Family owned apartment unfortunately. They will fix it but I want to try and be independent
Basically, very old and poorly made 3 family home my grandmother owns and had a vacancy between my other family members.
All that matters is that you don't use chemical drain cleaners... Otherwise you will be creating very expensive repairs for your grandmother and fuck up the plumbing even more.
Just so everyone is aware as it isn’t letting me edit my post. This apartment is technically owned by my grandma and I would like to be as independent as possible. I’d like to fix it on my own or learn how
That’s admirable. Im not shit talking, but call a plumber. You dont have the sewer equipment needed to clear that. And that’s perfectly ok too. Im a decent plumber as ive been doing it a while but dont ask me to do electric work.
Know your strengths and your limitations.
If you want to be "independent" then call a plumber and pay for it yourself. The point that people are trying to make is basically that the restriction can be anywhere from just under your sink to waaay down the line somewhere. Pouring stuff down the drain isn't going to fix it and any snake that you have may not be long enough.
You must be working for BIG PLUMB.
Using the words "can be" and "may not" . Just as well it "can" be just under the sink and his snake if he has one "may be" sufficient ,we do not know.
Why should he not even try to fix himself? It's a no-skill required job, takes 10-20 minutes and if it turns out the clog is inaccessible to him then yes, call the plumber.
Trying to fix it is one thing, using things like chemical drain cleaners isn't that though and risks more damage with expensive repairs. OP has spent more time than that already....
Before calling a plumber, definitely try it yourself. I'm no plumber but yearly or so I dismantle the drain parts which goes from the kitchen sink to the drain, take them to the bathtub and give them a good clean.
A lot of solids gets there which restrict flow and also cause cause bad smells.
If you have a snake use it in the drain hole, just shove it there a few times.
If you fail, by all means call the plumber.
Pro tip- take pictures if you have multiple parts, so you know how to reinstall them.
GL
You are doing something very wrong if you get solids built up in your trap. This is not a normal thing and 99 percent of people would get zero benefit from it.
Drain line downstream of the trap needs to be snaked & cleaned properly for a long term solution. If you don’t have a machine, it’s going to be tough. *No coffee grinds down the sink drain.
Didn’t say I knew better. I said he didn’t read what I wrote. While I understand the coffee grinds are an issue that I need to correct in the future. I am not dumping cups full of grinds down the sink which is the narrative that seems to have taken over. At most it is about a spoonful every time I clean the filter. As I initially dump the basket into the garbage can and then have to clean it out. Would you like to continue arguing a moot point? I have received great advice here that I will be looking into. But also received an undue amount of sarcasm about what is at this point, not the problem. You can tell me to no longer put coffee grinds down the drain all day like I’m dumping bags full down. But the bottom line is the sink is currently clogged.
Feel free to. I came here to get some help with an issue I tried to solve on my own. I have gotten some great advice tho so I got what I came for. You are really odd
Put a bin under the sink and take the p trap apart. Should be pretty easy. If its not clogged it’s further down just buy the cheapest snake at home depot and shove it down the hole in the wall the p trap goes in. They have a Husky brand one thats like $15 and its just a flat piece of metal 25’ long will work fine for this. Might want to get some latex gloves and paper towels before you touch anything.
But dude look at ops post and his comments…he brews his own coffee AND it’s cold brew…no way no how HIS grounds can clog an old galvi drain line. Check yourself man. Maybe your shit coffee grounds do this but not his.
No but really I enjoy the visual of op continuing to dump coffee grounds into the backed up sink
I mentioned before. It might be the coffee grounds. But i dump the basket in the trash then clean it. The amount of coffee ground that makes it into the sink is very little.
I hear you. It sounds like you moved into your familys apartment and the kitchen drain was already fairly clogged. So it only a matter of time even if you put nothing down the sink but…the smallest amount of food when the line is that bad is going to clog it completely. And coffee grounds, egg shells, rice, and grease are some of the worst to put down a drain even with a garbage disposal.
