Blocked sink waste

[daggermark]

My kitchen sink has quite abruptly become blocked, to the point it is taking an hour to drain away when full. It has 2 basket strainers and both are equally blocked.

After unsuccessfully trying one of those bottles of sink unblocker, I ventured under the sink to remove the trap. However, I didn't quite find what I was expecting:


Unless I'm missing something, there doesn't appear to be a trap? Any ideas what the thin piece of pipe sticking out of the elbow is?

I'm thinking the next step is to take the waste apart, does this seem fair? Any help appreciated.

 

[HERTS P&D]

All that pipe work needs replacing, there is no trap/s.

Do you have a wet vac?

Are you a house or flat?

Is there a gully on the outside?

Andy

 

[daggermark]

I thought as much.

No wet vac unfortunately. This is downstairs in my house. The pipework disappears behind the units but the main waste stack is only 1m away (also indoors), so I'd be fairly certain that it connects into there.

 

[HERTS P&D]

Go to wickes tomorrow and buy a wet vac.

https://www.wickes.co.uk/Wickes-Wet+Dry-Vacuum-Cleaner-With-Blower-20L---1250W/p/215735

This would be the easiest way to unblock your pipework.

If the soil stack serves the upstairs toilet, do you get any water in the sink when the toilet is flushed? If no then the blockage is in the pipework leading to the sink.

Andy

 

[daggermark]

So far no issues upstairs, nor any sink backup when the loo is flushed, so I'm fairly sure the issue is somewhere in the pictured assembly (or worse, behind the units).

Thanks for your help, I'll try sucking the blockage out!

 

[HERTS P&D]

Undo the bottom joint that leads to the black flexible waste and stick the end of the nozzle in there and turn on the wet vac. Hopefully the blockage will be gone in 30 seconds.

Once cleared look into replacing the pipework.

https://www.screwfix.com/p/mcalpine-1-bowl-sink-kit-trap-white-40mm/6295p
https://www.screwfix.com/p/floplast-solvent-weld-waste-pipe-white-40mm-x-3m/44310
https://www.screwfix.com/p/mcalpine-mt4-bend-90-40mm/45446

Andy

 

[John the plumber]

My kitchen sink has quite abruptly become blocked, to the point it is taking an hour to drain away when full. It has 2 basket strainers and both are equally blocked.

After unsuccessfully trying one of those bottles of sink unblocker, I ventured under the sink to remove the trap. However, I didn't quite find what I was expecting:
View attachment 244450

Unless I'm missing something, there doesn't appear to be a trap? Any ideas what the thin piece of pipe sticking out of the elbow is?

I'm thinking the next step is to take the waste apart, does this seem fair? Any help appreciated.

Who on earth fitted that pipework. As HERTS P&D as said,rip it out and start again.

 

[daggermark]

Par for the course in this house mate. Previous owners had a full renovation done by some cowboys, I've spent the last few years gradually putting it right.

 

[John the plumber]

Par for the course in this house mate. Previous owners had a full renovation done by some cowboys, I've spent the last few years gradually putting it right.

Won’t cost a lot to put that right

 

[tell80]

Be rubber glove cautious now youve used chemicals.
Like the guys have suggested above, I would replace all the plasttic and re-do with all one make new waste and trapped pipework. Maybe the water supplies and both sink wastes should be rearranged. Overflows should be connected and the washing machine waste hose should enter the sink cabinet high and be connected properly, use a double spigot fitting so that later a dish washer waste hose can also be connected.
The unit back panel is only a thin hardboard that can be easily cut away. If you cut away the lower half and the plaster board behind it, it will give you a shot at the one metre run of the waste on its way to the soil pipe connection. can you pic the soil pipe boxing-in or does it go into or behind a unit?The 40mm waste pipe must fall from the sink trap to the soil pipe.

 

[petit_pablo]

Thats a shocker! Who ever fitted thats just cobbled together the free stuff that comes with the sink.

 

[ETAF]

The Isolator / Service valve on the flexible hose - is the copper side the water supply ? however, just if it goes up to any Taps , then its the wrong way round - see the arrow for the water flow direction

 

[daggermark]

Go to wickes tomorrow and buy a wet vac.

Had a lot of fun and games today. First things first, I did eventually managed to shift the blockage with a wet vac - great shout thanks!

Be rubber glove cautious now youve used chemicals.
Like the guys have suggested above, I would replace all the plasttic and re-do with all one make new waste and trapped pipework. Maybe the water supplies and both sink wastes should be rearranged. Overflows should be connected and the washing machine waste hose should enter the sink cabinet high and be connected properly, use a double spigot fitting so that later a dish washer waste hose can also be connected.
The unit back panel is only a thin hardboard that can be easily cut away. If you cut away the lower half and the plaster board behind it, it will give you a shot at the one metre run of the waste on its way to the soil pipe connection. can you pic the soil pipe boxing-in or does it go into or behind a unit?The 40mm waste pipe must fall from the sink trap to the soil pipe.

That piece of plasterboard was completely loose and was hanging on the waste pipe, weighing it down. I've cut it all out.

Several of the connections were missing their seals - I've found a lovely mix of silicone, plumbers mate, ptfe tape... I cobbled together fixes with spares I had, but I intend to replace the whole lot with a new kit.

Some of the pipework seemed a slightly different size if that makes sense? Maybe 1mm too fat? I wanted to replace one of the compression nuts that was gummed full of silicone, but my spare wouldn't quite fit over the pipe.

The spigot connection is actually the dishwasher, which I don't tend to use - I agree its configured wrong though! Absolutely nothing sealing that compression join, just plastic on plastic - by some miracle tho it doesn't appear to leak.

The waste pipe did actually have a fall on it, which surprised me. About the only thing they got right, even if they did cut a massive notch out of the studwork to achieve it... It connects onto the soil pipe via a 90 degree bend behind another unit - managed to get my hand up the back once I took the dishwasher out to have a feel around.

Thats a shocker! Who ever fitted thats just cobbled together the free stuff that comes with the sink.

Shocker is kind I think!

The Isolator / Service valve on the flexible hose - is the copper side the water supply ? however, just if it goes up to any Taps , then its the wrong way round - see the arrow for the water flow direction

Haha nice spot! The copper goes up to the tap.