The Vent and Rant Thread

[Blossom]

Originally Posted by issybird

I think the home remedy is effective; baking soda and white vinegar, followed by boiling water. It might take a few applications but it works and even dad can't say it's harming the pipes. It's easy to keep the ingredients on hand without hiding them under the tampons, too.

Add salt to the baking soda above. It gives the pipes a good scrub.

Sent from my XT1528

[Rumpelteazer]

Originally Posted by Hitch

Strong suggestion:

Buy drain cleaner, put it in your bathroom under your girl stuff (no men ever look there!!!) and use it stealthily. BT, DT. Screw all that "oh, no, don't use that, you'll ruin the pipes!"

Granted, you have to make sure that you buy the right stuff, so that you DON'T ruin the pipes, of course, but most modern gunk is created so as not to eat the under-pad pipes.

Hitch

Originally Posted by issybird

I think the home remedy is effective; baking soda and white vinegar, followed by boiling water. It might take a few applications but it works and even dad can't say it's harming the pipes. It's easy to keep the ingredients on hand without hiding them under the tampons, too.

Especially when I don't use tampons anymore (hooray for The Cup).

Luckily, today it was easily unblocked, it wasn't too bad. I had forgotten the third, blind connection has a screw cap on it and after opening that my father was able to suck out the gunk from the connection and the stuff going up (that wet/dry vacuum is was definitely worth it's money) and pipe going back (there's a corner where the pipe from upstairs turns 90degrees into the wall) was easily unblocked with a bit of electrical wire, where it was pushed into a bigger pipe of the toilets. The bitumen tape (located in the attic) wasn't needed.

My father has now realized (after probably a not so fun night of billiards) that something needs to be done. That pipe is partially cast iron and it isn't in the best of shape )hence the bitumen tape. He plans to ask a builder friend to open up the wall so the cast iron section, a couple of meters long) can be replaced.

BTW, he doesn't want to use baking soda and vinegar. Yes, it doesn't harm the pipes, but he believes it does. But when that cast iron section is replaced the problems will be gone. All the other pipes are fairly wide, this is a narrow pipe, on which the washing machine and dishwasher are also connected (can't run them at the same time; the pipe can't handle that and the it will overflow in the sink in the kitchen).

Sometimes I wonder who did the installation in our house. The pipes were also took an interesting route. From the basement three floors up (where there never has been a gas heater), the a couple of meters to right, and then down again to the living room to the heater. In the living room we had one pipe going up and one going down. They probably did that in case they wanted a gas heater in future installed in that room upstairs, but why not one pipe, with a connection to heater and a connection going up one floor?

[BetterRed]

Sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) won't harm drainage plumbing unless it's made from an amphoteric metal such as aluminium, copper, zinc or lead, which would be exceedingly rare and in most countries illegal. That's why old vertical drains (risers) were cast iron (typically 2-3 inch internal diameter), these days most in-building drainage plumbing is PVC.

[HLS]

Work is stressful. layoffs on the horizon. Had not had overtime in 2 weeks and I need overtime to just get buy so ya I am a little scared. Had mostly unlimited overtime the past 13 years then boom customers left and no work for us. I applied to transfer to another department have not had a reply or interview yet. Still not a garantee I could avoid a layoff

[CRussel]

That's a tough one, kcladyz. I know how easy it is to structure one's life and finances around overtime when it's always there, but it looks like you're going to need to shed some expenses and retrench. Even if it means walking away from something. First thing to do is prioritize -- what absolutely, positively has to be paid (mortgage/rent, electricity, taxes, ??). Then start prioritizing the rest if that first one leaves anything left over. More than once over the years I've lived on beans and rice for extended periods while I retrenched. Good news is, I like beans and rice. Almost as much as I like foie gras. And I'm now where they're a choice, not a necessity.

[wodin]

Originally Posted by Hitch

...
put it in your bathroom under your girl stuff (no men ever look there!!!)
...
Hitch

Harmph, that's the first place I look for contraband. Second place is between the pages of the family Bible.

[Rumpelteazer]

Originally Posted by wodin

Harmph, that's the first place I look for contraband. Second place is between the pages of the family Bible.

Where should I hide my contraband? No tampons (the two cups can't conceal much), no family bible (or any bible). I would say hide it amongst my craft stash, but I would be afraid the cleaner would damage my carefully collected papers and ephemera (so carefully collected I find it hard to use them).

[wodin]

You might try in the bottom of the kitchen trash can before putting in the trash bag, everyone knows that men HATE emptying that.

[CRussel]

Sorry, won't work here -- emptying that is my job.

[Bilbo1967]

Originally Posted by CRussel

Sorry, won't work here -- emptying that is my job.

Ditto here.

[wodin]

And don't you just HATE it?

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by Rumpelteazer

Where should I hide my contraband? No tampons (the two cups can't conceal much), no family bible (or any bible). I would say hide it amongst my craft stash, but I would be afraid the cleaner would damage my carefully collected papers and ephemera (so carefully collected I find it hard to use them).

If it's flat, beneath the catbox always works. You're right, two cups won't hide much.

Uh....panties drawer? Unless you have a male or gay housekeeper that's a panty-sniffer, you're probably safe.

I have my own personal small fireproof safe. My treasures go in there. Our weapons, which range from pistols to long guns, are in the built-in gun safe.

Other miscellaneous things just get HIDDEN. What I find difficult, as I get a wee bit older, is remembering where the hell I put things. Like, I found something I'd stashed, when I went to pull out Carr's The Alienist, the other day. LOL.

(My gran used to stash money. Planters, sweater pockets, etc. After she passed, I can't tell you how much stashed cash we found.)


Hitch

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by Rumpelteazer

BTW, he doesn't want to use baking soda and vinegar. Yes, it doesn't harm the pipes, but he believes it does. But when that cast iron section is replaced the problems will be gone.

First, the cast iron section must be replaced. Unless the builder friend is willing to donate parts and labor and do it free, there might be delays in actually getting it done. I suspect your father may balk at the cost.

Meanwhile, use baking soda and vinegar, and simply don't tell him you did so. How would he know you did it? It's a case of "sometimes it's easier to ask forgiveness than to get permission". and if he doesn't know you did it, no forgiveness need be requested.
______
Dennis

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by Hitch

Other miscellaneous things just get HIDDEN. What I find difficult, as I get a wee bit older, is remembering where the hell I put things. Like, I found something I'd stashed, when I went to pull out Carr's The Alienist, the other day. LOL.

Around here, that's referred to a "Putting Things in a Safe Place". It's safe, alright. So safe that we can't find it.
______
Dennis

[Bilbo1967]

Originally Posted by Hitch

(My gran used to stash money. Planters, sweater pockets, etc. After she passed, I can't tell you how much stashed cash we found.)


Hitch

My father-in-law's brother died a few years ago. We found literally thousands of pounds under his bed in notes rolled up and stuffed into cleaned out margarine tubs.