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Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
I think a gutter downpipe on my house is blocked. When only a small
amount of water is fed into the gutter (garden hose on a ~very~ long pole), water spews out of the elbow just beneath the gutter and hardly any comes down the pipe at the bottom. So I reckon moss or maybe a dead bird has lodged in the downpipe, probably in the elbow itself, or just below. I don't have a long ladder. So I wonder whether I could push a spiral drain unblocker, the sort with the handle to turn, UP the downpipe from below. The distance from the ground to the underside of the gutter is 4m. Or would the spiral wire just collapse back on itself due to gravity and weight? The two spiral unblockers I have my eye on are the Screwfix one for £22.99 or the much cheaper Silverline for around £8. By the way, my downpipes are round white plastic 68mm in diameter. Any other suggestions most welcome! Thanks again. MM |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On 06/04/2018 22:41, MM wrote:
Any other suggestions most welcome! You can probably get the hose up up the downpipe by feeding from the bottom - the downpipe will stop the hose folding back on itself. If you have room at the bottom of the downpipe a bare end of a hose may be sufficient to clear a blockage but ideally a nozzle set to the narrowest higher pressure jet will work a lot better. Feed the hose up before turning on the water. You don't say if the downpipe has push-fit or solvent welded fittings. If the former you may be able to take off an angled shoe at the bottom of the downpipe to give you more room. If you have moss on the roof the blockage is probably that. If so just clearing the downpipe may not be a long time cure as the moss in the gutter will migrate to the downpipe again in heavy rainfall. -- mailto : news {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On Fri, 6 Apr 2018 23:26:37 +0100, alan_m
wrote: On 06/04/2018 22:41, MM wrote: Any other suggestions most welcome! You can probably get the hose up up the downpipe by feeding from the bottom - the downpipe will stop the hose folding back on itself. If you have room at the bottom of the downpipe a bare end of a hose may be sufficient to clear a blockage but ideally a nozzle set to the narrowest higher pressure jet will work a lot better. Feed the hose up before turning on the water. You don't say if the downpipe has push-fit or solvent welded fittings. If the former you may be able to take off an angled shoe at the bottom of the downpipe to give you more room. If you have moss on the roof the blockage is probably that. If so just clearing the downpipe may not be a long time cure as the moss in the gutter will migrate to the downpipe again in heavy rainfall. The downpipes on these fairly new houses (2004) don't end at the bottom over a drain grille, but are fed just below the surface of the ground and into a plastic drain connector like this: https://www.plasticdrainage.co.uk/me.../g/ug254_1.jpg I bought a rainwater diverter: http://www.3ptechnik.com/files/product_2000120_001.png This requires the downpipe to be cut, thus also allowing me access to the pipe from about 4 feet up from the ground, so I can poke suitable tools up there. I'd already thought of using my garden hose. I have two types of hose, the original one, a standard green garden plastic hose, and a much thinner one from Wilko, which is less bulky, but still delivers plenty of water to, say, wash the car or water the garden. So it's a toss up between the standard, less flexible one and the other, thinner one. I also have guide rods for feeding e.g. Ethernet or other cables through walls. These rods are much thinner than drain rods, but are fairly stiff. Too stiff to negotiate the elbow at the top of the pipe, but I might strike lucky and find a blockage half-way up which even these thin rods - or either of the hoses - will dislodge. And then, finally, I have the option of getting one of those spiral unblockers. The one thing I am loathe to do is buy a long ladder, as I have never liked heights and while I'm okay on a fairly high step ladder (mine is a six footer) or even the loft ladder, I'd need a very long one to reach the gutter. So as soon as it gets light outside I'm going to try sticking things up the pipe. First the standard hose, then the thinner one. Or (thinks...) maybe I'll try those feeder rods first. By the way, I do also have a Karcher pressure washer and Karcher do an accessory kit consisting of 20m of high pressure hose and a gutter sled, but now we're talking big bucks here. Around £64 from Screwfix or Amazon I believe. But it would almost certainly blast out any blockage. Thanks for your comments. MM |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On 06/04/18 22:41, MM wrote:
