Wanderlodge Gurus - The Member Funded Wanderlodge Forum

Is it safe to use a regular drain cleaner like Drain-O in my shower
drain?

Scott Forman
86 PT38
Memphis

The drain opening chemicals are based on Lye and are highly caustic.
(The powdered form of Draino is lye with bits of aluminum added. When
water is added, the lye interacts with the aluminum creating heat --
this helps "boil out" the clog.)

Personally, I'd avoid using Drano (or other chemical drain openers)
in an RV. Once it passes through the drain into the holding tank,
you've effectively made a very nasty brew that you then have to
drain. (Dilute with LOTS of water.) Inadvertent contact with the
holding tank contents might damage clothes -- or you...

What I'd suggest is first try a mechanical snake. One with a small
diameter (and not very long) should reach from the shower into the
holding tank. A hand-crank model or one driven with an electric drill
should be more than sufficient.

There are also water pressure based devices. Essentially, you hook a
hose to a rubber thing that expands in the drain, sealing the
opening, then water is forced behind the clog. If it doesn't open up
the pipes, it will clear the clog. If the clog is beyond a junction
with other pipes, it will cause water to come up the other drains,
unless you can adequately seal them. (I don't really recommend this
one either, but sometimes desperation comes into the equation.)

If you have some flow, I'd try a mixture of very hot water with a
generous amount of washing soda (Arm & Hammer brand in a yellow box
near the borax and other washing aids in the laundry detergent
section of a store -- NOT baking soda, but WASHING soda). It's a
little weaker than trisodium phosphate, that's often suggested as a
cleaning prep for painting. If a couple of shots of the washing soda
doesn't clear the clog, then try the trisodium phosphate (get it at a
paint store or a good hardware store that has a paint department).

Since most clogs in a sink or shower are hair, and they often 'hang'
a short way down from the drain opening, usually at the trap, a short
snake may be all that's really required.

===============================================
Pete Masterson, Author of
Book Design and Production: A Guide for Authors and Publishers
Aeonix1@...
Aeonix Publishing Group http://www.aeonix.com
===============================================


On Nov 30, 2008, at 2:13 PM, Scott Forman wrote:

> Is it safe to use a regular drain cleaner like Drain-O in my shower
> drain?
>

Does your shower drain mechanism work properly ? My '83 had the drain
handle that operated a "bucket" type stop that was in the vertical
plumbing behind the lower part of the shower. The bucket was "stuck" in
the almost closed position which allowed it to drain, but very slowly.
I broke the chain while trying to carefully get it to raise. I could
not get a snake of any size to do anything, and drain cleaners would
not help either. That vertical plumbing with the bucket is in an area
that you cannot get to without some serious tear out. What I ended up
doing was going under the bus, and drilling about a 1/4" hole in the
plastic pipe "U" fitting that would allow me to ge a long narrow
screwdriver up to the bottom of the "bucket" to force it up into the
pipe, where it remains. I then replaced the drain stop with one of the
pop-up type that you step on to make it operate.
Hopefully yours is just clogged with the usual culprits. I agree to
start out with less caustic substances first, and a small hand snake
may make the 90 degree bend.
But if you have the same kind of drain system as mine and the drain
handle doesn't seem to work, you make have the dreaded "stuck bucket".

Dan Schrader
Buckeye Bird


--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Scott Forman"
<scottforman75@...> wrote:
>
> Is it safe to use a regular drain cleaner like Drain-O in my shower
> drain?
>
> Scott Forman
> 86 PT38
> Memphis
>

I forgot to add.......after drilling the hole in the plastic pipe and
forcing the bucket up, I just repaired the 1/4" hole with some
plastic weld epoxy.

Dan Schrader
Buckeye Bird

--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "redffultra"
wrote:
>
> Does your shower drain mechanism work properly ? My '83 had the
drain
> handle that operated a "bucket" type stop that was in the vertical
> plumbing behind the lower part of the shower. The bucket
was "stuck" in
> the almost closed position which allowed it to drain, but very
slowly.
> I broke the chain while trying to carefully get it to raise. I
could
> not get a snake of any size to do anything, and drain cleaners
would
> not help either. That vertical plumbing with the bucket is in an
area
> that you cannot get to without some serious tear out. What I ended
up
> doing was going under the bus, and drilling about a 1/4" hole in
the
> plastic pipe "U" fitting that would allow me to ge a long narrow
> screwdriver up to the bottom of the "bucket" to force it up into
the
> pipe, where it remains. I then replaced the drain stop with one of
the
> pop-up type that you step on to make it operate.
> Hopefully yours is just clogged with the usual culprits. I agree to
> start out with less caustic substances first, and a small hand
snake
> may make the 90 degree bend.
> But if you have the same kind of drain system as mine and the drain
> handle doesn't seem to work, you make have the dreaded "stuck
bucket".
>
> Dan Schrader
> Buckeye Bird
>
>
> --- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Scott Forman"
> <scottforman75@> wrote:
> >
> > Is it safe to use a regular drain cleaner like Drain-O in my
shower
> > drain?
> >
> > Scott Forman
> > 86 PT38
> > Memphis
> >
>

Hey Scott,

I'll bet your coach is like mine, and has the shower drain plug that
lifts up & down with the lever below the faucet, yes?

When I bought my coach the shower drain was a bit hokey. Not only a
little slow, but the drain plug wouldn't stay up on it's own anymore.
Here's what I'm betting you will find: The drain lift lever goes down
a vertical pipe, where it intersects with a horizontal pipe that runs
to your shower drain. Inside this horizontal pipe is a big spring and
a couple of rods that move back and forth. Mine was simply FULL of
hair and other nasty debris. I had to yank the thing out.

Unfortunately, it was not an easy job. I had to completely disassemble
the metal piping from underneath. The entire system was impossible to
clean and after yanking it out, impossible to replace with a new
system, so I wound up buying a new drain piece. I bought a beautiful
new nickel plated shower drain that lifts up and down by grabbing it,
rather than from the inside with a lever.... and then I found that the
piping underneath is completely non-standard. The threads aren't right
and modern shower fixtures, while they physically fit just fine, don't
screw into the threads. So I had to replace all of the plumbing under
the shower. It was not a fun job in the least... I wound up hacking a
bunch of foam insulation away, rigging up a new PVC drain pipe system,
testing everything, then replacing all of the foam installation with
that spray-foam stuff.

In the end it turned out very nice, and now I have a shower drain free
of all that mechanical garbage inside the pipe, but the process was
annoying and very time consuming. Personally, I'd be real tempted to
dry drain cleaner, even if it's "not good" for things. The piping
immediately under your shower is probably all metal, like mine. I'd
fill the holding tank with a good deal of water to dilute the stuff
once you flush it down, hit it hard and then dump the tanks & rinse
them out well right away. If you do have the lever lift system you
won't be able to put a snake down that drain...

-Ryan
'86 PT-40 8V92

On Sun, Nov 30, 2008 at 1:13 PM, Scott Forman <scottforman75@...> wrote:
> Is it safe to use a regular drain cleaner like Drain-O in my shower
> drain?
>
> Scott Forman
> 86 PT38
> Memphis
>
>

On my house drain I used one of the Home Depot plastic drain snakes
which is very reasonable, about 12" long and looks like a fish bone.
It will get all the hair out and the drain was like new.

MoreyZ
99LXi41'