drain clog

[fixtureman]

Depending on the entry to the drain, if you can get one of these in there I expect it'll take care of it.  


https://www.homedepot.com/s/inflatable%2...ing?NCNI-5

I picked one up from Harbor Freight and it worked to unplug an Ice blockage when I used Hot water.

[mike4244]

I have a bathtub drain that is clogged.  Not in the trap, but somewhere way down in the pipe . I can run water for a while and it takes a couple of minutes before I get water backup into the tub.  So, I wanted the plumber to come out and snake out my drain.  But I live in New Jersey, and the state is mostly shut down and the plumber won't come out unless it's an emergency.  Seems like this could be an emergency in the making, but that doesn't count.
Liquid Plumber did not prove sufficient.
I don't know how to approach snaking out this drain, so I am trying to find another method. I tried a toilet plunger and as expected, it was completely ineffective.  I think I just pushed water up the vent and put no pressure on the clog.
What should I do?
I could cover the vent on the roof and maybe that would allow me to get some pressure on the clog with a plunger. Or maybe the water/air would just go up a different vent or out somewhere else. 

suggestions?

Thanks
Mark

I helped a neighbor with a similar problem. We tried lye, snake powered by a drill, boiling water and finally we decided to replace the pipe. 
We poked holes in the ceiling til we hit the piping. Cut the drywall out between studs . The pipe was ABS so cutting it out was easy. 
We found the pipe was clogged with masonry cement. A moron contractor had installed new tile on the floor and half walls. Appeared that he flushed the left over cement down the drain. The cement had time to harden as the bathroom was not used for several days. We removed 6'-0  of pipe and replaced it with Fernco couplings and new pipe.
mike

[Bob10]

For a clogged toilet dish soap helps. You might pour a bunch of Dawn down the drain. Let it set for half an hour then try the boiling water. Seems the detergent helps the clog slide more easily

Thank you for this!  It worked amazingly well

[Scouter]

Can you try running a snake down the vent from the roof if there are not cleanouts below.   Roly

I tried that once, but wifey got pssd when the snake came back up through the toilet and bit her on the arse. 

[Cooler]

I had that problem and I had to call in a plumber. 

He used an electric snake.  He said that the galvanized drain pipe can closed up.  He advanced the snake slowly and it took about a half an hour to snake out the drain (about 30 feet of pipe).  At some point I may have to re-pipe that.

Right now I have a brand new Harbor Freight electric snake.  It is cheaper (and quicker) than a plumber.

I had that problem with a shower, so I did not have to deal with a drain plug.  I don't know how you get an electric snake past a drain plug.

[EightFingers]

I’ve heard of electric eels but never an electric snake....

[messmaker]

I have the exact same problem. I have run a 25' snake down it and still have the clog. Tub is the only thing clogged. I am thinking moving may be the best solution.

[MsNomer]

When this thread began, we were also dealing with a stopped shower drain.  After nothing worked, MrNomer cut out the 63-year-old pipe and replaced with PVC.

   

   

[gMike]

I spent an hour and a half yesterday fixing a very slow tub drain.  It was odd in that if I plunged the drain it would run fine for a few minutes then slow to almost nothing.  Pulled the trap and (luckily had a fernco downstream) and all was well, no clog.  Finally got my head under the down pipe from the tub and saw a white plastic bottle cap lodged in the tube.  It was too big to go all the way into the waste line and had to come up to the tub overflow in the tub to be removed.  Needless to say a tub screen has bee ordered to cover the drain hole so this doesn't happen again.