# Cable this!



## OpenSights (Mar 23, 2015)

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## OpenSights (Mar 23, 2015)

Plaster sink today at an orthodontist office. Third pic is the best I could get of the corigated. The trap portion of the inlet of the catch was 90% full of plaster. They had a detailed log of inspection and replacement of the bucket. I cabled the line to be on the safe side, not bad at all!


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## Debo22 (Feb 15, 2015)

Might be a good idea to cut a hole in the vanity floor the same size as the bucket trap, the extra 3-4 inches may give better slope and eliminate a future stoppage.


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## dhal22 (Jul 30, 2010)

OpenSights said:


> ...


I love Fernco couplings. And crappy work. Half of the repair work we do is redoing crappy work.


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## OpenSights (Mar 23, 2015)

Debo22 said:


> Might be a good idea to cut a hole in the vanity floor the same size as the bucket trap, the extra 3-4 inches may give better slope and eliminate a future stoppage.


Not a bad idea. Only issue is the staff when it comes time to change it. The lady who monitors/changes the bucket is a small elderly lady, I'm guessing sliding it out of the cabinet is hard enough.


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## OpenSights (Mar 23, 2015)

dhal22 said:


> I love Fernco couplings. And crappy work. Half of the repair work we do is redoing crappy work.


I wish I had more time and ability to take more pics of what I come across out here.... the goofieness of people's creativity always amazes me!


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## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

Was it difficult to cable the plaster?


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## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

You need to sell them an interceptor to put under that sink to catch all that trash.


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## WashingtonPlung (Jul 25, 2016)

Tommy plumber said:


> Was it difficult to cable the plaster?


About a month ago I had to snake a line in a Pottery classroom. 

After I broke up the pottery sludge with a C-cutter head. I pulled the head back out and it was polished and not really a matte black like it use to be.

And the line was a pain to snake. It took me 2 hours with a 5/8 cable on a k-50


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## OpenSights (Mar 23, 2015)

Tommy plumber said:


> You need to sell them an interceptor to put under that sink to catch all that trash.


I guess the bucket trap is industry standard for dentists, big bucks per bucket. Works quite well I must say. 95% of the issue was on the sink side of the bucket. 



Tommy plumber said:


> Was it difficult to cable the plaster?


Line wasn't bad at all, just did that to be sure. Minor grey/white residue, used a clogchopper.


Those hoses are slip fitting. The waste outlet from the tee dripped so put a hose clamp on it, the outlet into the marvel surprisingly had no issue. And by slip fitting I mean push it in or over and done. 

I've had dentist offices in the past and between the plaster sink line and X-ray lines are the worst, but I was surprised with this bucket system and how well it worked.


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## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

WashingtonPlung said:


> About a month ago I had to snake a line in a Pottery classroom.
> 
> After I broke up the pottery sludge with a C-cutter head. I pulled the head back out and it was polished and not really a matte black like it use to be.
> 
> And the line was a pain to snake. It took me 2 hours with a 5/8 cable on a k-50












I hope you charged extra; my flat rate price book has an add-on for difficult drain/extra bail of cable.


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## OpenSights (Mar 23, 2015)

Tommy plumber said:


> I hope you charged extra; my flat rate price book has an add-on for difficult drain/extra bail of cable.


I need to learn to change extra for extra long lines, time wise. I charge extra for extensions, but not time, and I need too. This one took just over an hour from set up to writing the bill. Should've been half that.


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## sparky (Jan 8, 2014)

dhal22 said:


> I love Fernco couplings. And crappy work. Half of the repair work we do is redoing crappy work.


No telling how long it has been that way,I'd say yrs and yrs


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## OpenSights (Mar 23, 2015)

sparky said:


> No telling how long it has been that way,I'd say yrs and yrs


He's had the house for just over a year. Everything was draining just fine when I cabled it, but told him there was an issue. I'd say it was misaligned like that for more than five years at least.


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## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

OpenSights said:


> I've had dentist offices in the past and between the plaster sink line and *X-ray lines are the worst*, but I was surprised with this bucket system and how well it worked.


