Are you trying to figure out the causes of gurgling drains (plumbing) well we have the answers for you. There are a few scenarios that we will go over to help you figure out why your drains gurgle. One of the biggest problems for drains & pluming is the roof-vent. When the roof-vent that goes through your roof start to clog up with sediment, scale, leaves & sometimes rodents it will cause your drains to gurgle. The roof vent starts at the roof & comes down in between the walls. The roof-vent will come down picking up the bathroom drains as these have to suck air from the vent to drain properly. One the vent has tied into the bathroom drains like you bathtub drain, toilet, bathroom sink, shower it then becomes your main drain (sewer pipe) aslo tying into your kitchen sink, floor drains, washer machine drains, utility sink. these will all tie into the sewer main. If your roof-vent is clogged when you flush your toilet it can gurgle through the bathtub or bathroom sink as it is try to get air from the bathtub or bathroom sink.
When you flush the toilet it will suck the water out of the traps trying to get air. When you here the gurgling you hearing the water being sucked out of the trap. One good way to see if your roof-vent is clogged is to take a flash light & look down the roof vent & if you see standing water at the bottom of the vent it is clogged up with debris. If it is clogged up it is best to seek a professional drain cleaning company like Drain Monkeys to service your clogged roof vent. If your vent has an obstruction in it your drains will also drain very slow.
One simple trick you can try to see if your main vent is clogged is you can take the trap apart under the bathroom sink as this will allow air to be sucked the the drain pipe. If you flush your commode (toilet) and it flushes good and you don’t hear any gurgling then you know your roof vent is clogged. Put the trap back together & run water to fill the trap back up with water & flush your stool if you get the gurgling then 100% you will need to have your roof-vent cleaned.
Other causes are usually if your only getting gurgling at the kitchen sink then it is possible that the vent for the kitchen sink by be clogged because kitchen sinks have there own vent separate from the the bathroom vent. The kitchen sink vent will tie into the sewer main just like the bathroom vent. If you are getting a gurgle noise after the water is drained down out of the sink & it starts to gurgle then it is possible the roof-vent is clogged. the only way to check it is to get up on the roof with a flash light & look down the vent to see if you can see standing water. If you see water then its clogged. If the vent pipe is clogged it will make your kitchen sink drain very slow.
The vent for the kitchen sink is not always the culprit because it also could be the plumbing (drain pipe) is clogged & it may need to be cleaned by a drain cleaning company like Drain Monkeys. Youe kitchen sink will get a lot of grease in the drain pipe over the years of washing dishes.
Another cause of gurgling is if you have a sump pump that pumps water into a drain pipe that is tied into the kitchen sink, bathtub, washer machine drain. When the pump discharges water a very fast rate & if the drain pipe is partially clogged it will pull water out of one of the trap as it is starving for air because of the partial clog it kind of works like the arteries in your body if they they start to get clogged you get less oxygen into your body making you slow down so to speak.
Other causes of gurgling drains are low spots in your plumbing like your sewer, kitchen, bathroom sink, floor drains, bathtub, toilet, washer machine drain, utility sink. stand pipes, pipes & clogs. as the water is filling up the low spots it is chocking of the drain pipe that will make the drain starve for air. When the water is being suck out of he trap that is when you hear the gurgling. When you here the gurgling it is a warning to get the problem fixed as soon as possible so you wont have a mess in your home if the drain pipe clogs all the way up.
How to fix gurgling drains, You can install mechanical vents if your having a venting issue. You will need to call a plumber to do this although it is a simple fix. The mechanical vent will need to installed under the sink & past the trap as this is an easy fix & recommend if you have a two level home. Most drain cleaning companies wont get on a two level home roof to clean the vent. Just be sure that it is the vent & not a clogged drain.
How to fix gurgling of your clogged drain, you will need to rent a machine that is made cleaning sewers & for smaller drains as there is different drain cleaning machines for different drains. Basically there are 3 types of drain cleaning machines one for sewer which is a big machine with usually at least 100 feet of cable with different cutter blades like the Ridgid K-750 this machine is made specific for a main drain (sewer) pipe. The medium drains like a kitchen sink, washer machine drain, floor drains will use a machine like the Ridgid K-3800 that will have 75 feet of cable. For smaller drains like a bathtub & bathroom sink you will use a small hand held machine with 25 feet of cable. All these machine can be rented at your local hardware stores. If your not that motivated to fix it yourself then call drain monkeys because they have all the drain cleaning equipment to take care of all your gurgling issues.
