Water all over our laundry room and bathroom!

Idyllic Pursuit
by Idyllic Pursuit
Our laundry room is directly below the kitchen. I fear there's some kind of blockage because water was all over the floor in the basement. It came from this pipe here that the washer hose drains into. I see some food debri on it so I imagine it's also connected to the sink somehow. Water also comes when the dishwasher is run, but not as much as when the washer is being emptied.
After four years my husbands SSDI will finally come in next month, so for now I need low cost solutions (preferably DIY) until his back pay comes in in October.
I appreciate any advice you can give!
The opened pipe is where the water comes from. The black thing is from the washer and sits in the pipe to drain.
  9 answers
  • Phil Phil on Sep 11, 2015
    yes there is definitely a blockage, if you have a cesspool or storage tank some call it, it may have collapsed?
  • LaurieM LaurieM on Sep 11, 2015
    The cheapest option is to borrow or rent a plumbing snake and run it into the pipe, to see if you can unclog it yourself. A snake is a long flexible metal cable with sharp teeth on the end. Some are hand-cranked, some are electric.
    • Manuel Manuel on Sep 12, 2015
      To dangerous for someone not experience. I have seen people with broken fingers and wrists. Borrow money and pay a plumber
  • Beach Bumm Beach Bumm on Sep 12, 2015
    call a plummer
  • Kathy Bitzan Kathy Bitzan on Sep 12, 2015
    We had this happen years ago after buying our first home... The tree roots had grown into the pipes, and the plumber was needed.
  • LELIA CRISPEN LELIA CRISPEN on Sep 12, 2015
    copper sulfate...
  • As far as your question is concerned, in my view after major water damage situations, such as those that result from storms, flooding, or burst pipes in a home, it may be necessary to dry wall cavities and other small spaces as part of the total restoration effort. It is important to have your plumbing working correctly in your home. If something goes wrong, it can result in major damages. If you find something wrong with your plumbing, it is important to contact a plumber immediately.
  • CK CK on Sep 14, 2015
    I too would recommend a plumber.....I know it's costly and we all want to DIY as much as possible, but water damage can create even more costly repairs. If money's tight right now, explain your situation and see if you can do payments if necessary. Also check to see if there's any local organization who could offer some financial assistance due to the disability. Praying for you........
  • Carole Carole on Sep 15, 2015
    There's something basically wrong: the width of your pipe -as far as I can see on the photo- is too narrow to lead water away when a modern appliance, especially washer suddenly goes into emptying/changing water modus. You can test this by for example empyting a water bottle directly down the piece of pipe you show on the photo or a watering can filled with watever volume of water you want and measuring the time in seconds required for all the water to be lead away and no water noises to be heard from the piping system. Write down the seconds for the volume side by side like 10 seconds for whatever-unit of volume of water. . Now calculate: how much does your washer need/empties at the end of the washing/rinsing cycle and how this fits with the piping. By the way this will GREATLY help uour plumber to identify the problem. (see this in the manual or ask the manufacturer or the place you bought the appliance for the water required by the appliance) for every end of laundry/change of water from soapy to rinse etc..., write down, for example the appliance's water requirement, for example 6.5 what you were able to lead down the drain during the time recorded. Next: WATER (in liters, gallons, whatever, bottles, just as long as it is the same "unit" you used to test as above) used by the appliance MULTIPLIED by timeIN SECONDS used by the pipe to lead 1 UNIT AWAY. The result is the time in SECONDS needed to empty all the machine. If you prefer you can always divide this with 60 and get the time in minutes. Say you emptied 1 unit of water in 10 seconds and your washer empties 6.5 units of wate rit means your washer would need EITHER over a minute to empty -IF it empties slowly, ORit needs a much larger pipe if it swirls and empties in a slush...See why it's not possible to "fix" ? Even for a short while? Add to this that you may use other facilities/take action using the pipes and drains such as claning/letting water run in the kitchen sink, the dishwasher, and eventually also, take into consideration with such problem you cannot use oilets/empty buckets in toilets while using the washer, for the shower and toilet all are connected to the same piping at some point further away, meaning a lot (too much) water wanting to exit. And if water cannot exit, it comes back. I believe this is why you have