[mshred]

Have my foundation dug up for waterproofing and my storm drain is clogged to hell with mud and sand...City wont do anything since they cant get to property line, so it falls on me- hoping the drain isn't collapsed, but I have no idea. I do know the drain does not intersect with any gas lines. I have had it snaked, and also a camera put through, and it is backed up BAD

My question is would hydro jetting be the best fix at this point? The house was built in 1955 and I think uses cast iron or clay pipe (I know totally different in strength- I think they are cast iron) and I am wondering if the hydro jetting would clean it out well enough to not have to dig up my entire driveway to replace the pipe...I have no idea what the hydro jetting costs though.

Any input you guys have is appreciated...I just got this house 3 weeks ago, not sure what the hell could cause the storm drain to back up this damn badly- there are no trees anywhere near it

 

[Skypower]

I think there are ways of puttin a liner in cast iron pipes but I don't know much about it or cleaning them out.

 

[benrud]

Went through this last fall, mine was concrete had a couple collapse
Out in the yard . Ended up digging it all up and replacing it .
Don't know about the cast though . Good luck

 

[wannaz]

What part of the country do you live in? I run a hydro truck for the city I work for. They are safe to use in either clay or iron pipe. Most of our main lines are old and made of clay pipe, we flush them all the time with no ill affects. Where I am from though, the 50sand early to mid 60s, had a pipe called orangeburg. Junk stuff basically layers of cardboard tube doused in tar. Gets old and collapses on it's own. Where is the storm drain at on your property as far as the intake portion of it?

 

[mshred]

I live in Toronto, Canada, but I imagine its the same premise as what you guys have in the U.S.

I dont think it is cardboard tube- I have a cleanout for storm and sanitary in my basement, and I know the sanitary is cast iron according to the city guy who came out, so I assume the storm is the same. The intake portion is both at the front and at the back, and my weepers at the foundation tie into it as well.

This has put a whole stop in my process of finishing the water proofing job because I want to get the drainage issue fixed before I go and backfill everything

So you are saying that the hydrojet works well and wont phuck up clay or iron pipe? From what I understand it is just like a pressure washer from hell for your pipes

 

[mshred]

Went through this last fall, mine was concrete had a couple collapse
Out in the yard . Ended up digging it all up and replacing it .
Don't know about the cast though . Good luck

I want to avoid this...I just have no idea how the pipe could get so damn full of crap, almost seems like it would have to be a collapse? Not sure if it matters, but the blockage is like within 1 meter of the cleanout entry, hopefully a collapse the shit is only near the collapsed portion?

If I have to dig it out, my whole driveway has to come up and I can't use a mini ex like I did for the foundation, I need the big mama jamma

 

[benrud]

Its a pain in the ass , but at least your crawl space isn't flooded yet , ours was I had to take out a concrete patio so I hear the driveway part Lol .

 

[crumple]

What part of the country do you live in? I run a hydro truck for the city I work for. They are safe to use in either clay or iron pipe. Most of our main lines are old and made of clay pipe, we flush them all the time with no ill affects. Where I am from though, the 50sand early to mid 60s, had a pipe called orangeburg. Junk stuff basically layers of cardboard tube doused in tar. Gets old and collapses on it's own. Where is the storm drain at on your property as far as the intake portion of it?

My whole neighborhood suffers from the "Orangeburg curse". Every house had it between the foundation and the sewer under the street and every one eventually had to replace it due to collapse.

 

[Born To Run]

If you can hydro jetting is good,it's a torpedo propelled by water shooting backwards blowing all the sand,silt etc upstream while the head is forced downstream.
You are fine to hydro jet cast iron,clay,plastic etc.
The other pipe some guy mentioned cardboard tar etc is called "no corrode" here n Ontario.it is highly compressed multi layered tar paper (very black in colour) I have come across it once or twice,it collapses over time or goes extremely oval.Where in Toronto are you,I was in the city today.
Snake out the drain while running hose in drain,make the silt & sand flow while spinning the snake,it's a pain in the ass but doable.
Drain guys are heavily into sales/make work projects ie dig it up,look at what the camera shows etc.
If the drain is cast iron the bulk of the blockage is probably rust from corrosion,very common,I have snaked lots of them to clear.

 

[Badbascom]

I bought the 99$ deal from the back of popular mechanics, clog hog,, hooks up to your pressure washer. Works awesome except my clog was due to a broken pipe. The jet did at least clean it up so I could inspect and work on it.

 

[Born To Run]

My whole neighborhood suffers from the "Orangeburg curse". Every house had it between the foundation and the sewer under the street and every one eventually had to replace it due to collapse.

Yep that was marketed here called no corrode.
I believe Orangeburg was the manufacture.
Used here in the late 60s & 70s.
It was marketed as not corroding & would not crack or break if shifting occurred.
Over years of use it becomes like a wet roll of toilet paper.

