You probably associate the word vent in your home with the HVAC system that circulates air around the different rooms. However, your plumbing system also uses vents, and if something goes wrong with them, it can result in serious trouble for your drains and terrible odors in your house.
What are drain vents?
In order for waste water to move through drains, there must be ventilation within the drainage system. Without a way for the sewer gas in the pipe to escape, a pressurized vacuum will develop in the drainpipe and prevent the wastewater from moving. It’s the job of the vent to allow the gas to escape and regular the pressure within the plumbing.
The drain vent consists of a pipe that connects a drainpipe to something known as the main stack. Think of this as like a chimney for the drainage system in a house. The main stack rises all the way to an open pipe on the roof (known as a stack vent), allowing rising sewer gas to escape from the pipes and leave the drains clear for the flow of waste water.
Drain vent problems
If any blockage develops in the drain vent pipe, the main stack, or the stack vent, it will start to affect waste water removal. The first warning sign that something is wrong will be foul odors coming up from the drains. This is occurring because the increased pressure inside the drains pushes sewer gas up through the pipes and the p-trap. You will probably also hear a gurgling sound coming from the drains, indicating that gases are moving through the water in the p-trap. The problem will soon cause slow drains and eventually a complete stoppage.
Standard drain cleaning methods such as plungers and drain snakes won’t help clear up drain vent trouble. The drain vent pipe or main stack needs a licensed professional plumber to unclog it. The plumber will use special equipment to find out where the problem is and how to fix it.
Modern Plumbing Industries, Inc. has the plumbers to handle your drain and sewer services in Orlando, FL.