I think a gutter downpipe on my house is blocked. When only a small amount of water is fed into the gutter (garden hose on a ~very~ long pole), water spews out of the elbow just beneath the gutter and hardly any comes down the pipe at the bottom. So I reckon moss or maybe a dead bird has lodged in the downpipe, probably in the elbow itself, or just below. I don't have a long ladder. So I wonder whether I could push a spiral drain unblocker, the sort with the handle to turn, UP the downpipe from below. The distance from the ground to the underside of the gutter is 4m. Or would the spiral wire just collapse back on itself due to gravity and weight? The two spiral unblockers I have my eye on are the Screwfix one for £22.99 or the much cheaper Silverline for around £8. By the way, my downpipes are round white plastic 68mm in diameter. Any other suggestions most welcome! Thanks again. MM Push the hose UP the pipe towards the blockage Works with pipes full of turds and sanitary towels -- The theory of Communism may be summed up in one sentence: Abolish all private property. Karl Marx |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On 07/04/18 06:46, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 06/04/18 22:41, MM wrote: I think a gutter downpipe on my house is blocked. When only a small amount of water is fed into the gutter (garden hose on a ~very~ long pole), water spews out of the elbow just beneath the gutter and hardly any comes down the pipe at the bottom. So I reckon moss or maybe a dead bird has lodged in the downpipe, probably in the elbow itself, or just below. I don't have a long ladder. So I wonder whether I could push a spiral drain unblocker, the sort with the handle to turn, UP the downpipe from below. The distance from the ground to the underside of the gutter is 4m. Or would the spiral wire just collapse back on itself due to gravity and weight? The two spiral unblockers I have my eye on are the Screwfix one for £22.99 or the much cheaper Silverline for around £8. By the way, my downpipes are round white plastic 68mm in diameter. Any other suggestions most welcome! Thanks again. MM Push the hose UP the pipe towards the blockage Works with pipes full of turds and sanitary towels WTF? I hope *his* downpipe isn't. |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 07:31:18 +0100, Richard
wrote: On 07/04/18 06:46, The Natural Philosopher wrote: On 06/04/18 22:41, MM wrote: I think a gutter downpipe on my house is blocked. When only a small amount of water is fed into the gutter (garden hose on a ~very~ long pole), water spews out of the elbow just beneath the gutter and hardly any comes down the pipe at the bottom. So I reckon moss or maybe a dead bird has lodged in the downpipe, probably in the elbow itself, or just below. I don't have a long ladder. So I wonder whether I could push a spiral drain unblocker, the sort with the handle to turn, UP the downpipe from below. The distance from the ground to the underside of the gutter is 4m. Or would the spiral wire just collapse back on itself due to gravity and weight? The two spiral unblockers I have my eye on are the Screwfix one for £22.99 or the much cheaper Silverline for around £8. By the way, my downpipes are round white plastic 68mm in diameter. Any other suggestions most welcome! Thanks again. MM Push the hose UP the pipe towards the blockage Works with pipes full of turds and sanitary towels WTF? I hope *his* downpipe isn't. I thought I had made it clear that this is a gutter *downpipe" here, not a toilet drain! MM |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
"MM" wrote in message ...
On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 07:31:18 +0100, Richard wrote: On 07/04/18 06:46, The Natural Philosopher wrote: On 06/04/18 22:41, MM wrote: I think a gutter downpipe on my house is blocked. When only a small amount of water is fed into the gutter (garden hose on a ~very~ long pole), water spews out of the elbow just beneath the gutter and hardly any comes down the pipe at the bottom. So I reckon moss or maybe a dead bird has lodged in the downpipe, probably in the elbow itself, or just below. I don't have a long ladder. So I wonder whether I could push a spiral drain unblocker, the sort with the handle to turn, UP the downpipe from below. The distance from the ground to the underside of the gutter is 4m. Or would the spiral wire just collapse back on itself due to gravity and weight? The two spiral unblockers I have my eye on are the Screwfix one for £22.99 or the much cheaper Silverline for around £8. By the way, my downpipes are round white plastic 68mm in diameter. Any other suggestions most welcome! Thanks again. MM Push the hose UP the pipe towards the blockage Works with pipes full of turds and sanitary towels WTF? I hope *his* downpipe isn't. I thought I had made it clear that this is a gutter *downpipe" here, not a toilet drain! MM Buy or borrow a ladder and dismantle the down pipe to clear it. Re-fit and put a wire cage into the top of the down pipe where it exits the gutter. You are going to need that ladder in the future for gutter maintenance anyway, they are a long term investment - I've only just replaced the one I bought when we were first married, and that was 44 years ago ! Andrew |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On 07/04/18 08:18, MM wrote:
