jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

How about, "We're #1 in the #2 business!" That's on a local truck. Of course, Google turns up many more.

# 1 Plumber in the #2 Business.
A Flush Beats A Full House.
At The First Whiff, Call Cliff!
Dirty Deeds…Done Dirt Cheap!
Do You Want To Do This Yourself?
Experts In Septic Maintenance.
Got Poop?
Hauling Away Political Promises.
Money In The Tank.
Nothing Stinks Too Bad.
Satisfaction Guaranteed or 110% Of Your Product Back!
Septic Experts.
Stoolbus.
Surrender The Poo!
Thanks For Flushing Our Business Down Your Drain.
Too Much Brown? Call Crown!
We Ain’t Hauling Milk Here!
We Want Your Stinking Business.
We’ll Take Care Of It.
We’re #1 With #2.
Yesterday’s Meals on Wheels.
You Dump We Pump.
You Think Our Job Sucks.
Your Number 2 Is Our Number 1!

Related - toilet flushing: "If it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown, flush it down."

I asked one of those guys how they actually pump a septic tank - vacuum from the truck's engine.

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

Nothing like a good project to keep you busy.
Guess we'll miss you on UHH for a while.

PS: any good project is a valid excuse for a new tool.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

👍👍 absolutely correct! I have personally used that excuse (oops, I meant valid reason) many times.

Gray Lensman

Having spent part of my life doing plumbing, the comments above about the snake cleaning only a specific diameter through sludge; a blocked vent; and using a trashcan rather than a garbage disposal are all good comments, as is replacing with PVC if this persists. Although it is less likely, it is still possible that on an old system, which copper drainage pipes are, something may have come loose or sunk so that it no longer has the proper 'drop' (1/4" to 1/2" to the foot) and the line is 'trapped'.

As to the cost, it is high, but the initial cost also must include travel time and the time it takes to maintain the parts needed for a service truck. Plumbing skills have saved e a lot of money over the years, including the worst clogged pipe I ever had to clear - early on in our married life when my wife put old but uncooked rice into the drain and it swelled when wet. The second worst was when my daughter forgot to extinguish a large candle sitting on the lip of the sink and it melted completely down and into the drain!

Hamltnblue Loc: Springfield PA

Next time try an M80 Firecracker ;)

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

I dunno. I can tell you from experience (High School), that an M80 fuse will continue to burn under water and is capable of blowing out a sink drain 😱

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

Somehow I suspect that it will be tough trying to get an M80 through 20 ft of pipe before that short fuse reaches the end. And if it blows in the middle of the pipe, with 10 ft of water on either side of it, the pipe might be worse for the experience.

Hamltnblue Loc: Springfield PA

But the story you could tell your grandkids :)

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Our experiment didn’t make it that far down the drain before it blew up (resulting on one of my numerous suspensions from school). We also found that you could fit a standard cherry bomb into a metal 35mm film container with a hole in the top for the fuse and some small hardware for ballast, which when flushed would create a spectacular explosion. We were incorrigible kids.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Update: All the new parts are installed on the new sink, and I'm trying to piece together the parts I need to get the sink water and the dishwasher water out of the house. I spent quite a bit of time with the plumbing guy at Lowe's this morning, and a couple of things stumped him. I figure I'll put the new sink in place and then see what pieces I still need.

Thanks for all your suggestions and a special thanks to The Expert.

EDIT: This was interesting. This morning, I found a thin vertical split in the copper downpipe from the sink. Apparently, it had gotten cold enough in there to freeze the water and crack the pipe. Time to add more insulation.