Another plumbing mystery.

[N80]

Well, it was the vent stack. Guess that's why I'm not a plumber. Of course the plumber guessed wrong the first time and snaked the shower for $200 and it didn't help. At that point he decided he was 100% sure it was the vent. He snaked the vent for another $100 and that solved the problem. Still makes no sense to me as even he confirmed that the gurgling in the shower was air coming up, not sucking down.

I have a snake and could have done both of these jobs myself but in all honesty with the move, family problems and craziness at work I really didn't have the time anyway. I think it is ridiculous that it cost $200 to have a line snaked but when you need the service you pay for it and I feel better about leaving the new owner with a functioning system than with a problem.

Live and learn.

P.S.: Thanks for all the diagnostics guys.

 

[MossRoad]

Hey, sometimes money does buy happiness... you are done and it is working!

 

[EddieWalker]

Congratulations on finding the problem.

What makes it complicated in figuring these things out is that the only way to know what it is, is to check everything and narrow it down by process of elemination. Just because a plumber does this every day doesn't mean he knows what is going on in your house.

His prices seem kind of high to me, but then I've seen it go into the thousands and the problem was never found or fixed.

Eddie

 

[DocHeb]

As Soundguy said: "if it can be fixed with a check, it's not an problem, it is an expense."

 

[Egon]

I think it is ridiculous that it cost $200 to have a line snaked but when you need the service you pay for it

Plumber has kids that want to go to college to!

 

[jinman]

Okay, now that George has solved his plumbing problem, let me slightly hijack his thread. Our coop electric company (and probably all coop electric providers in TX) just put a notice on the bottom of our montly bill that they will give us a 1-time $100 off on our bill for having our air conditioner "tuned up" by a licensed AC service company. My air conditioner is working fine, but it just makes sense to have this done. I don't think it will cost me that much for a no-materials service call. I get my system checked and the serviceman gets a boost in business. Sounds like a win-win to me.:thumbsup:

 

[dave1949]

Okay, now that George has solved his plumbing problem, let me slightly hijack his thread. Our coop electric company (and probably all coop electric providers in TX) just put a notice on the bottom of our montly bill that they will give us a 1-time $100 off on our bill for having our air conditioner "tuned up" by a licensed AC service company. My air conditioner is working fine, but it just makes sense to have this done. I don't think it will cost me that much for a no-materials service call. I get my system checked and the serviceman gets a boost in business. Sounds like a win-win to me.:thumbsup:

Don't mess with something that is working - and don't pay somebody else to mess with it either Actually, I have no idea about AC. It would be my luck that someone decided to tweak something and it would be all downhill from there.
Dave.

 

[Kays Supply]

I'm not a HVAC man " but I play one on TV ". My son is one. They do mostly clean and check and replace old units more than new installs. There are some things that do need to be checked. Low gas, dirty condensors, fan bearings, etc. It might be working, but catching something early this time of year might mean not sleeping in an oven for a few days while waiting for a service man. The price is right for sure. If you don't like what they tell you, you can always pay for a second opinion.

 

[captaincrab55]

One must remember that any contractor that has a license and insurance, will have overhead... The money spent was an investment to protect your home & complete the sale...

On another note, $100 for a HVAC check-up may prevent a condensate back-up in one's home.... IMHO, it's worth it...

 

[N80]

Hey, sometimes money does buy happiness... you are done and it is working!

That's right and it never required a back hoe in my back yard! Of course a back hoe in my back yard on Christmas morning or Father's Day _might_ be a whole different story.

Anyway, he snaked the vent stack and that solved the problem, but even now I don't think it was the vent. My wife said each time he snaked the vent stack he came up with hair and soap residue and finally he came up with a huge wad of hair and the gurgling stopped. I don't see how there could be hair and soap in the vent stack. I'm guessing the snake went past the vent stack into a partially clogged drain line.