On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 07:31:18 +0100, Richard wrote: On 07/04/18 06:46, The Natural Philosopher wrote: On 06/04/18 22:41, MM wrote: I think a gutter downpipe on my house is blocked. When only a small amount of water is fed into the gutter (garden hose on a ~very~ long pole), water spews out of the elbow just beneath the gutter and hardly any comes down the pipe at the bottom. So I reckon moss or maybe a dead bird has lodged in the downpipe, probably in the elbow itself, or just below. I don't have a long ladder. So I wonder whether I could push a spiral drain unblocker, the sort with the handle to turn, UP the downpipe from below. The distance from the ground to the underside of the gutter is 4m. Or would the spiral wire just collapse back on itself due to gravity and weight? The two spiral unblockers I have my eye on are the Screwfix one for £22.99 or the much cheaper Silverline for around £8. By the way, my downpipes are round white plastic 68mm in diameter. Any other suggestions most welcome! Thanks again. MM Push the hose UP the pipe towards the blockage Works with pipes full of turds and sanitary towels WTF? I hope *his* downpipe isn't. I thought I had made it clear that this is a gutter *downpipe" here, not a toilet drain! My point was that expanding tampons are a far worse challenge than dead leaves and moss. MM -- "What do you think about Gay Marriage?" "I don't." "Don't what?" "Think about Gay Marriage." |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
In message , MM
writes On Fri, 6 Apr 2018 23:26:37 +0100, alan_m wrote: On 06/04/2018 22:41, MM wrote: Any other suggestions most welcome! You can probably get the hose up up the downpipe by feeding from the bottom - the downpipe will stop the hose folding back on itself. If you have room at the bottom of the downpipe a bare end of a hose may be sufficient to clear a blockage but ideally a nozzle set to the narrowest higher pressure jet will work a lot better. Feed the hose up before turning on the water. You don't say if the downpipe has push-fit or solvent welded fittings. If the former you may be able to take off an angled shoe at the bottom of the downpipe to give you more room. If you have moss on the roof the blockage is probably that. If so just clearing the downpipe may not be a long time cure as the moss in the gutter will migrate to the downpipe again in heavy rainfall. The downpipes on these fairly new houses (2004) don't end at the bottom over a drain grille, but are fed just below the surface of the ground and into a plastic drain connector like this: https://www.plasticdrainage.co.uk/me...che/1/image/9d f78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/u/g/ug254_1.jpg I bought a rainwater diverter: http://www.3ptechnik.com/files/product_2000120_001.png This requires the downpipe to be cut, thus also allowing me access to the pipe from about 4 feet up from the ground, so I can poke suitable tools up there. In my experience the blockage will be the rainwater diverter itself. Cleaning and re-fitting should clear the problem. -- Tim Lamb |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On 07/04/18 09:18, Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , MM writes On Fri, 6 Apr 2018 23:26:37 +0100, alan_m wrote: On 06/04/2018 22:41, MM wrote: Any other suggestions most welcome! You can probably get the hose up up the downpipe by feeding from the bottom - the downpipe will stop the hose folding back on itself. If you have room at the bottom of the downpipeÂ* a bare end of a hose may be sufficient to clear a blockage but ideally a nozzle set to the narrowest higher pressure jet will work a lot better.