*Edit* (again) I called a plumber this morning and spoke to him but it turned out my husband came home so I told the plumber not to come. My hubby doesn't know about the leak and I am still afraid to tell him. I told him I wanted to call a plumber and he got upset with me. He would never hurt me but whenever he decides something is my fault he gets so upset that we fight, sometimes for days, which causes me great stress. I need a happy emotional climate here for our preschool daughter. I put a big pot where the leak is in the basement and will try using the shower today to see what happens. I want a plumber to come but only when my hubby wouldn't find out. Many thanks to all those who reassured me that the vinegar, baking soda and near-boiling water was not what caused the leak. I feel a little less guilty and freaked out, but I still have this problem. When I get this fixed let everyone know how it went. *Peace* and many thanks to all of you for your good help!
*EDIT* Oh no, I just went downstairs to the basement and there's a fast leak coming from a pipe, seems my treatment (baking soda, vinegar, near-boiling water) has caused this and now I want to cry. Found a snake-like device, it was long and flexible but won't go down much farther than a foot. Like I said in my original post, the stopper mechanism won't come out, and apparently there's a bend at the one-foot mark and no snake or wire will pass it. I don't know what to do and I'm in tears. When my hubby discovers what I've done I'll be in big trouble. Any good advice for me? *Peace* ~m.
Hi there, how are you? I'm hoping someone will have an idea for me. My bathtub drain has become so slow that a shower would leave 4 inches of water that would take nearly a half hour to drain. I am afraid to use a commercial drain opener because we have old pipes. Also there is no way to remove the stopper mechanism, so it's in my way as I try to clear the drain. I used baking soda and vinegar with a near-boiling water chaser three times, and after the second time I used the plunger, and a hair clog came up. I pulled up a huge hair clog but am not sure that I got it all. So I did the baking soda and vinegar once more (now I'm all out of baking soda) and I've vigorously used the plunger about 5 times over an hour, with nothing coming up but a few specks of dirt. The drain is even slower now. I also tried using the Turbo Snake (it's a long wire with velcro at the end which grips a hair clog so it can be pulled out) the Turbo Snake brings up nothing, so the blockage has to be farther than about a foot down. I don't know what else to do. Any suggestions? Many thanks for any ideas you may have for me. *Peace*!
I called a plumber this morning and spoke to him but it turned out my husband came home so I told the plumber not to come. My hubby doesn't know about the leak and I am still afraid to tell him. I told him I wanted to call a plumber and he got upset with me. He would never hurt me but whenever he decides something is my fault he gets so upset that we fight, sometimes for days, which causes me great stress. I need a happy emotional climate here for our preschool daughter. I put a big pot where the leak is in the basement and will try using the shower today to see what happens. I want a plumber to come but only when my hubby wouldn't find out. Many thanks to all those who reassured me that the vinegar, baking soda and near-boiling water was not what caused the leak. I feel a little less guilty and freaked out, but I still have this problem. When I get this fixed let everyone know how it went. *Peace* and many thanks to all of you for your good help!
My husband bought some plastic thingy that you shove down the drain and it has little hooks, so it pulls up all the hair. I think he found it at Walmart or Home Depot. It gets all my long hair out of the tub drain. It's about two feet long, but I don't know if that would help.
You can rent a snake at Home Depot.
Hello! I'm fine and tired. On my way to bed...I hope you are better!! :)
oooh my!!! If the snake comes up "empty" it might be that your blockage is further down the pipe than the snake will go.
You might have to hire a plumber to come in and snake your drain - they have 50 foot snakes....unfortunately - we had to do this a few years ago - I think it cost us $300 as the guy was here for about 2 hours and had a LOT of snaking to do.....our home is 44 years old and the pipe was the laundry room pipe and he actually had to use a scope to see what the blockage was.....grease, hair, dirt - you name it - all the hot water plunges we had done had finally congealed where the water was finally cooling off and basically made a damn....
GOOD LUCK!!
We had this happen. A plumber came and cleaned out the pipes. We had really fine roots from the trees in our backyard growing into our pipes. He said they were as fine as hair and we would have the problem again in the future because there is no way to stop the roots.
I would call a plumber.
Edit: My husband would be mad, too and I cry when I am afraid I caused a big problem, something that he is going to need to fix or pay someone else to fix. It is a mixture of feeling stupid and frustrated that I made things worse. You tried. If the pipes are old, it was just a matter of time, just wish it would have happened when HE was trying to fix the plug. ;)
There is something that you can buy (I think) at home depot. It is sort of
a can that you put over the drain and you push hard. It is a big puff of air
that unclogs drains. Can't remember the name, but I am sure if you ask
at Home Depot they would know. If they do not have it, it might be available
only thru plumbers.
No, your treatment didn't cause the leak! It either works on the clog or it doesn't, but whatever the problem is, it was there beforehand. Something's wrong with your pipes but you didn't cause it.
You may need to call a plumber but the snake should go further down unless there is a clog, and there is always a way to remove the stopper. You may need a professional or a handy neighbor.
It's terrible that you are in fear of your husband. That's ridiculous if he's that way. Using a natural treatment was smart. He should support you. Someone who knows about pipes will hopefully reassure you and straighten him out.
Good luck. Try to stop blaming yourself, and try to call someone to help.
you probably have a tree root in your sewer line. when you flush the toilet does it come back into the bath tub. If the answer is yes you have a root in your sewer line.
In some cities, there are 24-hour Plumbers.
Emergency type.
Look at the yellow pages... see if there are any in your city.
Gosh, will your Husband really be pissed and you in trouble over this????
You tried your best, he was not home, you did what you could.
It is not your fault.
OR, can you go next door to a neighbor you know, and ask the Husband to help you??? or the woman of the house???
There is a leak... you need to turn off the main water valve of the house.
If the leak is IN the walls, then there will be water damage there too.
Where is the leak coming from?????
You need to call maybe 911???
Can they do anything???
Think... who can you call now? Friends? Relatives??? Any neighbors??? 24-hour Plumbers????
I worry, about your saying that you'll be in big trouble when your Husband discovers what you have done.
And you are crying.....
Please call someone, to help....
Just asking did this get solved? Oh you poor thing.
I've got a plumber in the family. You didn't "cause" this leak. It had to have been there. It IS possible that grime built around the faulty area & has now been "cleaned" and viola--no the leak.
Sounds like you need to call a professional. Good luck!
Are you sure the stopper won't come out. I've had experience with a lot of tubs and never saw one that wouldn't. One of mine had a screen held down with screws. Once you took the screen off you could remove the stopper.
Another had to be raised as high as it would go, then turned so that it fit into grooves and then could be pulled out. The first time I tried it I thought it wouldn't pull out but discovered it was held tight by a wad of hair. I continued to wiggle and twist to eventually get it pulled out.
Once you get the stopper out you can rent a professional style snake and snake it yourself.
I was able to clear hair clogs out of the bathtub drain with the under $10 drain snake from Home Depot/Lowes. I also had good luck with the plastic thing with hooks on it (about $3). If you can't get the do it yourself methods to work you may need to call a pro. Sorry this is such a stressful mess you have to deal with :( It is so frustrating when things don't work the way they are supposed to.
