So the sink here at Chez Dr. J/CrazyCatLady is clogged (along with the adjacent dishwasher). It ran pretty well up until a little over a week ago, when it just stopped.
We’ve power-plunged. We’ve done countless rounds of various chemical drain openers. We’ve taken off the P-trap down below (which is clean as a whistle) and gone up in the pipe with a snake (standard drum auger), which has gone down about four feet before encountering something that feels more like a bend in the pipe than the clog but just isn’t letting us through. (To be fair, our augering skills might be lacking.)
The rest of the fixtures in the house, including the bathroom just on the other side of the wall, are draining just perfectly.
So, two questions:
–What now?
–Let’s say the answer to the above is “call a plumber”. What is this service going to cost me? It frightens me because every home repair service I’ve encountered has been more expensive than I expected it would be, and I expect a plumber to be ungodly expensive.
Do the kitchen and bath share a vent? (you’ll need to see the roof)
Kitchens drains, with repeated washing of geasy pots/pans/dishes, can cause the vent line to clog ABOVE the drain - if air cannot get into the pipe, the water will not leave - this is why there are vent lines.
I cut out a 70+ year-old vent (2" steel) which was so badly plugged, only about a 1/2" inch dia. hole was still open. Gross, and it didn’t do a thing for drainage.
Also, check for obstructions on the opening of the vent (the old bird’s-nest-on-the-chimney bit).
If the vent is clear, look for a clean-out plug on the drain line. (a clothespin for your nose would not be a bad idea).
Yes, there is a garbage disposal on this line. I suspect we have overused it. I don’t know about the drain vent.
longhair, that’s less than I expected by about an order of magnitude. What did they do that time exactly? If that’s the case, I believe that might be the way to go.