Â* Feed the hose up before turning on the water. You don't say if the downpipe has push-fit or solvent welded fittings. If the former you may be able to take off an angled shoe at the bottom of the downpipe to give you more room. If you have moss on the roof the blockage is probably that. If so just clearing the downpipe may not be a long time cure as the moss in the gutter will migrate to the downpipe again in heavy rainfall. The downpipes on these fairly new houses (2004) don't end at the bottom over a drain grille, but are fed just below the surface of the ground and into a plastic drain connector like this: https://www.plasticdrainage.co.uk/me...che/1/image/9d f78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/u/g/ug254_1.jpg I bought a rainwater diverter: http://www.3ptechnik.com/files/product_2000120_001.png This requires the downpipe to be cut, thus also allowing me access to the pipe from about 4 feet up from the ground, so I can poke suitable tools up there. In my experience the blockage will be the rainwater diverter itself. Cleaning and re-fitting should clear the problem. I'll second that. Rainwater diverters are crap. Better have a water butt that overflows into old drain -- Climate Change: Socialism wearing a lab coat. |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
"MM" wrote in message ... On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 07:31:18 +0100, Richard wrote: On 07/04/18 06:46, The Natural Philosopher wrote: Push the hose UP the pipe towards the blockage Works with pipes full of turds and sanitary towels WTF? I hope *his* downpipe isn't. I thought I had made it clear that this is a gutter *downpipe" here, not a toilet drain! To be fair to Turnip for once, I don't think he's suggesting it is. What he's implying is that any technique capable of shifting impacted turds and sanitary towels from a soil pipe should be equally capable of shifting whatever it is that's blocking your down pipe. Poor Turnip. One of the few times he's spoken from actual experience and really knows what he's talking about, you all just throw it back in his face. michael adams .... |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On 07/04/18 09:48, michael adams wrote:
"MM" wrote in message ... On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 07:31:18 +0100, Richard wrote: On 07/04/18 06:46, The Natural Philosopher wrote: Push the hose UP the pipe towards the blockage Works with pipes full of turds and sanitary towels WTF? I hope *his* downpipe isn't. I thought I had made it clear that this is a gutter *downpipe" here, not a toilet drain! To be fair to Turnip for once, I don't think he's suggesting it is. What he's implying is that any technique capable of shifting impacted turds and sanitary towels from a soil pipe should be equally capable of shifting whatever it is that's blocking your down pipe. Poor Turnip. One of the few times he's spoken from actual experience and really knows what he's talking about, you all just throw it back in his face. You just couldn't resist the ad hominmen could you? michael adams ... -- Canada is all right really, though not for the whole weekend. "Saki" |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On 07/04/18 09:31, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 07/04/18 09:18, Tim Lamb wrote: In my experience the blockage will be the rainwater diverter itself. Cleaning and re-fitting should clear the problem. I'll second that. Rainwater diverters are crap. Not IMHO. I've been using them for upwards of 10 years without problem. I've never had one block and need cleaning out. BUT I do use gutter guards (https://www.screwfix.com/p/floplast-gutter-guards-100mm-black-10-pack/12515). These do keep a lot of rubbish out, particularly leaves and moss. When I inspect the gutters what I find is not just small amounts of vegetable matter, but what could be sand or other mineral material. Is it possible that concrete tiles weather and the surface slowly wears away? These tiles are just over 50 years old. -- Jeff |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On Saturday, 7 April 2018 11:25:57 UTC+1, Jeff Layman wrote:
On 07/04/18 09:31, The Natural Philosopher wrote: On 07/04/18 09:18, Tim Lamb wrote: In my experience the blockage will be the rainwater diverter itself. Cleaning and re-fitting should clear the problem. I'll second that. Rainwater diverters are crap. Not IMHO. I've been using them for upwards of 10 years without problem. I've never had one block and need cleaning out. BUT I do use gutter guards (https://www.screwfix.com/p/floplast-gutter-guards-100mm-black-10-pack/12515). These do keep a lot of rubbish out, particularly leaves and moss. When I inspect the gutters what I find is not just small amounts of vegetable matter, but what could be sand or other mineral material. Is it possible that concrete tiles weather and the surface slowly wears away? These tiles are just over 50 years old. Definitely. And they wear faster on shallow slopes due to more freeze-thaw damage. NT |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On Fri, 06 Apr 2018 22:41:02 +0100, MM wrote:
