DIY craziness found in renovation - Plumbing Zone

futz · 07-31-2010, 02:25 AM

Started a reno today and found this craziness. It appears the house had a fire and (I assume) the owner decided to replumb/renovate it himself (obviously with no permits?). The DWV is the craziest thing I've seen in a while. We laughed at it for a while before chopping it all out to start over.

Upstairs there are two 3-piece baths. There was an existing 3" stack from ground floor. He put a 3x2" double-wye on the vertical and ran 1-1/2" branches to a lav in each bath. On top of that he put a 3" double-wye. One side branch picks up one toilet. The other picks up the other toilet and a bathtub with a bizarre bit of piping you'll see in the pics below. The top of the d-wye has a 3x1-1/2" tee that picks up the other bathtub and then does two 90's, butchers through a joist (with wrong-way slope) and another 90 and up through the roof (you'll see this in the pics). Wacky DIY strangeness!

There are more wires behind the drywall elsewhere. What a firetrap!

Look at this bizarre bit of piping. The tub drain/vent thing is so strange that I can't imagine what he was thinking when he did it.

Oh ya, that's a union trap concealed in a ceiling.

The abandoned 3/4" M copper is old hot water heating. They ripped out the boiler, abandoned the old heating and installed electric baseboards. I can't for the life of me imagine why.

Master Mark · 07-31-2010, 02:32 AM

that is pretty bad, did you cut it all out??

futz · 07-31-2010, 02:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Master Mark

that is pretty bad, did you cut it all out??

It's all in the dumpster now.

The bathrooms are being moved around some to accommodate fixture changes and a new walk-in closet in the middle of things, but it's going to be pretty simple to replumb properly.

There's more funny stuff coming when I take pics of the waterpipes and the water heater. I'll shoot those probably Tuesday.

Master Mark · 07-31-2010, 09:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by futz

It's all in the dumpster now.

The bathrooms are being moved around some to accommodate fixture changes and a new walk-in closet in the middle of things, but it's going to be pretty simple to replumb properly.

There's more funny stuff coming when I take pics of the waterpipes and the water heater. I'll shoot those probably Tuesday.

the thing that really bothers me is it all probably worked great for years;;;

ABS can take some punishment

Indie · 07-31-2010, 10:08 AM

Its as if DIY don't understand that things can be cut out and redone. No need to continue and make a big sweeping turn. I think it feels good to tear out that kinda junk and rework.

Tommy plumber · 07-31-2010, 03:22 PM

Futz, looks like a nice job you got there. Go get 'em and make yourself a few dollars. I salivate when little re-models come my way like that.

AKdaplumba · 08-01-2010, 02:20 AM

you explained it it made no sense, then I see it and it still makes no sense

futz · 08-01-2010, 04:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AKdaplumba

you explained it it made no sense, then I see it and it still makes no sense

That's understandable. It was a bit tough to figure out what was going on even when I was right there, looking at all different angles with a flashlight. The main problem is that no plumber would ever pipe it that way, so you have to devolve your thinking to the blurry level of your typical DIYer's thoughts. They just don't know any better.

AKdaplumba · 08-01-2010, 05:13 PM

we want to see some after pics when your done!

WestCoastPlumber · 08-01-2010, 09:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Master Mark

the thing that really bothers me is it all probably worked great for years;;;

ABS can take some punishment

Thats the problem, plumbing works wrong for so long

07-31-2010, 02:25 AM	#1
futz Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Delta, B.C. Posts: 1,013 My Photos	DIY craziness found in renovation Started a reno today and found this craziness. It appears the house had a fire and (I assume) the owner decided to replumb/renovate it himself (obviously with no permits?). The DWV is the craziest thing I've seen in a while. We laughed at it for a while before chopping it all out to start over. Upstairs there are two 3-piece baths. There was an existing 3" stack from ground floor. He put a 3x2" double-wye on the vertical and ran 1-1/2" branches to a lav in each bath. On top of that he put a 3" double-wye. One side branch picks up one toilet. The other picks up the other toilet and a bathtub with a bizarre bit of piping you'll see in the pics below. The top of the d-wye has a 3x1-1/2" tee that picks up the other bathtub and then does two 90's, butchers through a joist (with wrong-way slope) and another 90 and up through the roof (you'll see this in the pics). Wacky DIY strangeness! There are more wires behind the drywall elsewhere. What a firetrap! Look at this bizarre bit of piping. The tub drain/vent thing is so strange that I can't imagine what he was thinking when he did it. Oh ya, that's a union trap concealed in a ceiling. The abandoned 3/4" M copper is old hot water heating. They ripped out the boiler, abandoned the old heating and installed electric baseboards. I can't for the life of me imagine why.

07-31-2010, 02:32 AM	#2
Master Mark philosopher and statesmen Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Indianapolis indiana ... Posts: 2,371 My Photos	that is pretty bad that is pretty bad, did you cut it all out?? __________________ God created man, Sam Colt made them equal." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swkq2E8mswI http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQMO1eyMRuM

07-31-2010, 03:22 PM	#6
Tommy plumber Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: South Florida Posts: 4,145 My Photos	Futz, looks like a nice job you got there. Go get 'em and make yourself a few dollars. I salivate when little re-models come my way like that. __________________ Hire a licensed master plumber.

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07-31-2010, 10:08 AM	#5
Indie AAAAAAAAHHHHH!!! Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 3,610 My Photos	Its as if DIY don't understand that things can be cut out and redone. No need to continue and make a big sweeping turn. I think it feels good to tear out that kinda junk and rework.

08-01-2010, 02:20 AM	#7
AKdaplumba Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Vancouver BC Posts: 726 My Photos	you explained it it made no sense, then I see it and it still makes no sense

08-01-2010, 05:13 PM	#9
AKdaplumba Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Vancouver BC Posts: 726 My Photos	we want to see some after pics when your done!