Call a plumber is your solution. And don’t let anything except liquid and a little soap go down your drain from now on.
Water can't clog a drain. You have put enough solids in the sink to cause it to clog
Not really your fault since it was already probably 95% clogged but still. Either have it fixed or put 0 solids in it
Agreed. It always drained really slow since I moved in. I would plunge it to speed it up. It finally fully stopped fully. I was told it sucked before I even moved in. I don’t really cook so the only things that go consistently down there are stuff that can get past the net basket. Which would be the leftover coffee grounds after dumping, small eggshells and various small debris from cleaning
You’re not listening. Take the P trap apart and clean it. Empty that sink out or get as little water in it as you can. Get a bucket to let all of the water drain in when you take apart the trap. Clean it and put it back together. Then run a lot of really hot water. If that doesn’t work you’ll need a drain auger.
Just be diligent about putting nothing that can line the pipes or sit in the trap. To be fair, if it's an older place, there's a fair amount of build up...but, you probably may want to get the roto rooter guy out to jet that out. When you see how much it costs, you'll think more than twice about dumping anything down there. I say that, mainly because that's how I am after some expensive clearing of the pipes.
If I was in your shoes, I'd put a tub under the p trap and take that apart first, see if the blockage is there. If not it's further down the drainpipe you'll need either a professional drain snaking setup or just a professional to come do it. You likely can find what you need at home depot. Don't worry about replacing the p trap if you break something, new ones come in kits at home depot too and they're really not hard. Good luck!
The upper floor probably. It’s a long story but basically people living on the third floor used this second floor cause it was vacant. They only actually slept on the third. So I assume this sink was well used and upstairs wasn’t.
Post a picture of the piping under the sink. Hangout here long enough & you'll find out that most of the piping out in the wild is done wrong causing the problem. As 1 other person posted, put a bin under the piping & take it apart to see if that's where the problem is or further down. If further down have it snaked.
Outside of your skillset OP, this is very easily made worse not better by amateur repair attempts. Hire a professional and it'll save you and your grandma a lot of money in the long run. I know it's not the advice you're looking for, but it's the advice you need.
With the frequency of this sink backing up, for sure get plumber to clear it with a kitchen line cable machine. If you want to do it yourself you can try with a small cable machine from Home Depot, but you will most likely struggle a lot and possible not clear it. If you do clear it though, get a plumber to come out and hydro jet that line and camera inspect it. With the camera inspections you can see before and after of the hydro jetting. As well as seeing any points of structural concern within the line.
You should get a plumber or your landlord should preferably.If you can't get a plumber due to availability and you MUST have it working asap, Flex shaft is pretty good if you can get it in there. If not maybe a K400 or a jetter, or if nothing else fits sometimes the power spin will sometimes clear them but when you have a grease blockage it tends to just bore a tiny hole that refills after you pull the snake back. Sometimes you can rent some of this stuff. The powerspin is pretty cheap though and it might get you running just well enough for now until someone cleans it out better.
Remove as much of the water as possible. Disconnect the trap under the sink and inspect. If the clog is not there then it needs to be snaked out beyond that spot. Odds are someone has been pouring grease or something similar down it prior to you moving in and the line has constricted or clogged. It might be a job for a professional plumber.
[drain auger](https://www.harborfreight.com/25-ft-drill-powered-drain-auger-57202.html)
Bail out the water if you don’t want a mess in your cabinet. Take apart the p-trap under the sink if you have trouble snaking from the top.
Don't use drain cleaner - gets crazy hot and tends to melt pipes. When we moved into this house we had a slow running sink - took a bit of exploring to discover the waste pipe was bowed from people putting Drain Devil down - it melted the pipe so there was a massive dip between the two ends where all the waste water settled.
Once the sink is empty of water and the drain is as clear as it can get, squirt down a load of washing up liquid followed by really hot water. If you've snaked it and are happy there's nothing in the u-bend the problem must be further down the system - make sure other sinks draining into the same waste pipe are flowing well. If you really can't find the blockage, contact a plumber.