I think a gutter downpipe on my house is blocked. When only a small amount of water is fed into the gutter (garden hose on a ~very~ long pole), water spews out of the elbow just beneath the gutter and hardly any comes down the pipe at the bottom. So I reckon moss or maybe a dead bird has lodged in the downpipe, probably in the elbow itself, or just below. I don't have a long ladder. So I wonder whether I could push a spiral drain unblocker, the sort with the handle to turn, UP the downpipe from below. The distance from the ground to the underside of the gutter is 4m. Or would the spiral wire just collapse back on itself due to gravity and weight? The two spiral unblockers I have my eye on are the Screwfix one for £22.99 or the much cheaper Silverline for around £8. By the way, my downpipes are round white plastic 68mm in diameter. Any other suggestions most welcome! Depending on what is causing the blockage, just clearing the top of the pipe may be a very short term fix. One of the more unpleasant jobs I have to do every few years is unblock the downpipe from the guttering at the front of the house. By the time the elbow is blocked, the complete run of guttering is full of mainly moss (those green slug shaped things) off the roof. The moss effectively creates its own fine soi so there is a combination of moss and fine soil. Eventually enough accumulates to spill over into the downpipe enough to block it. At that point just clearing the down pipe is a very short term fix. It very quickly blocks again because all of the guttering is silted up. You have posted that you are considering spending £20(ish) and see £60(ish) for an add on to your Karcher as very expensive. I think you need to review your budget. I know this is a DIY forum but if you don't want to do ladders then one alternative is to hire a handyman who has his own ladder to clear out your guttering. £60-£100 could well cover that. Some window cleaners also clean gutters (they tend to have ladders and stuff) so worth an ask. http://guttercleanandrepair.co.uk/gu...enance-repair/ This gives a nice picture of what your gutter may look like! If you really want to DIY it the next option is to hire a scaffolding tower which is suitable for people who are not happy on ladders. https://www.hss.com/hire/c/access/ac...-and-platforms for an example. I have used towers in the past and they are easy to put up and I feel much safer inside one than I do on a ladder. So - hire a man or a scaffolding tower. Or buy the wonder blaster from Karcher is you only want a short term fix. Cheers Dave R -- AMD FX-6300 in GA-990X-Gaming SLI-CF running Windows 7 Pro x64 --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
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Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 09:18:14 +0100, Tim Lamb
wrote: In message , MM writes On Fri, 6 Apr 2018 23:26:37 +0100, alan_m wrote: On 06/04/2018 22:41, MM wrote: Any other suggestions most welcome! You can probably get the hose up up the downpipe by feeding from the bottom - the downpipe will stop the hose folding back on itself. If you have room at the bottom of the downpipe a bare end of a hose may be sufficient to clear a blockage but ideally a nozzle set to the narrowest higher pressure jet will work a lot better. Feed the hose up before turning on the water. You don't say if the downpipe has push-fit or solvent welded fittings. If the former you may be able to take off an angled shoe at the bottom of the downpipe to give you more room. If you have moss on the roof the blockage is probably that. If so just clearing the downpipe may not be a long time cure as the moss in the gutter will migrate to the downpipe again in heavy rainfall. The downpipes on these fairly new houses (2004) don't end at the bottom over a drain grille, but are fed just below the surface of the ground and into a plastic drain connector like this: https://www.plasticdrainage.co.uk/me...che/1/image/9d f78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/u/g/ug254_1.jpg I bought a rainwater diverter: http://www.3ptechnik.com/files/product_2000120_001.png This requires the downpipe to be cut, thus also allowing me access to the pipe from about 4 feet up from the ground, so I can poke suitable tools up there. In my experience the blockage will be the rainwater diverter itself. Cleaning and re-fitting should clear the problem. No, I've only just bought it. I got it because I had to cut the downpipe in order to push something up it. I could have used a pipe socket to rejoin the pipe, but since I've had a water butt for four years, I thought why not kill two birds with one stone. SEE MY LATEST POST FOR THE COMPLETE SUCCESS STORY! MM |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 09:31:29 +0100, The Natural Philosopher
