Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Plumbing Trouble At Our House

Hey everyone, I'm sure you have all faced it at one time or another. You know what I am talking about-plumbing trouble! It's one thing that we all probably share a common dread of, right?!

We actually have an ongoing plumbing issue in our house right now. It started a couple months ago, and although we keep fixing it, the trouble keeps coming back to visit. The main bathroom in our home has a full tub that started clogging up and not draining, oh, about 2-3 months ago. We used some Drain-O type solution, plunged it a couple times, and all appeared to be well. A few days later, however, during my morning shower, I realized that once again, the tub was filling. I double checked to be sure the plug hadn't fallen in, or any of the kids toys, but the drain was clean as far as I could see. Back to the old plunger and Drain-O we went! Again, the problem seemed taken care of, but this time we were on the alert for any slow-draining water! Sure enough, within a few days we were back to square one. 

At this point we went to the internet for help (don't you love being able to Google a question and have tons of answers pull up? Or better yet, tons of people with the same problem?!). One idea looked pretty good, and it was all natural too. So, following instructions, we poured some baking soda and vinegar in the tub, plugged the drain, and let the reaction build. Then we opened the drain, and poured boiling hot water down, flushing the baking soda/vinegar mix apparently all the way down to...the clogged up area! We had hit yet another brick wall (or hairball or some such obstacle :). 

So, after an off-and-on working, not working, draining, then not draining, tub for a couple weeks, our plumbing decided to throw in a new angle. Now not only does the tub fill up and take up to half an hour to drain, but our bathroom sink decided to join in the fun! When the tub or shower is running, our sink gargles, spits water out, and generally misbehaves. If I am washing my hands in the sink, the tub makes odd noises and shoots some water up (thankfully not very high). The worst part is seeing toothpaste come up in the tub when you're trying to run a shower! Can you say disgusting? So, my reaction? I am going to get a professional plumber in here to take care of our bathroom tub (and now sink) once and for all!



  1. I do hate plumbing bathroom problems. A while back I had to call a plumber for my shower, it was not draining. It turned out there were tree roots that were interfering with the drainage. It still occasionally gets clogged, but it usually is with hair. Good luck with the plumber.
    twinkle at optonline dot net

  2. I can't stand plumbing problems! I am so sorry you have had to go through it. Good luck with everything. It will get better! :)

  3. It sounds like you have a big problem, I hate water problems period. Whether its a drain or a leak its something I hate to deal with. It does sound like you have a big clog in the pipe between the bath and the septic tank, since you have water issues in all the areas in the bathroom. You need to get a plumber soon I think.