Plumbing - law of unintended consequences
Posted: October 10th, 2019, 6:53 pm
In our kitchen we have a waste outlet that is fed into from two directions.
Firstly the sink via a u-bend
Secondly the washing m/c and dishwasher via a sloping down pipe, open at one end (or was) for the m/c.
Nothing unusual about that setup.
The sink pipework develops fatbergs and every 5 years or so I strip it out and remove them all. Usual symptom is a pong from the sink indicating a dismantle is required.
This time the pong seemed to find its way back to the washing m/c and washed clothes had an aroma to them. Even after said fatberg was removed there was a whiff.
Long story short, I fitted a U-Bend to the open end and fed the machine into that. This seems to have fixed any smells drifting back but now the sink gurgles, presumably because the new airlock stops equalisation of pressure and forces air the 'wrong way' round the sink U-Bend.
It may well be that if we'd have waited long enough the air would have become fresher, but I didn't. Apart from taking out the new U-Bend, any suggestions as to how to stop the gurgling? I know it's a First World problem, and we can live with it, but if there are any simple suggestions, I'm happy to try them. Small vent hole in the machine downpipe?
Firstly the sink via a u-bend
Secondly the washing m/c and dishwasher via a sloping down pipe, open at one end (or was) for the m/c.
Nothing unusual about that setup.
The sink pipework develops fatbergs and every 5 years or so I strip it out and remove them all. Usual symptom is a pong from the sink indicating a dismantle is required.
This time the pong seemed to find its way back to the washing m/c and washed clothes had an aroma to them. Even after said fatberg was removed there was a whiff.
Long story short, I fitted a U-Bend to the open end and fed the machine into that. This seems to have fixed any smells drifting back but now the sink gurgles, presumably because the new airlock stops equalisation of pressure and forces air the 'wrong way' round the sink U-Bend.
It may well be that if we'd have waited long enough the air would have become fresher, but I didn't. Apart from taking out the new U-Bend, any suggestions as to how to stop the gurgling? I know it's a First World problem, and we can live with it, but if there are any simple suggestions, I'm happy to try them. Small vent hole in the machine downpipe?