wrote: On 07/04/18 09:18, Tim Lamb wrote: In message , MM writes On Fri, 6 Apr 2018 23:26:37 +0100, alan_m wrote: On 06/04/2018 22:41, MM wrote: Any other suggestions most welcome! You can probably get the hose up up the downpipe by feeding from the bottom - the downpipe will stop the hose folding back on itself. If you have room at the bottom of the downpipe* a bare end of a hose may be sufficient to clear a blockage but ideally a nozzle set to the narrowest higher pressure jet will work a lot better.* Feed the hose up before turning on the water. You don't say if the downpipe has push-fit or solvent welded fittings. If the former you may be able to take off an angled shoe at the bottom of the downpipe to give you more room. If you have moss on the roof the blockage is probably that. If so just clearing the downpipe may not be a long time cure as the moss in the gutter will migrate to the downpipe again in heavy rainfall. The downpipes on these fairly new houses (2004) don't end at the bottom over a drain grille, but are fed just below the surface of the ground and into a plastic drain connector like this: https://www.plasticdrainage.co.uk/me...che/1/image/9d f78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/u/g/ug254_1.jpg I bought a rainwater diverter: http://www.3ptechnik.com/files/product_2000120_001.png This requires the downpipe to be cut, thus also allowing me access to the pipe from about 4 feet up from the ground, so I can poke suitable tools up there. In my experience the blockage will be the rainwater diverter itself. Cleaning and re-fitting should clear the problem. I'll second that. Rainwater diverters are crap. Is that ALL rainwater diverters? Every single on in the whole world? Better have a water butt that overflows into old drain What are you going to fill it with if not the downpipe? MM |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
In article ,
michael adams wrote: Poor Turnip. One of the few times he's spoken from actual experience and really knows what he's talking about, you all just throw it back in his face. Lets hope that didn't happen when he was clearing his drains. -- *Why do the two "sanction"s (noun and verb) mean opposites?* Dave Plowman London SW To e-mail, change noise into sound. |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 08:34:09 +0100, "Andrew Mawson"
wrote: "MM" wrote in message ... On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 07:31:18 +0100, Richard wrote: On 07/04/18 06:46, The Natural Philosopher wrote: On 06/04/18 22:41, MM wrote: I think a gutter downpipe on my house is blocked. When only a small amount of water is fed into the gutter (garden hose on a ~very~ long pole), water spews out of the elbow just beneath the gutter and hardly any comes down the pipe at the bottom. So I reckon moss or maybe a dead bird has lodged in the downpipe, probably in the elbow itself, or just below. I don't have a long ladder. So I wonder whether I could push a spiral drain unblocker, the sort with the handle to turn, UP the downpipe from below. The distance from the ground to the underside of the gutter is 4m. Or would the spiral wire just collapse back on itself due to gravity and weight? The two spiral unblockers I have my eye on are the Screwfix one for £22.99 or the much cheaper Silverline for around £8. By the way, my downpipes are round white plastic 68mm in diameter. Any other suggestions most welcome! Thanks again. MM Push the hose UP the pipe towards the blockage Works with pipes full of turds and sanitary towels WTF? I hope *his* downpipe isn't. I thought I had made it clear that this is a gutter *downpipe" here, not a toilet drain! MM Buy or borrow a ladder and dismantle the down pipe to clear it. Re-fit and put a wire cage into the top of the down pipe where it exits the gutter. You are going to need that ladder in the future for gutter maintenance anyway, they are a long term investment - I've only just replaced the one I bought when we were first married, and that was 44 years ago ! Sorry, I can't go up tall ladders. I'm 72 with heart disease and a dislike of heights above 2m. MM |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 09:07:53 +0100, The Natural Philosopher
