Repair / replace sewage main?
Ugh! Plumbing emergency! We're potentially facing a main line replacement (the "big" pipe that connects the house to the street pipe, owned by the city.) Anyone have experience on how to manage this in a slab (Eichler) home? We still use the radiant heating.
The emergency response plumber pulled the furthest toilet, snaked, then sent down a camera to find crumbling iron pipes, surely laid in 1964 when this development was built.
I'd love to hear from folks:
- Who've repaired/replaced the "main" in an Eichler: Did you go through the atrium (where we presume the original mains from the "kitchen side" and the "bathroom side" meet currently, or did you go outwards, and flank to house, with those two "sides" meeting in the front of the house, then running in one pipe to the City line?
- Who have replaced hot water heater to tankless (I'm thinking this *might* be the right time to stir in some improvements, but mostly because spending this kind of dough to get no improvement, only maintenance, is painful.
- Who have used "grey" water. The hot water heater is so far from the laundry and bathrooms: it runs on a U shape, passing from the garage, through the kitchen, then across to the other side of the house, first to the Master Bath, then finally to the second bathroom and laundry.
With heartfelt thanks in advance.
I replaced my water heater with an tankless 6 years ago and love it. I got a hot water return and well insulated pipes so never run out of hot water and my gas bill is lower than the original water heater. I haven't had to redo the sewage main but did re-pipe with new pipes on the roof after the original copper pipes in the slab started springing leak after leak. I can't recommend which way to do the sewer line as it depends on your model layout. Saving the heating system is possible, but it sits in the slab and the sewer line can be feet below the slab. I'm crossing my fingers you find a good contractor. Selina
