Our odd sewer problem is that occasionally water, and sometimes some sewage comes up through the floor drain. It only does this when the master shower is being used. But you can use the master shower 100 times and it won’t back up. When it does back up about 1-2 gal of water will come up, that’s it. But the drain line is never pluged. As soon as the water is shut off from the shower, you can pour water down the floor drain and it works fine. I though that the main pipe buried under the slab might have been pitched the wrong way, but then why does it “fix†itself? And only happen very rarely?
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I also have check the backflow valve, and we have no tree roots near our sewer line, which was installed in 1996 when the house was built.
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There are backflow valves that can be installed in most floor drains. A pragmatic solution to the problem.
I had this problem once. The drain line had come apart underground due to a poorly glued joint. The sewage would drain OK until the soil became saturated and wouldn't absorb anymore, then it would back up. It happened only when lots of water went down the drain, like two washer loads back-to-back. I had to dig up the line to find the problem, but an in-pipe camera might work. Hope this helps.
Generally when I have seen this, it fix's itself from water pressure. Might have a small obstruction of TP but when it backs up the weight of the water clears the blockage.
I fear no man & only one GOD. Me
Thanks, Im sure the weight of the water does help clear it out, but I dont know what causes it in the first place. It could be some TP that doesnt get flushed down well enough, then causes the water to back up. just a guess.
Seen it many times, small imperfection in the pipe that the TP gets hung up on then another & another & so on till it becomes blocked, but can't hold more than a few feet of vertical water.I fear no man & only one GOD. Me
Plumberbill,
any solution to the problem? Can you fix it with out tearing up the concrete?
Have someone shoot a camera down the line, to see where the problem is. Yes there is ways to fix some things without replacing.I fear no man & only one GOD. Me
It's entirely possible that there's nothing specific wrong with the drain lines, other than maybe not being sloped enough. In some circumstances a drain line can develop a sort of air lock and back up the way you describe.