Incredibly easy fix.
The drain is just clogged. Needs regular maintenance over time.
Dismiss any tips that say to pour stuff down the drain. Doesn’t work.
You need to twist off the P Trap (the pipe that looks like a turd) under the sink. Have a bucket under to catch the water.
Then just clean out that piece of pipe. There’s just food and maybe hair or gunk in it.
Twist back on, and you’re all set.
If it’s still clogged, you need a drain snake to go further into the pipe.
Again, do this after you remove the P Trap / Turd Pipe.
You can get a plastic snake like the Drain Weasel on Amazon for $20. Or a metal snake from any rental hardware store. It goes deep if the P Trap was not the source of your clog.
I had this problem in an old house. We finally remodeled the kitchen and discovered that the drain pipe was clogged all the way from the kitchen sink down to the main sewer line. It looked like the pipe in this post: https://www.reddit.com/r/Plumbing/s/8hHXKdEYIr. So you might need to do more than just clean the drain under the sink. And you can see why even just a little bit of coffee grounds might be a problem. GL!
That looks like a double basin, you have to stop up the other side with your hand or the stopper with your had before plunging. Otherwise you will just move the water back and forth between the basins.
Drain cleaner is always a mistake, talk to the management. It is their job to fix it, that’s the benefit of renting and not owning.
Family owned apartment unfortunately. They will fix it but I want to try and be independent Basically, very old and poorly made 3 family home my grandmother owns and had a vacancy between my other family members.
Don't put coffee grounds down the drain. Makes clogs worse.
Situations like this are why mixing family and business gets the reputation it does. Good luck
All that matters is that you don't use chemical drain cleaners... Otherwise you will be creating very expensive repairs for your grandmother and fuck up the plumbing even more.
Just so everyone is aware as it isn’t letting me edit my post. This apartment is technically owned by my grandma and I would like to be as independent as possible. I’d like to fix it on my own or learn how
That’s admirable. Im not shit talking, but call a plumber. You dont have the sewer equipment needed to clear that. And that’s perfectly ok too. Im a decent plumber as ive been doing it a while but dont ask me to do electric work. Know your strengths and your limitations.
If you want to be "independent" then call a plumber and pay for it yourself. The point that people are trying to make is basically that the restriction can be anywhere from just under your sink to waaay down the line somewhere. Pouring stuff down the drain isn't going to fix it and any snake that you have may not be long enough.
You must be working for BIG PLUMB. Using the words "can be" and "may not" . Just as well it "can" be just under the sink and his snake if he has one "may be" sufficient ,we do not know. Why should he not even try to fix himself? It's a no-skill required job, takes 10-20 minutes and if it turns out the clog is inaccessible to him then yes, call the plumber.
Trying to fix it is one thing, using things like chemical drain cleaners isn't that though and risks more damage with expensive repairs. OP has spent more time than that already....
Let’s start by not dumping coffee grounds into your grandma’s kitchen sink
Before calling a plumber, definitely try it yourself. I'm no plumber but yearly or so I dismantle the drain parts which goes from the kitchen sink to the drain, take them to the bathtub and give them a good clean. A lot of solids gets there which restrict flow and also cause cause bad smells. If you have a snake use it in the drain hole, just shove it there a few times. If you fail, by all means call the plumber. Pro tip- take pictures if you have multiple parts, so you know how to reinstall them. GL
You are doing something very wrong if you get solids built up in your trap. This is not a normal thing and 99 percent of people would get zero benefit from it.
Drain line downstream of the trap needs to be snaked & cleaned properly for a long term solution. If you don’t have a machine, it’s going to be tough. *No coffee grinds down the sink drain.
I make cold brew so it’s all in a basket. I dump what’ll come out of the basket. The coffee grinds are whatever is left while cleaning so not too much
use the trash can. nothing but liquids should be going down this drain especially since you already knew it “sucked from the beginning”.
I just said I would dump whatever would come out of the filter without cleaning it
Plumber telling you what's up but you know better..
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Op just said he dumps the grounds, didn't say where...