 









I cabled a sink line in a doctor's office once where they rinsed out something to do with x-rays. Silver nitrate or silver something-or-another was washed down the drain line. It was like concrete. I believe there was x-ray film next to that sink. And yes, it was a tough line to cable.


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## WashingtonPlung (Jul 25, 2016)

Tommy plumber said:


> I hope you charged extra; my flat rate price book has an add-on for difficult drain/extra bail of cable.


When you work for the school district as an employee it's all in a days wage


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## chonkie (Jul 31, 2014)

OpenSights said:


> Not a bad idea. Only issue is the staff when it comes time to change it. The lady who monitors/changes the bucket is a small elderly lady, I'm guessing sliding it out of the cabinet is hard enough.


How often do they have to change the bucket? Are they set up with a regularly scheduled cleaning program to keep the lines from getting that bad again? Maybe offer something like that and also offer to swap out the bucket during the scheduled visit.


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## chonkie (Jul 31, 2014)

I am surprised to hear about the x-ray lines. Wouldn't have even guessed they have drain lines. Is the drain tied into a special collection device or just to the city sewer?


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## GAN (Jul 10, 2012)

chonkie said:


> I am surprised to hear about the x-ray lines. Wouldn't have even guessed they have drain lines. Is the drain tied into a special collection device or just to the city sewer?


Tied into trap indirectly last one I connected. You have Calcium Carbonate & Iron deposits to contend with. More important is an RPZ when it is directly connected. They do make a cleaner to help dissolve the build up.

More & more going to digital X rays, no processing and ready in minutes.


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## OpenSights (Mar 23, 2015)

chonkie said:


> How often do they have to change the bucket? Are they set up with a regularly scheduled cleaning program to keep the lines from getting that bad again? Maybe offer something like that and also offer to swap out the bucket during the scheduled visit.


I'm thinking of doing that, but they need to be responsible for disposal. I'm not sure if there's anything inperticlar or not. Looks like they inspect it once a month and swap it out every two to three months. My wife use to do the Dr.'s taxes, he can afford a routine maintenance bill.


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## OpenSights (Mar 23, 2015)

Speaking of x-rays, we're doing a resto job at a small town vet. There's water to it, but no drain to the septic. According to the vet he pays a company to remove the old chemicals and replace with new. He says the laws changed 15-20 years ago not allowing it to go to a septic. He didn't have an RPZ before and just about **** his pants when we told him he HAS to have one and how much they cost.

I know that you need an RPZ, but why not just a watts 9d? When we install a water driven liberty sump pump we have to use a watts 9d, but in one township the inspector requires an RPZ.


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## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

Far enough south, the backflow devices are outside; but I see that your in Michigan, where do you guys install RPZ's especially given the fact that if the device dumps, provision has to be made for a drain?


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## OpenSights (Mar 23, 2015)

Tommy plumber said:


> Far enough south, the backflow devices are outside; but I see that your in Michigan, where do you guys install RPZ's especially given the fact that if the device dumps, provision has to be made for a drain?


Generally inside a basement/mechanical room with a drop tube to the floor, doesn't need to be close to a floor drain, but one is required. For irrigation rpz's are outside with a shutoff and boiler drain ball valve for drain down and blow out the system inside. We've made a ton of $ when prop. Mgt. decides to winterize their irrigation themselves. 

Honestly, I haven't done a irrigation set up in over three years and hope I never do again. One customer, who was very slow to pay wanted it for free. Another, whatever the cost. I'm done with that racket.

Edit: inside my inspector likes to see an inside discharge go to a drain... but I've seen approval stickers on no tube whatsoever.


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## dhal22 (Jul 30, 2010)

sparky said:


> No telling how long it has been that way,I'd say yrs and yrs


No issues because we don't know about it until it fails. Just sit back and let the hacks work. We repaired a broken water service line tee under a busy drive through yesterday and last night. The repair probably cost more than the entire commercial building service line when it was installed new. Terrible glue joint and cracked tee due to lack of proper compaction. 

There's another out there falling now, just gotta wait for the customer to call.


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