wrote: On 07/04/18 08:18, MM wrote: On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 07:31:18 +0100, Richard wrote: On 07/04/18 06:46, The Natural Philosopher wrote: On 06/04/18 22:41, MM wrote: I think a gutter downpipe on my house is blocked. When only a small amount of water is fed into the gutter (garden hose on a ~very~ long pole), water spews out of the elbow just beneath the gutter and hardly any comes down the pipe at the bottom. So I reckon moss or maybe a dead bird has lodged in the downpipe, probably in the elbow itself, or just below. I don't have a long ladder. So I wonder whether I could push a spiral drain unblocker, the sort with the handle to turn, UP the downpipe from below. The distance from the ground to the underside of the gutter is 4m. Or would the spiral wire just collapse back on itself due to gravity and weight? The two spiral unblockers I have my eye on are the Screwfix one for £22.99 or the much cheaper Silverline for around £8. By the way, my downpipes are round white plastic 68mm in diameter. Any other suggestions most welcome! Thanks again. MM Push the hose UP the pipe towards the blockage Works with pipes full of turds and sanitary towels WTF? I hope *his* downpipe isn't. I thought I had made it clear that this is a gutter *downpipe" here, not a toilet drain! My point was that expanding tampons are a far worse challenge than dead leaves and moss. You might have a point if there was anyone here who uses tampons or any other form of birth control. MM |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
MM wrote:
tampons or any other form of birth control Want to re-think that? |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On Fri, 06 Apr 2018 22:41:02 +0100, MM wrote:
I think a gutter downpipe on my house is blocked. When only a small amount of water is fed into the gutter (garden hose on a ~very~ long pole), water spews out of the elbow just beneath the gutter and hardly any comes down the pipe at the bottom. So I reckon moss or maybe a dead bird has lodged in the downpipe, probably in the elbow itself, or just below. I don't have a long ladder. So I wonder whether I could push a spiral drain unblocker, the sort with the handle to turn, UP the downpipe from below. The distance from the ground to the underside of the gutter is 4m. Or would the spiral wire just collapse back on itself due to gravity and weight? The two spiral unblockers I have my eye on are the Screwfix one for £22.99 or the much cheaper Silverline for around £8. By the way, my downpipes are round white plastic 68mm in diameter. Any other suggestions most welcome! Thanks again. MM I had this exact problem a year or two ago and pushing the spiral drain unblocker up the down pipe caused it to collapse back down onto me. I got two rocket launching tubes out of the garage, each about 1.5m long and threaded the spiral into them, this prevented the collapse and I got the blockage (which was in the elbow) sorted. Much easier than going up a tall ladder (which I'm not keen on doing). It's still OK now. - Mike (Who likes to employ rocket science whenever possible). |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below? FIXED!!!!!!!
On Fri, 6 Apr 2018 23:26:37 +0100, alan_m
wrote: On 06/04/2018 22:41, MM wrote: Any other suggestions most welcome! You can probably get the hose up up the downpipe by feeding from the bottom - the downpipe will stop the hose folding back on itself. If you have room at the bottom of the downpipe a bare end of a hose may be sufficient to clear a blockage but ideally a nozzle set to the narrowest higher pressure jet will work a lot better. Feed the hose up before turning on the water. You don't say if the downpipe has push-fit or solvent welded fittings. If the former you may be able to take off an angled shoe at the bottom of the downpipe to give you more room. If you have moss on the roof the blockage is probably that. If so just clearing the downpipe may not be a long time cure as the moss in the gutter will migrate to the downpipe again in heavy rainfall. You'll be pleased to know that I've cleared the blockage successfully, using a Screwfix spiral drain unblocker. I am still shaking from the immediate and wondrous effect 30 minutes ago. Takes me back to my first orgasm aged 12. I got home from Screwfix, had a bacon sarnie, assembled the handle on to the unblocker, stuck the wire up the drainpipe and "rodded" it a bit while turning the handle. All of a sudden out comes a great shower of water and crud! Bingo! Job done. The Screwfix tool costs £22.99, so it's money well spent. To answer to one of the other responders, if it blocks again, well, now I have THE tool to unblock it again. Plus, while I was at Screwfix I also ordered a half-round scraper to attach to my long pole. I'm going to use that to scrape along the gutters. By the way, before starting this job I poked a webcam out of the upstairs window on a long selfie stick to spy into the gutter. While there is ~some~ moss in there, it's not too bad after 14 years and never been cleaned out. It's at times like these that I wish I had a little drone with camera. Right, now it's time to connect up that rain diverter in order to rejoin the cut pipes. Shame we can't do a smiley face in Usenet. Maybe like this ;) MM |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below? FIXED!!!!!!!
Applause:) :) :) but I'd have used a ladder and you're only a year older than me.