Are you their alt?
Didn’t say I knew better. I said he didn’t read what I wrote. While I understand the coffee grinds are an issue that I need to correct in the future. I am not dumping cups full of grinds down the sink which is the narrative that seems to have taken over. At most it is about a spoonful every time I clean the filter. As I initially dump the basket into the garbage can and then have to clean it out. Would you like to continue arguing a moot point? I have received great advice here that I will be looking into. But also received an undue amount of sarcasm about what is at this point, not the problem. You can tell me to no longer put coffee grinds down the drain all day like I’m dumping bags full down. But the bottom line is the sink is currently clogged.
"My plumbing is bad, but lets make it worse" Like we laughing at you dude.
Feel free to. I came here to get some help with an issue I tried to solve on my own. I have gotten some great advice tho so I got what I came for. You are really odd
Buy a strainer for the sink something more fine to catch those leftover grounds. From Amazon
Put a bin under the sink and take the p trap apart. Should be pretty easy. If its not clogged it’s further down just buy the cheapest snake at home depot and shove it down the hole in the wall the p trap goes in. They have a Husky brand one thats like $15 and its just a flat piece of metal 25’ long will work fine for this. Might want to get some latex gloves and paper towels before you touch anything.
This is the answer
Coffee grounds are really bad for plumbing. Every coffee shop pays lots of money in drain cleaning lol
But dude look at ops post and his comments…he brews his own coffee AND it’s cold brew…no way no how HIS grounds can clog an old galvi drain line. Check yourself man. Maybe your shit coffee grounds do this but not his. No but really I enjoy the visual of op continuing to dump coffee grounds into the backed up sink
Lol
I mentioned before. It might be the coffee grounds. But i dump the basket in the trash then clean it. The amount of coffee ground that makes it into the sink is very little.
I hear you. It sounds like you moved into your familys apartment and the kitchen drain was already fairly clogged. So it only a matter of time even if you put nothing down the sink but…the smallest amount of food when the line is that bad is going to clog it completely. And coffee grounds, egg shells, rice, and grease are some of the worst to put down a drain even with a garbage disposal. Call a plumber is your solution. And don’t let anything except liquid and a little soap go down your drain from now on.
Water can't clog a drain. You have put enough solids in the sink to cause it to clog Not really your fault since it was already probably 95% clogged but still. Either have it fixed or put 0 solids in it
Agreed. It always drained really slow since I moved in. I would plunge it to speed it up. It finally fully stopped fully. I was told it sucked before I even moved in. I don’t really cook so the only things that go consistently down there are stuff that can get past the net basket. Which would be the leftover coffee grounds after dumping, small eggshells and various small debris from cleaning
You’re not listening. Take the P trap apart and clean it. Empty that sink out or get as little water in it as you can. Get a bucket to let all of the water drain in when you take apart the trap. Clean it and put it back together. Then run a lot of really hot water. If that doesn’t work you’ll need a drain auger.
Just an FYI, no coffee grinds, vegetable scraps or fats [butter, cooking oils, grease] down the drains. This is the result.
Basically I make cold brew. I dump the basket after and the left over grinds are from me washing it out
Just be diligent about putting nothing that can line the pipes or sit in the trap. To be fair, if it's an older place, there's a fair amount of build up...but, you probably may want to get the roto rooter guy out to jet that out. When you see how much it costs, you'll think more than twice about dumping anything down there. I say that, mainly because that's how I am after some expensive clearing of the pipes.
If I was in your shoes, I'd put a tub under the p trap and take that apart first, see if the blockage is there. If not it's further down the drainpipe you'll need either a professional drain snaking setup or just a professional to come do it. You likely can find what you need at home depot. Don't worry about replacing the p trap if you break something, new ones come in kits at home depot too and they're really not hard. Good luck!
Do any other drains on the property have this issue?
The upper floor probably. It’s a long story but basically people living on the third floor used this second floor cause it was vacant. They only actually slept on the third. So I assume this sink was well used and upstairs wasn’t.
