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Re: [Shop-talk] Smoke gun for septic vent leak?

To: "George P. Dausch IV" <GPD4@juno.com>
Subject: Re: [Shop-talk] Smoke gun for septic vent leak?
From: Jim Franklin <jamesf@groupwbench.org>
Date: Wed, 23 Nov 2022 11:03:33 -0500
Cc: shop-talk <shop-talk@autox.team.net>
Delivered-to: mharc@autox.team.net
Delivered-to: shop-talk@autox.team.net
References: <A7EB544E-AEE2-4491-9246-DD895544F09A@groupwbench.org> <D4BFE77A-A269-4611-972B-7247C7D09BC7@juno.com>
It's a rentral so all fun (!) tools and methodologies are out. 

jim

> On Nov 23, 2022, at 9:53 AM, George P. Dausch IV <GPD4@juno.com> wrote:
> 
> Interesting problem.  Did you ever think about pulling a vacuum on the roof 
> or wherever it exits and working backward?
> 
> Sent from my iPhone
> 
>> On Nov 23, 2022, at 9:02 AM, Jim Franklin <jamesf@groupwbench.org> wrote:
>> 
>> Apologies if I've asked this before, I can't find any emails from it. I 
>> rent a basement apartment with a sewage ejection pump. When the weather gets 
>> cold, it stinks, almost exclusively while I'm in the shower. After many 
>> investigations and lots of thought, I think there's a leak in the vent side. 
>> As the catchment tank fills up, the air above the liquid can't push the cold 
>> slug of air in the vent pipe, so it exits through the leak. 
>> 
>> A plumber has been here 3 times, and yesterday replaced the noisy and 
>> banging backflow prevention valve, but either he's a nancy boy who doesn't 
>> wnt to dive any further down the waste side, or is clueless, because his 
>> excuse is that it's very hard to diagnose odors. Or maybe he's doing it for 
>> free as a friend of the landlord and doesn't want to create an all day job 
>> he won't get paid for.
>> 
>> I'd like send a large volume of visible air down the vent and see if it 
>> leaks out somewhere. I'm thinking I'd drill two small holes- one for a 
>> balloon which I'd inflate to seal the vent, and one below it for a smoke 
>> gun. Sound plausible? Better way to do this? Is there such a thing as a high 
>> volume smoke gun for consumer prices?
>> 
>> I've tried soapy water and smoke sticks to look for escaping air, but it was 
>> inconclusive; I think I need positive pressure inside the system. I suppose 
>> I could install a coupler in the vent and use the compressor and 
>> aforementioned smoke sticks, but I'm looking for a better plan A. 
>> 
>> thanks,
>> jim
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> 

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