Clogged Sink Drains when Disposal Used

[bryanem]

Does anyone know why my clogged sink drains only when the disposal is turned on ? It then will clog up again, so I repeatedly cycle the disposal to get it to drain. Drano didn't work.

I'm thinking that there is some kind of screen or fitting with holes in the bottom of the disposal that is clogged up for normal draining. However, when I turn the disposal on, it must drain down the bottom center of the disposal, bypassing the clogged screen/holes.

Short of calling a plumber, any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks !

[davidg73]

what happens is you have a clog in the drain line PAST the disposal usually. this likely is from putting too much sutff in teh disposal at once or not running water long enough afterwards to clear the drain line. the disposal turns on and it acts like a pump forcing the water down. my sink does this at times, and simply fill it all the way then turn on the disposal to pump it down. once i do it usually clears whatever was in there.

BTW, use COLD water with the disposal. hot jus tmakes the grease go further in the pipes before congealing. cold will help harden the grease sooner and MAYBE pass it on thru.

disposals don't have 2 ways out. everything comes out the same way, whether it is running or not.

[SlowCoder]

When we first moved into our house we had the same problem. Very slow drain, but running the displosal helped. I couldn't reach any clog with my 20 foot snake from any direction. With a friend's help, I capped the roof exhaust, removed the sink trap, and ran pressurized water with my hose and a bladder. I have a lot of water pressure, and it was definitely clogged, so water came flying out of the trap like crazy for a few seconds. When the clog finally came loose, I was at the sewage outspout to see a baseball sized, hairy, ugly ball of grease roll past and into my septic tank. It's been 4 years now, and no more drain problems.

I've been told it's good to fill the sink with hot water and Dawn and let it run down the drain periodically to keep the pipes clean.

[LazyPup]

Is this a single or double sink?

[bryanem]

RE: Clogged Sink Drains when Disposal Used

Hello,

It's a double sink. Right hand is the disposal, left hand is just a plain drain.

[LazyPup]

Double sinks are connected by means of a "Center Waste Kit" or an "End Waste Kit" that combines the two sink drains into one drain before it goes into the P-trap.

Code requires that the Tee connecting the two sinks must be a "Baffled Tee" which means that inside the tee there is a thin baffle that directs the flow from the side input downwards into the drain.

I suspect you may have something lodged in that baffle that retards flow under normal gravity conditions but will allow flow under the forced pumping action from your disposal.

Normally its a simple job to take the tee out and clean the inner passages in the Tee.