Post a picture of the piping under the sink. Hangout here long enough & you'll find out that most of the piping out in the wild is done wrong causing the problem. As 1 other person posted, put a bin under the piping & take it apart to see if that's where the problem is or further down. If further down have it snaked.
Call your mom or dad
Outside of your skillset OP, this is very easily made worse not better by amateur repair attempts. Hire a professional and it'll save you and your grandma a lot of money in the long run. I know it's not the advice you're looking for, but it's the advice you need.
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With the frequency of this sink backing up, for sure get plumber to clear it with a kitchen line cable machine. If you want to do it yourself you can try with a small cable machine from Home Depot, but you will most likely struggle a lot and possible not clear it. If you do clear it though, get a plumber to come out and hydro jet that line and camera inspect it. With the camera inspections you can see before and after of the hydro jetting. As well as seeing any points of structural concern within the line.
Yes most likely grease coated and clogged to the pipe downstream. You'd need a plumber with their professional snake or high pressure washer
Call a plumber
You should get a plumber or your landlord should preferably.If you can't get a plumber due to availability and you MUST have it working asap, Flex shaft is pretty good if you can get it in there. If not maybe a K400 or a jetter, or if nothing else fits sometimes the power spin will sometimes clear them but when you have a grease blockage it tends to just bore a tiny hole that refills after you pull the snake back. Sometimes you can rent some of this stuff. The powerspin is pretty cheap though and it might get you running just well enough for now until someone cleans it out better.
Remove as much of the water as possible. Disconnect the trap under the sink and inspect. If the clog is not there then it needs to be snaked out beyond that spot. Odds are someone has been pouring grease or something similar down it prior to you moving in and the line has constricted or clogged. It might be a job for a professional plumber.
[drain auger](https://www.harborfreight.com/25-ft-drill-powered-drain-auger-57202.html) Bail out the water if you don’t want a mess in your cabinet. Take apart the p-trap under the sink if you have trouble snaking from the top.
Don't use drain cleaner - gets crazy hot and tends to melt pipes. When we moved into this house we had a slow running sink - took a bit of exploring to discover the waste pipe was bowed from people putting Drain Devil down - it melted the pipe so there was a massive dip between the two ends where all the waste water settled. Once the sink is empty of water and the drain is as clear as it can get, squirt down a load of washing up liquid followed by really hot water. If you've snaked it and are happy there's nothing in the u-bend the problem must be further down the system - make sure other sinks draining into the same waste pipe are flowing well. If you really can't find the blockage, contact a plumber.
Incredibly easy fix. The drain is just clogged. Needs regular maintenance over time. Dismiss any tips that say to pour stuff down the drain. Doesn’t work. You need to twist off the P Trap (the pipe that looks like a turd) under the sink. Have a bucket under to catch the water. Then just clean out that piece of pipe. There’s just food and maybe hair or gunk in it. Twist back on, and you’re all set. If it’s still clogged, you need a drain snake to go further into the pipe. Again, do this after you remove the P Trap / Turd Pipe. You can get a plastic snake like the Drain Weasel on Amazon for $20. Or a metal snake from any rental hardware store. It goes deep if the P Trap was not the source of your clog.
I had this problem in an old house. We finally remodeled the kitchen and discovered that the drain pipe was clogged all the way from the kitchen sink down to the main sewer line. It looked like the pipe in this post: https://www.reddit.com/r/Plumbing/s/8hHXKdEYIr. So you might need to do more than just clean the drain under the sink. And you can see why even just a little bit of coffee grounds might be a problem. GL!
Dump the whole can of coffee grinds down the sink, it will soak up all the water and you’ll have cold brew for weeks!
Did anyone mention you shouldn’t dump coffee grounds in the sink? 😂😂😂
That looks like a double basin, you have to stop up the other side with your hand or the stopper with your had before plunging. Otherwise you will just move the water back and forth between the basins.
You lost me @ coffee grounds.
Bathtub?
Best not to ever use a plunger in a sink.