# bad 4" instalation



## ianclapham (Jan 10, 2011)

Bad installation of a first floor water closet drain line, sewage is backing up the vent line and not going down the outfall.


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## 3KP (Jun 19, 2008)

What kind of pipe is that? Never seen fittings like that, looks like you can knock out the punch out on the fitting to have another attachment joint


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Took me a minute but I guess that is looking down on the pipe and those are sanitary tees laying on their sides. Even a Yankee plumber can see that won't work. What a mess. Like driving through Birmingham's Spaghetti Junction. :laughing:

Love the pics Ian. :thumbsup:


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## DUNBAR PLUMBING (Sep 11, 2008)

Flat vents are the worst design imaginable... first clog, numerous clogs and it seals off the piping completely. Gotta wash your vents, always.


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## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

Yeah that sanitary tee laying on its side is allowing sewage to flow right past the intended outlet and into the vent. Poorly installed. As well as improper fitting selection in my opinion.


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## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

DUNBAR PLUMBING said:


> Flat vents are the worst design imaginable... first clog, numerous clogs and it seals off the piping completely. Gotta wash your vents, always.


 



I was taught to wash the base of every stack.


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## Titan Plumbing (Oct 8, 2009)

DUNBAR PLUMBING said:


> Flat vents are the worst design imaginable... first clog, numerous clogs and it seals off the piping completely. Gotta wash your vents, always.


This is the second time this week you've slammed flat venting. We have flat/lateral vent systems all over town and have had these in place for many years. I have to disagree with your statement/s. I don't have to go back and clean the systems I've installed and have no complaints from my customers.

Now the one in the photo is, well never mind.


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## 6th Density (Nov 29, 2010)

Take out the san tee and swap positions with the sweep flowing down. Then tie in the vent using 45's or 22.5's out the top of the VERTICAL san tee.


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## RW Plumbing (Aug 16, 2010)

Instead of that 90 going down, why not just put a san tee there and take the vent off the top. Using the exact same fittings, you can do that properly. Amazing the difference between a lousy plumber and a decent one.


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## Redwood (Sep 8, 2008)

RW Plumbing said:


> Instead of that 90 going down, why not just put a san tee there and take the vent off the top. Using the exact same fittings, you can do that properly. Amazing the difference between a lousy plumber and a decent one.


Yea my thoughts eggzackly....:laughing:


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## Mpls Jay (Jan 1, 2011)

Soooo..why not leave a map for the water in the toilet bowl so it *knows* where to go?


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## DUNBAR PLUMBING (Sep 11, 2008)

Titan Plumbing said:


> This is the second time this week you've slammed flat venting. We have flat/lateral vent systems all over town and have had these in place for many years. I have to disagree with your statement/s. I don't have to go back and clean the systems I've installed and have no complaints from my customers.
> 
> Now the one in the photo is, well never mind.


 

Take pictures of what you're seeing in your area. 


I cut my teeth down in the older buildings in my area, most were combination waste/vent systems. 

On water closets, it was notorious for turning a wye right behind the flange and running numerous feet to get to an exterior wall. 

On kitchen sinks, they'd purposely shoot a pipe up into the exterior wall, but do a branch off tee underneath and bring that vent across without cutting through the studs or top/bottom plates.


Same goes for many many other drains, including laundry waste, tubs, lavatories where the vent was teed off with nothing washing the line.


Almost all of them, 99% of them get clogged up, sealed off by waste and start disentegrating over time, losing the function it was first intended to provide. 

It's all based on the probability of not "if" it clogs but "when" it clogs, and there's nothing to wash out the waste backup. 

That's why we are not allowed to flat vent under 42" in the state of KY. It's going to clog and nothing pulls the waste back out of the piping.


So what I'm saying is I can look at an older plumbing system, see the vent going up the wall serving the vent for a toilet back in the day and hear it sucking a trap off of the lavatory or tub drain and know exactly why it is sucking air from those 2 fixtures, and not the vent visibly connected right behind the flange. It's clogged completely and lost it's function.


Are you saying that's exactly what they are allowing in your area?


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## DUNBAR PLUMBING (Sep 11, 2008)

Mpls Jay said:


> Soooo..why not leave a map for the water in the toilet bowl so it *knows* where to go?


 
Give it time and somewhere a DIY'r is going to take that advice and it'll be a question in a plumbing forum.


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## ianclapham (Jan 10, 2011)

RW Plumbing said:


> Instead of that 90 going down, why not just put a san tee there and take the vent off the top. Using the exact same fittings, you can do that properly. Amazing the difference between a lousy plumber and a decent one.


Yes this is the way i will be doing it. Hopefully 


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