Alternatively as you had the downpipe already severed a set of drain rods with a correctly sized disc (or one cut square if the downpipe isn't round) would have been useful and have future potential for other use. |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
I'll second that. Rainwater diverters are crap. Is that ALL rainwater diverters? Every single on in the whole world? Better have a water butt that overflows into old drain What are you going to fill it with if not the downpipe? MM The down pipe ,but all the flow gets fed into the water butt even when it is full. At that point you need to arrange for it to overflow to go down the drain that pipe originally fed into or somewhere else like a pond or flower bed. Basically the Butt is in the flow path all the time whereas the diverter if it is installed correctly only feeds the Butt till it is full and then the flow resumes going down to the drain. Pros and cons for both methods. Full bore can be useful if a large number of butts are linked by piping of a suitable size and all have got low after a dry spell, one good thunder shower can fill them in minutes whereas with a diverter and the small pipe connecting it to the butt a lot of water will overwhelm the diverter and go down the drain to waste. GH |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On 7 Apr 2018 15:38:34 GMT, Marland
wrote: I'll second that. Rainwater diverters are crap. Is that ALL rainwater diverters? Every single on in the whole world? Better have a water butt that overflows into old drain What are you going to fill it with if not the downpipe? MM The down pipe ,but all the flow gets fed into the water butt even when it is full. At that point you need to arrange for it to overflow to go down the drain that pipe originally fed into or somewhere else like a pond or flower bed. Basically the Butt is in the flow path all the time whereas the diverter if it is installed correctly only feeds the Butt till it is full and then the flow resumes going down to the drain. Well, that's exactly what happens with the diverter I bought. But it has to be installed at the correct level compared to the inlet on the butt. Pros and cons for both methods. Full bore can be useful if a large number of butts are linked by piping of a suitable size and all have got low after a dry spell, one good thunder shower can fill them in minutes whereas with a diverter and the small pipe connecting it to the butt a lot of water will overwhelm the diverter and go down the drain to waste. As long as I get a full water butt after a rainy spell, that's all I want. Without a rainwater diverter, which most households, I reckon, do not have, the entire rainfall is 'wasted' down the downpipe anyway. MM |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 14:05:50 +0100, Andy Burns
wrote: MM wrote: tampons or any other form of birth control Want to re-think that? In an emergency, I'll bet dirty boys have thought of any old excuse... MM |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below? FIXED!!!!!!!
On Sat, 7 Apr 2018 07:59:24 -0700 (PDT), Cynic
wrote: Applause:) :) :) but I'd have used a ladder and you're only a year older than me. Alternatively as you had the downpipe already severed a set of drain rods with a correctly sized disc (or one cut square if the downpipe isn't round) would have been useful and have future potential for other use. Drain rods are far too stiff. They wouldn't have gone round the elbow at the top of the downpipe. The spiral went up there no problem. I had previously tried garden hose, feeder rods for laying cables through partition walls, I even shot my Karcher up there. Nothing cleared it. I tried shooting water (albeit only mains pressure) from the top down the downpipe. No joy. That's when I drove to Screwfix and bought the ruddy spiral. A gem. MM |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
Well, that's exactly what happens with the diverter I bought. But it has to be installed at the correct level compared to the inlet on the butt. Pros and cons for both methods. Full bore can be useful if a large number of butts are linked by piping of a suitable size and all have got low after a dry spell, one good thunder shower can fill them in minutes whereas with a diverter and the small pipe connecting it to the butt a lot of water will overwhelm the diverter and go down the drain to waste. As long as I get a full water butt after a rainy spell, that's all I want. Fine. Im not trying to convince you to change,just answered your question of where the water in the other. method came from. We use both methods Diverter on the sheds and greenhouse, full bore on the house . With a lot of blueberry plants and a pond to top up both of which would not like the mains water we have 5 butts connected to the full bore . after a dry spell it can take a while of gentle rain to fill them and raise the pond level, so if you get a heavy but short duration summer downpour I want the lot,not see some going past the diverter and into the soak away because that link pipe isnt big enough. If their is too much the pond and bog garden absorb it. GH |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below?
On 06/04/2018 23:26, alan_m wrote:
On 06/04/2018 22:41, MM wrote: Any other suggestions most welcome! You can probably get the hose up up the downpipe by feeding from the bottom - the downpipe will stop the hose folding back on itself. If you have room at the bottom of the downpipeÂ* a bare end of a hose may be sufficient to clear a blockage but ideally a nozzle set to the narrowest higher pressure jet will work a lot better.Â* Feed the hose up before turning on the water. You don't say if the downpipe has push-fit or solvent welded fittings. If the former you may be able to take off an angled shoe at the bottom of the downpipe to give you more room. If you have moss on the roof the blockage is probably that. If so just clearing the downpipe may not be a long time cure as the moss in the gutter will migrate to the downpipe again in heavy rainfall. Good idea but push the hose up with water turned on. The pressure stops it kinking. Mike |
Can you push a spiral drain unblocker up a downpipe from below? FIXED!!!!!!!
The close fitting disc or square would act like a piston and pressure/suction created by shoving it up and down the pipe dislodge all but the most Stubborn obstruction
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