When your bathtub is clogged make sure you check your main sewer pipe as well especially if you have a house on a slab foundation. The city of Kalamazoo does has several houses that are on a cement foundation without a basement.
I have personally cleaned several bathtubs in Kalamazoo that are on a cement foundation. When working on a bathtub that has a cement foundation under the bathtub you should always take your time & be gental to the trap & drain pipe.
If you’re getting a gurgling noise after flushing the toilet then your issue may be a bigger one than just a clogged bathtub. If you have a house on a slab foundation then you should check the sewer clean-out to make sure the sewer isn’t clogged up.
If you have check the sewer & it doesnt look like the sewer is not clogged then cleaning the bathtub will be much eaiser.
When you have a cement foundation with no access to get under the clogged bathtub there should be an access panel usually in a closet. You will have to check to see what kind of trap you have.
The trap on most bathtubs that are on a cement foundation is a drum-trap if you have never updated the plumbing. If you have a drum trap it can get a little complicated. The drum trap will be located behind the access panel usually in a closet.
Once you have located the drum trap you will have to get the clean-out cap off of the drum trap. There are only a couple of ways to do this & it isn’t fun because most of the time there isn’t a lot of room to work.
You will need a Sawzall or a hammer & cold chisel it is best to use a Sawzall as this won’t disturb the drain under the clogged bathtub as much as the hammer & cold chisel does.
If you use a hammer & cold chisel you have to be careful that you don’t damage the drain directly under the tub because if you do you risk having to replace some plumbing as it may leak from the blunt force of using the hammer & cold chisel.
Once you have taken off the clean-out cap off from the drum trap you will need to find the incoming drain line from the bathtub. The income drain line will be located at the bottom side if the trap.
You are ready to clean the incoming drain line going back to the clogged bathtub. You will have to be careful not to get your cable stuck on the cross T or on the stopper of the bathtub.
You should always make a couple of passes to ensure you get all the hair & soap scum build up.
Once you have unclogged the incoming pipe now you are ready to clean the outgoing drain line. The outgoing drain line is located at the top of the drum-trap.
When you clean the outgoing drain pipe for your clogged bathtub you should always run it to the main sewer pipe. Usually, the outgoing drain line for the drum trap is approximately 5 ft to 15 feet.
Cleaning the drain line all the way to the sewer will ensure you’re getting all the hair, grease & soap build up in the line. If you don’t cut any corners it will last you for years to come.
You should always clean the cross T as well you may have to take the screw off the cover to access it. Once you get the cover off you can usually see a build-up that you can clean by just using a small screwdriver to get the build-up out of the drain.
If you take your time and don’t cut any corners you shouldn’t have to worry about any clogged bathtubs for years to come!
Drain Monkeys is available for your clogged bathtub in Kalamazoo, Drain Monkeys rates are cheap & they have 23 years of experience cleaning drains in Kalamazoo with cheap rates. You will get a 30 day guarantee on workmanship with completed work. The guarantee does have some exclusions. Offset joints, foreign material, broken pipes, low spots in the pipe.