# ****ty sanitary sewer below motel.



## TXPlumbBob (Dec 13, 2013)

6 months ago had a sewer problem at a motel down south. Couple of guys cleared the stoppage and all was good until last week. Plumber cleared it for me and then this week they called back same problem same place. 

Plumber and I went back with camera, cleared stoppage and ran camera in. First 25' was ok them camera went underwater and did not reappear until it was only 10' from end of building, about 75' under water. We did not see any breaks, or restrictions. 

This building has been in place since the 70's the piping is ABS. Could the piping have sagged? There are no apparent cracks or damages to the building itself. It has been a wet year after many years of drought. It is very sandy soil in the area, less than a mile from the Rio Grande. 

Any suggestions on cause? Any suggestions on repair? Back to Back units with a 24" chase between them. I could not walk square shouldered down the chase if I had to. 

Thanks for any replies


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## Master Mark (Aug 14, 2009)

abs pipe will sag like an old rag over time...... they probably did not put enough or any gravel under it back then.....

personally I would away from that one unless you like hand digging.....:yes:


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## jmc12185 (Aug 27, 2013)

Master Mark said:


> abs pipe will sag like an old rag over time...... they probably did not put enough or any gravel under it back then..... personally I would away from that one unless you like hand digging.....:yes:


 It seems like you would walk away from every job lol


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## Unclog1776 (Feb 5, 2013)

Does the hotel have a Resteraunt or kitchen inside it?


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## Plumber (Jan 18, 2009)

jmc12185 said:


> It seems like you would walk away from every job lol


lol--do you do much service and rooter?


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## TXPlumbBob (Dec 13, 2013)

Unclog, there is a restaurant on site but does not run through this building. 
There is a managers apartment at the "head" of the line that has a kitchen but nothing commercial if that is what you mean. 

To me this one is a tough one. They are in a very small border town that has no plumbers. We drive a 100 miles one way to get there. We have done lots of work down there and for the motel in the past. I would hate to "walk away". 

Do you think if we broke out and exposed two foot sections every 6-7' and saddled and hung and jacked up each exposed area I could get enough sag out of the line to get some flow back? That would be about 8-9 holes. The sanitary at the bldg line is only about 30" deep so the top end should only be about 18". Or even go every 5'. If it does not work we just start connecting the dots. ??


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## Redwood (Sep 8, 2008)

Sounds like a job for a tunnel rat...:laughing:


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## Shoot'N'Plumber (Apr 27, 2013)

Redwood said:


> Sounds like a job for a tunnel rat...:laughing:


Hell, that close to the border...makes ya wonder if there's not a coyote tunnel under there now and that's why it sagged. :whistling2:


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## gear junkie (Jun 20, 2008)

Did you use a skid when inspecting? 

What was the blockage?

Did anything change? manager room get a disposal, etc? Toilets change?

What happened before 6 months ago? Why did they call only 6 months ago....new account, no issues, first backup, etc?

You said you're underwater.....what did you see underwater?

If you do have to dig it up, can you dig up the last 10' that comes up high and make up the elevation downstream?


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## TXPlumbBob (Dec 13, 2013)

ShootNRedwood, I asked the owners if they had a cartel guy that could dig under the sewer line for me. They kinda laughed. Not in mood for humor. 

gear junkie, I do not have a skid but will be ordering one asap (any suggestions GenEye). I do not know of anything that has changed in the managers apartment or not. I had a sewer call there about 5 years ago but it was in a different blgd that included the restaurant. Puking grease, it was nasty. Having rodded and flushed the line prior to the camera all we saw was cloudy water and some paper and "stuff". I was at the downstream cleanout when it cleared and only paper came down the line. No rags, baby wipes, paper towells or anything unusual for a waste line. Cable came back clean. 
The outside clean out is way out of kilter in that it leans like below it has been pushed down. We are going to tunnel under it also and up under the bldg as far as possible to see if we can get any relief there also.

All I know at this point is "this aint gonna be cheap".


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## sparky (Jan 8, 2014)

TXPlumbBob said:


> ShootNRedwood, I asked the owners if they had a cartel guy that could dig under the sewer line for me. They kinda laughed. Not in mood for humor.
> 
> gear junkie, I do not have a skid but will be ordering one asap (any suggestions GenEye). I do not know of anything that has changed in the managers apartment or not. I had a sewer call there about 5 years ago but it was in a different blgd that included the restaurant. Puking grease, it was nasty. Having rodded and flushed the line prior to the camera all we saw was cloudy water and some paper and "stuff". I was at the downstream cleanout when it cleared and only paper came down the line. No rags, baby wipes, paper towells or anything unusual for a waste line. Cable came back clean.
> The outside clean out is way out of kilter in that it leans like below it has been pushed down. We are going to tunnel under it also and up under the bldg as far as possible to see if we can get any relief there also.
> ...


That abs has sagged bad it sounds like,sounds like you are on the right path to gettin it figured out,try what you posted and go from there:yes:


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## justme (Jul 4, 2012)

400 minimum dollars a foot to tunnel and labor should be cheap down there with plenty of experience lol. You need lots or rope,plywood to build your walls and home depot buckets for the dirt . Be careful tunneling in that sandy soil, take all precautions ,ventilation fans and shoring, don't put in cheap shoring use a good grade plywood 3/4" thick . Any money you try saving on shoring might cost someone their life.


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