follow the prints and specs, little room for deviation. Now doing some service, and I am learning that it is all about customer service, sales, problem solving, thoroughly fixing everything that you touch so that you don't get a callback, and pricing the job properly. No single type of plumbing has room to feel "superior".


----------



## MACPLUMB777 (Jun 18, 2008)

504Plumber said:


> All we run through 4" is a 1/2" cable with blades...


*See whatI was posting how can you put a big enough blade ie, 31/2" or 4" to fully clean out a 4"
sewer ?
if you could get such a blade on a 1/2" cable it would not carry a load blockage,
do not get me wrong I have cleared blockages in 3" & 4" with a 3/8" & 1/2" cables at times but I knew that they were soft paper blockages "not" 
grease or root stoppages 
I guess what I am trying to say is a true drain cleaner knows when and what machines or cables and blades to use, !
and do not count on a small blade and cable that just pokes a hole in the stoppages to fully clear a large pipe :whistling2: 
*


----------



## 504Plumber (Jan 26, 2011)

JERRYMAC said:


> See whatI was posting how can you put a big enough blade ie, 31/2" or 4" to fully clean out a 4"
> sewer ?
> if you could get such a blade on a 1/2" cable it would not carry a load blockage,
> do not get me wrong I have cleared blockages in 3" & 4" with a 3/8" & 1/2" cables at times but I knew that they were soft paper blockages "not"
> ...


Well, we carry general machines with a 1/2" cable. Every line gets that machine, if it cannot be unstopped with that then we hit it with our jet or 3/4 cable. The 3/4 machine is too big and heavy to be carried on and off the truck with one guy.


----------



## Best Darn Sewer (Dec 23, 2012)

MDPlumber1977 said:


> On another note, the pic is not clear but does the establishment have a separate ADA bath because it doesn't appear to be large enough for wheelchair accessibility. As for the grease trap, I hope you bid "REAL HIGH" for the maintenance contract on that puppy. :laughing:


That was the ADA stall and was compliant as was the bathroom. And I doubt we will get the bid. The main contractor probably will. We're too high and they have their own guys. Thanks for your thoughts. Like you said, we all have our own talents and skills in the trade.


----------

