In the process of clearing the bottom half of the outflow pipe of my
septic tank, I am aware that although drain rods pass through it, and
water drains through it - slowly - there is still an awful lot of
sludge in it. I can't use a plunger on my drain rods because the
outflow consists of loose laid clay pipes, some of which have moved a
bit over the years, so a standard plunger gets stuck very easily. I
am planning on cutting one down to a smaller diameter to try, but it
also occurs to me that some sort of handle one could put on the top
end of one's drain rods to rotate it (clockwise of course) with a
screw end on the bottom would be very helpful. Does such a thing
exist, and if so, where from?

Keith

On Nov 24, 2:04*pm, Keefiedee wrote:
In the process of clearing the bottom half of the outflow pipe of my
septic tank, I am aware that although drain rods pass through it, and
water drains through it - slowly - there is still an awful lot of
sludge in it. *I can't use a plunger on my drain rods because the
outflow consists of loose laid clay pipes, some of which have moved a
bit over the years, so a standard plunger gets stuck very easily. *I
am planning on cutting one down to a smaller diameter to try, but it
also occurs to me that some sort of handle one could put on the top
end of one's drain rods to rotate it (clockwise of course) with a
screw end on the bottom would be very helpful. *Does such a thing
exist, and if so, where from?


if it exists it should have a ratchet so it's impossible to unscrew
the rods when they are down in the drain :-)

BTW, have you considered attaching a hosepipe to the rods and pumping
water in down there to free up the sludge?

R

On Nov 24, 2:31*pm, RobertL wrote:
if it exists it should have a ratchet so it's impossible to unscrew
the rods when they are down in the drain :-)

BTW, have you considered attaching a hosepipe to the rods and pumping
water in down there to free up the sludge?

R

Yes, had one try at that - will have another shot at it soon. The
trouble is, I think there's an awful lot of sludge in there.

K

On Mon, 24 Nov 2008 06:04:24 -0800 (PST), Keefiedee
wrote:

In the process of clearing the bottom half of the outflow pipe of my
septic tank, I am aware that although drain rods pass through it, and
water drains through it - slowly - there is still an awful lot of
sludge in it. I can't use a plunger on my drain rods because the
outflow consists of loose laid clay pipes, some of which have moved a
bit over the years, so a standard plunger gets stuck very easily. I
am planning on cutting one down to a smaller diameter to try, but it
also occurs to me that some sort of handle one could put on the top
end of one's drain rods to rotate it (clockwise of course) with a
screw end on the bottom would be very helpful. Does such a thing
exist, and if so, where from?

I have much the same problem and I use a rod with a brass cone on the
end. I think it used to have a brush or a disc on it at one time - now
long since fallen off. The cone is about a couple of inches in
diameter at its widest point.
Being able to turn the rods is useful, and I've found that an old
wooden rod with a bit of a bend in it has been sufficient. It's not
terribly sophisticated, and you can't on any account turn the rod
anti-clockwise ( obviously ), but it works well enough for the couple
of times a year I have to rod out the pipes.

Regards,


--
Steve ( out in the sticks )
Email: Take time to reply: timefrom_usenet{at}gmx.net

"Keefiedee" wrote in message
...
In the process of clearing the bottom half of the outflow pipe of my
septic tank, I am aware that although drain rods pass through it, and
water drains through it - slowly - there is still an awful lot of
sludge in it. I can't use a plunger on my drain rods because the
outflow consists of loose laid clay pipes, some of which have moved a
bit over the years, so a standard plunger gets stuck very easily. I
am planning on cutting one down to a smaller diameter to try, but it
also occurs to me that some sort of handle one could put on the top
end of one's drain rods to rotate it (clockwise of course) with a
screw end on the bottom would be very helpful. Does such a thing
exist, and if so, where from?

Keith

Toolstation.com ptno 65925

http://tinyurl.com/59avjh

you should really only use this if you have locking drain rods

I have no idea if this will fit the threads on your rods.





-

On 24 Nov 2008 15:03:05 GMT, Huge wrote:

I have a set of these;

http://www.horobin.co.uk/steelrodsstart.htm

Hum, no prices, gi'us a clue. I am sitting down. B-)

--
Cheers
Dave.

In message
,
RobertL writes
if it exists it should have a ratchet so it's impossible to unscrew
the rods when they are down in the drain :-)

The sort of yellow fibre glass rods that the likes of BT use commonly
have a spring loaded catch as well as the screw thread, so that once
locked you can rotate them either way without them coming apart. I've
never seen this on drain rods but it does seem a good idea. Any one
seen this on drain rods?


--
Bill
May God defend me from my friends; I can defend myself against my enemies.

"Bill" wrote in message
...
In message
,
RobertL writes
if it exists it should have a ratchet so it's impossible to unscrew
the rods when they are down in the drain :-)

The sort of yellow fibre glass rods that the likes of BT use commonly
have a spring loaded catch as well as the screw thread, so that once
locked you can rotate them either way without them coming apart. I've
never seen this on drain rods but it does seem a good idea. Any one
seen this on drain rods?

Bill


I got a cheap set of rods years ago, and drilled the ends to fit split pins
through. They still work fine, and it was a good fix for a cheap but strong
set of rods.

On 25 Nov 2008 08:57:47 GMT, Huge wrote:

http://www.horobin.co.uk/steelrodsstart.htm

Hum, no prices, gi'us a clue. I am sitting down. B-)

I can't recall, to be honest, but if pressed I'd say 6 x 2m rods, a
"corkscrew" and a 4" rubber plunger was about GBP70.

Not bad a cheapy plastic set from a shed will be 10 to 20.

--
Cheers
Dave.