Calling all plumbing experts

[Jeremy K]

I need to replace this steel drain from the shower with pvc . What is the correct way to go from steel to pvc ? The other end after the trap is steel vent up to the roof and steel drain line . My plan is to leave the steel vent pipe and just do the steel drain. I will need to go from steel to pvc at both ends.

[Lawdwaz]

Union plumber or Gman.......your call.

[ncountry]

www.fernco.com/plumbing/flexible-couplings

 

[Jeremy K]

5 minutes ago, ncountry said:

www.fernco.com/plumbing/flexible-couplings

 

That seems to easy , are those legit ?

[ncountry]

3 minutes ago, Jeremy K said:

That seems to easy , are those legit ?

Yes.. I believe it is the only legit option to transition between old metal piping and modern pvc .

I've used them dozens if not 100s of times over the past 30 years.. No known  problems ....yet.. lol....knock on wood..

[Jeremy K]

6 minutes ago, ncountry said:

Yes.. I believe it is the only legit option to transition between old metal piping and modern pvc .

I've used them dozens if not 100s of times over the past 30 years.. No known  problems ....yet.. lol....knock on wood..

Thanks , ill have to look into that route .

[2012_taco]

I'm am not a plumber but i have done too much plumbing. If you have to cut the galvanized pipe then the only way to make the connection is with the fernco fitting/ coupler. The pipe that threads into the cast drain should be able to be replaced with a threaded PVC piece. I see you are in Nia Co. If it's not too far from you go to Ed Youngs in Williamsville, they have a great plumbing department and there is usually is a guy there that can help and has plumbing experience. Take pics of the area you need to replace. Plus they carry all the right parts, not going to try to sell you gerry rigged parts they happen to sell. Just my .02

[Jeremy K]

This could be an easier project then i thought . I always hate opening a drain though ,so stinky.

[reeltime]

either a fernco coupler or if you dare try to back the nipple out of the cast iron pipe so you can then thread in a male thread pcv fitting in its place.   But to be honest it will be much easier to plumb everything together with a fernco as you will have a little flexibility to get everything back together.

  we did a metal roof last fall on a place that had a leak a few years back and they had a new shingle roof done but still but only when it rained and it wasn't a bad leak just a very small leak in the same spot as before. so we did the metal roof and made sure to make a good seal on the boot around the 1 1/2" galv roof vent.   

well last Nov. they called and had a leak in the same spot. I went back and what we found was the vent went up the wall to a 90 then turned  horizontal for 3' to a 90 then up through the roof. what had happened was the horizontal pipe had a hole rotted through from rain water going into the stack through the roof and water laid in the pipe and rotted the metal away.  so I split a fernco and patched the hole.  then put a fernco on the stack with a dbl 90 of street L's. no more leak.  lol.

 

[GreeneHunter]

29 minutes ago, Jeremy K said:

That seems to easy , are those legit ?

Fernco is the way to go !

[Jeremy K]

5 minutes ago, reeltime said:

either a fernco coupler or if you dare try to back the nipple out of the cast iron pipe so you can then thread in a male thread pcv fitting in its place.   But to be honest it will be much easier to plumb everything together with a fernco as you will have a little flexibility to get everything back together.

  we did a metal roof last fall on a place that had a leak a few years back and they had a new shingle roof done but still but only when it rained and it wasn't a bad leak just a very small leak in the same spot as before. so we did the metal roof and made sure to make a good seal on the boot around the 1 1/2" galv roof vent.   

well last Nov. they called and had a leak in the same spot. I went back and what we found was the vent went up the wall to a 90 then turned  horizontal for 3' to a 90 then up through the roof. what had happened was the horizontal pipe had a hole rotted through from rain water going into the stack through the roof and water laid in the pipe and rotted the metal away.  so I split a fernco and patched the hole.  then put a fernco on the stack with a dbl 90 of street L's. no more leak.  lol.

 

My issue is ankle deep water while taking a shower , i cleaned the trap and hoped that was it . I'm guessing the pipe is just rusting closed .

[GreeneHunter]

4 minutes ago, Jeremy K said:

My issue is ankle deep water while taking a shower , i cleaned the trap and hoped that was it . I'm guessing the pipe is just rusting closed .

Perhaps you should hose the Manure off before going into the shower ?  LOL  .... sorry could'nt help it !

[goosifer]

Have you tried snaking it out? Who knows how far down the drain pipes the clog is?

I think it would be money well spent to have a plumber come out and diagnose the problem. You can then decide if you want to tackle the fix yourself. Right now, you may not 100% on target as to what and where the problem is. Marty Hall is my plumber in NT. He is a good guy with very reasonable rates. He is a small shop, just him and his son. Number is (716) 243-3953.

[G-Man]

Fernco for connnection, I'd replace all the steel pipe you could with pvc or better yet pex 

[Jeremy K]

10 minutes ago, goosifer said:

Have you tried snaking it out? Who knows how far down the drain pipes the clog is?

I think it would be money well spent to have a plumber come out and diagnose the problem. You can then decide if you want to tackle the fix yourself. Right now, you may not 100% on target as to what and where the problem is. Marty Hall is my plumber in NT. He is a good guy with very reasonable rates. He is a small shop, just him and his son. Number is (716) 243-3953.

The only reason i determined it was the steel pipe from the shower drain is because its the only drain in the house that is slow . The bathroom sink drain was a problem a couple years ago and i ran a new pvc drain from that sink and it works fine now. I think i'm gonna switch to pvc and if it's still a problem  , i'll have to call a professional. 

[ncountry]

I have cut apart many old steel pipes. They are usually always partially plugged.. combination of corrosion and regugunga....So much so that I wonder how they worked at all..

[sodfather]

26 minutes ago, G-Man said:

Fernco for connnection, I'd replace all the steel pipe you could with pvc or better yet pex 

I don’t think they use pex for drain 

[sodfather]

Fernco works I’ve done it in my old house. Also snake out that black iron pipe while it’s opened up. Or if you can get at the vent in your yard rent a power snake and run it from the street back to the house 

[Dinsdale]

4 minutes ago, sodfather said:

I don’t think they use pex for drain 

I seen all kinds of Rube Goldberg repairs in 30 years of renovations.....

Good one was a drain put together with sections of radiator hoses, about 20' worth.

[Jeremy K]

6 minutes ago, sodfather said:

Fernco works I’ve done it in my old house. Also snake out that black iron pipe while it’s opened up. Or if you can get at the vent in your yard rent a power snake and run it from the street back to the house 

Just before we bought the house ,the lady spent a ton of cash having the sewers out to the street redone and clean outs installed . That end of the system should be within 10 years old. Its the only reason i agreed on getting a house with a basement . I believe the house fell victim to the October storm with no power ,the previous owner installed a jet sump as well that has saved us a couple times already. 

[Jeremy K]

Total length of pipe to replace is about 6 feet which is nice.

[landtracdeerhunter]

Their are some good YouTube videos for the do it yourself in you. Must be a pretty old house with cast iron drains yet.

[Bowshotmuzzleloader]

Ferncos do not meet code, you have to use the same style fitting that has the metal jacket completely around it..

Same concept and style as the Fernco and also sold at the Big box stores..

Just a FYI,, but they both work well and have used dozens of them..

[Jeremy K]

10 minutes ago, landtracdeerhunter said:

Their are some good YouTube videos for the do it yourself in you. Must be a pretty old house with cast iron drains yet.

It' from the 50s 

[landtracdeerhunter]

PVC pipe is so easy to work with. They also make threaded connectors and rubber boots to go into old work.