Plumbing vents...

[inahandbasket]

So the plumber came out and installed our new stove finally! (yay!)
It's shiny, and works! Fire!

Unfortunately when I asked him about our plans to move the sink he went into the basement with me to check it out, and then gave me the bad news that our sink isn't vented currently. This is apparently not up to code, and if they move if they'd have to run a new vent. This would apparently require ripping out the wall and ceiling of the kitchen, so basically we'd have to gut the kitchen which we were thinking was headed towards being finished, not gutted.
I'm not clear why they couldn't tap into the existing vent on the main stack, but he pointed at it and said "There's your existing one, we'd have to run a totally new vent for the sink though." I didn't think of it in time to ask him, I was still going "Aw nuts" under my breath.

I could do the plumbing myself (meaning I'm physically capable of it) and have it not be to code, but I have no clue what the implication of a non-vented sink/dishwasher is. Guess I have some research to do.
Anyone familiar with plumbing drainage vents, and the necessity/danger thereof?

Off to put up pizza dough for dinner.

Comments

[squirrella.livejournal.com]

Mike sez:

OK. Tell him that it does not have to be vented if the sinks drain pipe taps the main house drain pipe before: 6'-0" for 1 1/2" pipe and 8'-0" for 2" pipe. If the run is longer than that, it has to be vented according to the International Plumbing Code, which is what I think Boston is using. The problem with tapping the main house vent is that you have to tap it above all of the fixtures on the top floor. The vent stack is probably the same as the poop stack for the toilet, therefore you want to try and avoid filling the dishwasher with poop. After all of that is considered with the new location of the sink, it might be cheaper to run a dedicated vent through the roof. If you can avoid putting a hole in the roof I would recommend doing so. It might not be feasible though.

What does it mean if it is not vented properly? It will drain slower, be more prone to clogs and make a sucking noise off and on while it is draining. Personally, my home sink is not vented properly and it does not have problems draining or making the noise.

Good luck!

[squirrella.livejournal.com]

Mike adds:

Let him know that we do not have a dishwasher though and the faster it would drain, the more the possibility of the sucking noise. Kind of like what our sink in the basement does when the washing machine empties.

[inahandbasket]

awesome, thanks to you and Mike for all the info!

[squirrella.livejournal.com]

sometimes it's fun to have an engineer around. mostly, it's just a buzzkill because he takes the magic out of things by explaining, excitedly, how it all works.

[inahandbasket]

hah, I imagine I do the same thing for people with computers and such sometimes...

[squirrella.livejournal.com]

sometimes i surprise him by engineering an answer, thus stealing his thundah. ROCK.

[mzrowan.livejournal.com]

My understanding is that if it isn't vented properly, then you risk it not draining properly -- air has to be able to go up as water goes down. I have this problem is my shower; water drains slowly and eventually I hear "glug glug" from the pipes as the air bubbles up.

If you want to do it yourself and are not concerned about code, you can get an AAV.

[mzrowan.livejournal.com]

Here's more info on AAVs (second half of the article):
http://www.rd.com/19540/article19540.html

[inahandbasket]

awesomeness, thanks!
I just emailed somerville 311 to see if they'll allow AAVs. They don't appear to have their building/inspection codes posted online. boo.

[mzrowan.livejournal.com]

My understanding is that they generally don't, from discussing this with my plumber, Charlie Sillari, who is cousins with the plumbing inspector for Somerville (handy, that ;-). They may makes exceptions but are extremely reluctant to do so.

[inahandbasket]

Hmm. I called Sillari and he was booked out, but he said to call his cousin TJ Sillari. I did, and he had a couple guys out to me within hours.
Wonder if TJ's that cousin? Seems like someone who runs plumbing services shouldn't be the city inspector though...

[mzrowan.livejournal.com]

Yeah, probably not the same guy. Hell, I have forty first cousins just on my mother's side, and we're supposedly Protestant.

[drwex]

I hope the answers your earlier commenters gave you provide some solution.

One of the things I dislike about household projects is how so few of them really are as simple as we think they ought to be. They have this ungodly habit of mushrooming.

[inahandbasket]

heh, yeah they do.
On the other hand it keeps me busy. ^_^