Hair ? in drain

Snake going down about a foot may not be getting down to the P trap. You may need to get at the P trap from the basement and clean it out.

When all else fails try Power Plumber (available at Ace) which is a can of compressed gas can that shoots a stream down the drain to `push' out anything stuck there. Be sure to have the drain valve open to give the gas someplace to go besides back into your face!
Follow the directions and put a rag around the can at the drain to avoid backup.

Soap scum in the "P" trap can build up and clog the passage, the snake might be just going through, I take the shower head off and use a valve cut off, from Home Despot to turn on the stream I aim the stream at the trap and flush the gunk out.

navegator

Check the shower / tub base and the walls around or behind it. Many have an access panel, that will allow access to the trap.

If it is soap scum, sometimes a bucket or large pan of boiling water, poured down all at once, then repeat one or two more times.

There are also, some drain openers the are both safe to use on plastic pipes , and on septic systems. Read the directions closely.

Put the end of the garden hose in the drain, place towel around the hose. Have someone open the water to the hose. Hold the hose in the drain. Has always worked for me in any drain. Make sure drain valve is OPEN.

Why not use Draino. I have used it in the trailer drain a couple of times and it works fine.

radio flyer wrote:
Put the end of the garden hose in the drain, place towel around the hose. Have someone open the water to the hose. Hold the hose in the drain. Has always worked for me in any drain. Make sure drain valve is OPEN.

Seems to me I once saw a hose attachment that had a water balloon thingy on it for this very purpose. You stuck the balloon into the opening, blew it up with water, then it opened a valve and let the pipe have the water pressure. When you turned off the water, the balloon would slowly deflate and release the hose. Seems to me they were around $10 or so.

Sulphuric acid.

Bruce

I bought some enzyme stuff today. I left the valve closed for one shower, and then went and opened it to see the flow out of the tank. The flow out of the tank was only a trickle so the problem is more widespread (black tank comes out full bore.) I am chemically sensitive so have to be very careful what I expose myself to in terms of vapors; so after tonight's shower gets done draining as much as it can, I'm going to close the valve and put this quart of stuff down there and let it sit overnight, to see if it eats through the clog. If that doesn't work I'll try more forceful means. Thanks for the suggestions.

Try using one of these;
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JERRES6/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=ZO07J7YSGGZ7&coliid=IVQC5H28M8B0J

It's a camera for your computer that is 5 meters long and has a light on it.



Under $30 shipped.