Searched the forums, so now I need to ask

[mrdeepseafisher]

What can I do to make the master stateroom shower drain better? The shower has slowed to a point that it almost doesn't drain. I have checked the shower sump and it pumps fine it just taked forever to get to the sump. I checked my manuals and can't tell if there is a trap between the shower drain and the sump. My wife was going to put draino down the drain but I said let's ask the experts first. I was concerned that draino might harm the pump.

What do you recommend? We have had 5 people on the boat for almost three weeks now (3 women). I have become a plumbing and pump out expert.

Thanks

Mrdeepseafisher (Lee)
1979 53 Yachtfish

[rsmith]

No trap tha hose to the drain is clogged

[JLR]

Shoot some compressed air into the drain and/or try some Ridlyme.

[MikeP]

Draino can melt rubber hoses because it can get quite hot. I don't know how the corrugated hose used for the drain would react but unless you know for sure that it would be OK, I wouldn't use draino.

Much of the time, drains are plugged with hair/soft deposits/soap scum. I think I'd attach a small diameter water hose to a hose fitting - either on the boat or shore - and, turning it on to get as much of a "jet" as possible, try to feed it down the drain and, with the water on, work it back/forth as you slowly feed it all the way to the sump. If it's like our 53, there is a 90 degree metal pipe fitted to the shower drain but after that 90, it's pretty much straight to the sump.

OTOH, if the deposits are "hard" as opposed to hair and the usual drain gunk, then, as noted in earlier posts, you will need to use something that can dissolve them.

[Bob Bradley]

I took care of mine with a coat hanger that I bent a "U" in the end. All full of hair and gunk. A little boiling water might help as well.

[magnawake]

I had trouble a few months ago. I let it dry out a few weeks when I was repainting my sump. The next few times I used the shower all kinds of goo came out into the sump. It took me a while to figure out where it was coming from. Of course now after our 5 week trip and two girls taking showers its draining very slow. I thought about drain O and glad I read this. Maybe drying out a while longer might help again. I've been away from the boat for a few weeks. I took the screws off the shower drain but still couldnt get the drain off. It looks like its stuck. I didnt want to force it so I gave up.

[MikeP]

If it is the same as our 53, you have to access under the shower pan to remove the drain from the shower pan - the drain is held by a large nut on the underside. The only thing you can remove from the top is the little "grill." Our 53 has an access panel in the passageway under the carpet that, if you have fairly long and thin arms, you can reach to the drain. Fortunately, the access panel allows easy access to the hose where it connects to the 90 degree pipe attached to the shower drain. Unfortunately, the hose was installed before the floor and it is 5200'd in place where it passes through various stringers/braces which makes it extremely difficult to remove. So if at all possible, you want to clear the hose as opposed to replace it (and hope it will continue to last another 30+ years)...

[mr hatt]

If it was me, I would try a mix of water and muratic acid. it does wonders on heat exchangers and since it comes in a plastic bottle I couldn't see it harming a plastic drain pipe. this stuff will produce noxious fumes though so be cautious. I'm sure someone else will have an opinion on this, but the product is inexpensive and will work. you can get this stuff at home depot in gallon jugs for under ten bucks.

[MikeP]

Concur - I'm a fan of muriatic contrary to the sissies that use phosphoric or other Nancy-Boy acids. So I totally concur that if they are hard deposits as opposed to hair/soap/grunge, then man up and hit it with something that will definitely get the job done!

[bobk]

OK, I'm a wuss. I'd start with a coat hanger or such to get out what I can. Foreceps, especially the bent kind will be very helpful. How about a snake? Then use a shop vac on the discharge end while pouring in warm or hot soapy water.

My blanket recommendation as your in-house chemist is never use muriatic (hydrochloric) acid in the boat or ER. It's fumes will corrode all sorts of stuff, even SS hose clamps. Phosphoric will dissolve anything that muriatic will, just a bit slower. Draino (lye) is best reserved for removal of animal fats as in kitchen drains. If all else fails, try a draino-type, but dilute it a bit first.

To prevent the problem going forward, put a screen over the drain to collect hair, and use liquid soaps which do not form scum.

Bobk