observed the problem is less with the dishwasher: dishwashers are made to run with very, very little water, as little as 6-8 liters for 1 total cycle wash and the water exits it does so more quietly. (Meaning it has time to be lead awy and further down the pipes and all the way out of your house and further. It could be as simple as the piping system of your house is old (dating from time with little appliance) and simply not geared to lead water away from several sources at the time (kitchen sink+ washer, or dishwasher+washer or even washer alone). Before calling in the plumber, there are however 2 easy things you can do: (1) could it be that it is NOT so much the piping (still looks too narrow to me) but ALSO the washer hose thas is old and obstructed and full of debris? Look into this with a flash light, a new hose is very cheap (and does good anyway as there ar lways soapy/fatty rests all the way clinging onto the inside of the hose) 2) THIS IS NOT A FIX. This will only help you control the speed at which the water exits and stay safe from water on the floor etc..The only "fix" I know for this kind of problem is to have the washer NOT empty into the piping directly and INSTEAD lead the hose into some kind of large capacity reservoir that will withhold the dirty water and wherefrom YOU can control the speed at which it empties, ltaer, and you'll nee to be standing in front, for instance for emptying the reservoir with a more narrow hose you then can connect to the pipe etc... Typically I would do this if I had a bathtub nearby, it does have the capacity to contain safely all the water used by 1 wash and more, and you can clean and sanitize the tub afterwards and you need no extra fitting/work. Just be sure to fit the hose so that it does not start to "jump" around while the water exits, else, you'll get water on the floor/outside the tub again. Also be home and check regularly while washing. You can also have some kind of other type of container if you can firmly/more permamently fix the hose to it and another hose (remember you'll have no pump, this is why the bathtub is easier, as firstly it empties slowly and secondly you can control the drain of the bathtub) I have done this when I have had big urgent piping problems and needed clean clothes NOW. But you have to be very careful with securing the hose TIGHTLY to the bathtub, the hose is "overreactive" during the washing and is really a hazard. You'll need a plumber anyway, for as someone else writes above, damage from water is much more expensive then having the plumber come over and if you regularly (or occasionally) have water (or moisture) on the floor you also are at very high risk for an electricity accident and for getting hurt yourself thisway, even with something as simple as emptying (=touching) your washing machine. Sorry to be boring but IT IS VERY DANGEROUS from the electricity aspect and the best you can do for your health and safety is to look at it as a signigficant electricity hazard as well, given the installation shown on the photo (it looks old) it may be the way the house is wired is not even connecting to the earth. (I had this in my 1974-built house and was in chock when I found out, it meant just taking a bath in the tub, cleaning the floor in the bathroom was dangerous). So I'd say, even if you have to make hard choice, sacrifices, do try and get some budget, even a small loan if you can or an agreement with a plumber to check this (+ the electricity I mean). Also: today and in order to ensure norms etc... are respected there are quality labels and certificates for plumber and electricity work, some plumbers can do both (now you figure out why its relevant) and have certificates, some plumbers do both and have no certificates, some plumbers have no certification and do only plumbery. The first ones are of course a bit more expensive, because they spend more money and time chasing for excellence and acquiring he competences to hold and get the labels. Your house looks old and it looks like some problems were handed over to you that you are not aware of. In order to get the best advice call in some plumbers that also do electricity and compare the offers before deciding on your priorities and budget. GET ADVICE FROM PROS, you really need it. You'll get good advice and value for money if asking serious professionals, nothing is worse when on a shoestring budget, than to finally spend and slip money to a repairman that is not very good for repair that is not done properly or was not the optimal solution, and for that also I have paid dear learning money, as I simply had to pay for having the stuff redone.. Hope this helps....Take care
  • Judy Roberts Judy Roberts on Sep 18, 2015
    Washer lint gets rock hard in the exit pipe, especially if a house sits empty for awhile. You need a plumber to clean the exit drain. On the other hand, I know more than one family that runs a washer exit hose outside...