 

[mshred]

If you can hydro jetting is good,it's a torpedo propelled by water shooting backwards blowing all the sand,silt etc upstream while the head is forced downstream.
You are fine to hydro jet cast iron,clay,plastic etc.
The other pipe some guy mentioned cardboard tar etc is called "no corrode" here n Ontario.it is highly compressed multi layered tar paper (very black in colour) I have come across it once or twice,it collapses over time or goes extremely oval.Where in Toronto are you,I was in the city today.
Snake out the drain while running hose in drain,make the silt & sand flow while spinning the snake,it's a pain in the ass but doable.
Drain guys are heavily into sales/make work projects ie dig it up,look at what the camera shows etc.
If the drain is cast iron the bulk of the blockage is probably rust from corrosion,very common,I have snaked lots of them to clear.

We tried snaking it on Monday, it did fuck all...I am in Scarborough. City sent in drain guys sub contracted out with a camera, the entire pipe is almost blocked solid with dirt/mud/sand, I saw it on the screen myself. Was thinking of renting a snake from Home Depot and trying again myself, but I feel like the snake is not going to get rid of all of it as we snaked it from the cleanout in the house and in one of the drains outside where I currently have the house dug up for water proofing.

 

[Born To Run]

We tried snaking it on Monday, it did fuck all...I am in Scarborough. City sent in drain guys sub contracted out with a camera, the entire pipe is almost blocked solid with dirt/mud/sand, I saw it on the screen myself. Was thinking of renting a snake from Home Depot and trying again myself, but I feel like the snake is not going to get rid of all of it as we snaked it from the cleanout in the house and in one of the drains outside where I currently have the house dug up for water proofing.

Back in the old days,the storm would have a master trap on it where in exits the house just inside or just outside.If there is a trap snaking through it will be difficult but doable.
How can the camera show anything when it's full of mud,sand etc.The cameras only works well when the drain is clear in my opinion.
I would do what you mentioned,rent a snake,with at least 7/8 or 1" cable size & a variety of heads for it.
I would start with just bare snake first run it through how ever far the street is,then put on a 2" taper head cutter on & run it through running lots of water,you have to make it a slurry so it will begin to flow.
Also if you can rent some plunging rods as well,shop vac if you can get into drain easily to help suck out the sand,mud etc.
It's not easy & will wear you down.Spend a few hundred,could save you many thousands.
Good luck

 

[ledsled87]

Had to replace the Orangeburg in one of my houses, was flat and had roots in it... I wonder how much money they made selling the then latest and greatest new pipe... I guess they didnt care what happened 40-50 years down the road...

 

[FEARMONT]

PM sent

 

[bigf19]

I work in Orangeburg, NY across the hwy from where the Orangeburg Pipe factory used to be, That shit didn't even last 25 years in some cases, fucking garbage!When I replaced mine, I used sch 80 plastic.

 

[59 wagon man]

forget about using a big nasty cutter head to start there are chisel point bits which can attach to the end of the snake. mine are about 5/8" wide and this would be what i start with. i would also overflow the drain with water so i know if i clear the clog by the water beginning to drain. once you get water flowing ,gradually increase the size of the snake head till you open it up as much as possible. make sure you run the water down the drain while snaking as this will help to flush the drain. this is a tip for your worst case scenario. if you get the water to begin draining or can not push the snake any furthur mark the cable with a piece of tape . now pull the cable out and measure how many feet you were in. this will allow you to tell a plumber with locating equipment how far you went and he can locate that spot within inches saving a lot of digging and additional expense

 

[mshred]

Had someone come by today...they told me they can't hydrojet if water doesnt flow through, more then likely have to dig up the pipe...After he left I had water flowing, but there is still a backup. Another friends guy is coming tomorrow, I'll see what he says.

One thing I don't like is that the weeper at the front of the house is drooped big time and not sitting inside the t for the storm drain hardly at all..I took some pics on my phone, but I can't upload them here. Its such a fucked up situation at the moment

 

[lt1camaro383]

Had someone come by today...they told me they can't hydrojet if water doesnt flow through, more then likely have to dig up the pipe...After he left I had water flowing, but there is still a backup. Another friends guy is coming tomorrow, I'll see what he says.

One thing I don't like is that the weeper at the front of the house is drooped big time and not sitting inside the t for the storm drain hardly at all..I took some pics on my phone, but I can't upload them here. Its such a fucked up situation at the moment

Well that guy lied to you. Stop wasting your time and get it jetted, it's almost unbelievable what that jetting machines will unclog. Speaking from experience my company has over 30 jet trucks, we do this on a daily basis.

 

[Mark D.]

^^^This I agree. Had a badly clogged cast iron line under a slab done this year. First time I had one jetted. Works well.