# Got Roots?



## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Sometimes even a K1500 just isn't enough. 

8" Clay.


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

...


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## Will (Jun 6, 2010)

City or private sewer main? Alot of roots there.


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Private main. We had been running through a 6" wye for a clean out and didn't realize it was going into 8" until we dug it up.

The mass was over 5' long before it broke in two pieces. Probably weighed in around 75 pounds.


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## user2090 (Sep 26, 2009)

Hey Will, would a jetter have been able to clear that? :laughing:


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## SewerRatz (Apr 25, 2009)

I am not Will, but yes a jetter witht he right nozzle would of cleared that, but a drum machine would of cleared that line as well.


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## easttexasplumb (Oct 13, 2010)

I thought that in Chicago that a line like that would have to be replaced, or at least dug up enough to make the repair without ferncos. :whistling2:


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

SewerRatz said:


> I am not Will, but yes a jetter witht he right nozzle would of cleared that, but a drum machine would of cleared that line as well.


The K1500 would have eventually got there too I suppose. This isn't the only bad spot and it's another 1/2 mile before it gets to the city main. On this day it seemed better to just get it out of the line and not fight it all the way down the line.


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## Will (Jun 6, 2010)

Indie said:


> Hey Will, would a jetter have been able to clear that? :laughing:


Yes would have clear it no problem with a Root Ranger or Warthog nozzle. So would my Electric Eel Model C, or John's K1500, or Ron's 1065 if the customer is willing to pay the hours it will take to clear that blockage. 


Would it have fixed to broken hub? No. It's wiser long term to dig that one up and cut out bad section. Doesn't look very deep in the picture so after I get paid to clear that sucker out all day the repair my have been cheaper....plus the broken hub needed to be replaced anyway.


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Will said:


> ...Would it have fixed to broken hub? No. It's wiser long term to dig that one up and cut out bad section. Doesn't look very deep in the picture so after I get paid to clear that sucker out all day the repair my have been cheaper....plus the broken hub needed to be replaced anyway.



You're right Will. That triangle piece of cracked pipe was a bit loose in the soil. If we had been aggressive enough to get it clear, that piece would have likely fallen into the pipe. After a hard day of cable work, we would have been back next week digging it up anyway. The roots were the only thing holding it together.


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## ChrisConnor (Dec 31, 2009)

Sometimes it's just makes more sense to dig.


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

ChrisConnor said:


> Sometimes it's just makes more sense to dig.


Yep...

The plumber there just before us had 14 man hours on the job over the course of three days before he got to the decision that our Professional Plumber Jeremiah reached in about 90 minutes.


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## ChrisConnor (Dec 31, 2009)

plbgbiz said:


> Yep...
> 
> The plumber there just before us had 14 man hours on the job over the course of three days before he got to the decision that our Professional Plumber Jeremiah reached in about 90 minutes.


Oh, he musta been T&M.


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

ChrisConnor said:


> Oh, he musta been T&M.


OK, when the dead horse get's resurrected, just remember you started it. :laughing::laughing:

And BTW: Yes, he was.


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## ChrisConnor (Dec 31, 2009)

Ever had a job where you are going full throttle pulling back buckets of roots only to get through and find mud packed on the blade and cable.


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## Will (Jun 6, 2010)

ChrisConnor said:


> Oh, he musta been T&M.


What are you trying to say?:2guns:

:laughing:


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## Will (Jun 6, 2010)




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## RoyalPlastics (Nov 15, 2011)

John, Love the Pics! Showed it to a lot of my buddies in the Natural Gas Inudstry and we've all been just stunned by the amount of obstruction in your sewer line. So there is a machine that would have enough power to force this down the main line and into the man hole where you could clean it out there rather than doing a repair right at the obstruction???


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Yes Jeremy,

But although it is possible to do that, we have to weigh whether or not the juice is worth the squeeze. That can sometimes solve one problem and then create another when the pipe falls apart. The only thing keeping this pipe together was the roots. Remove the roots and then the pipe would collapse.


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Before everyone piles onto my Friend Jeremy from Royal Plastics for not posting an intro, allow me to intro him to you.

He is our rep for MT Deason HDPE fitting manufacturer and a couple others as well. His assistance and research has been a major reason for our recent successes with the large pipe bursts and the EF saddles.

His background is mainly in large utility piping for municipalities and natural gas providers. He's been in and around the industry for over 20 years. If you need any info on electro fusion fittings or processors, contact him. If he doesn't have or can't get the answers, then the answer can't be had.

Thanks for all your help Jeremy. :thumbup:


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## DUNBAR PLUMBING (Sep 11, 2008)

For the safety of not having a callback, I would seriously muck out the underside of that section of piping as best as possible, throw a couple bags of fast set mortar under it, and I'll tell you why:



Sand is the lazy man's approach to that, and I've seen many repairs go awry years later because those rubber ferncos give under pressure, or drop the pipe and allow a flow interruption or shoulder in the piping diameter.

If you sand the underside, there's a chance that over time the water movements in the ground can erode that sand, leaving a divot or void under that new section of pipe, with tons of weight above it forcing down on those rubber boots.

IOW, sand is never enough and I'd rather have a solid chunk of mortar or concrete under that so it stays. Dirt is out of the question as it's been disturbed.


I don't do this type of work anymore but if I did, I'd be doing as outlined... we're talking less than $30 for materials to prevent that section from misalignment.


I'm the plumber who drain cleans, gets constantly told, "We just had that piping replaced out in the yard. I can't see why this would be clogging again." 


And then the camera inspection says it all. Misalignment due to subgrade movement.


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## AssTyme (May 15, 2010)

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## AssTyme (May 15, 2010)

AssTyme said:


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Just sitting here reading & eating lunch and was beating the crumbs out of my keyboard when that post was made.


LMAO !!!


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## AssTyme (May 15, 2010)

Why wasn't a 8" pipe used for the repair and could this cause any problems ???


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## AlbacoreShuffle (Aug 28, 2011)

AssTyme said:


> Why wasn't a 8" pipe used for the repair and could this cause any problems ???


Looks like 8" to me.
What your seeing is the difference between 8" clay and 8" plastic.


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## ChrisConnor (Dec 31, 2009)

How much do 8" ferncos cost?


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## SewerRatz (Apr 25, 2009)

ChrisConnor said:


> How much do 8" ferncos cost?


 about 20 bucks more than a 6", but we used sheilded couplings.


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