Second floor laundry tray drain

[Anonymous]

I just recently moved into a house
that has a second floor laundry room. I was surprised to see that the washing machine tray’s drain is open into the basement. A plumber told me this is the way these things have been done for many years…..and that it is against code to tie this pipe into the septic system piping(private sewer).

My question is: if that is in fact true, how are most laundry tray drains handled when one does not want a malfunctioning washer tray to drain into the middle of the basement ?

[SylvanLMPParticipant]

Dave great question.

IMHO
Most stumble bums who install washing machines have no idea about proper drainage or venting.

Your plumber is right on the money as far as the indirect drainage from your washing machine. They should be discharged into a water supplied fixture above the flood level rim.

Over the years certain pay off’s were made to the correct pockets and the residential market became more interested in profit then safety.

In commercial work you cannot have food handling devices come in contact with laundry/dish washing discharge BUT code officials found the almighty dollar more import and thus the residential folks are considered 2nd class citizens when health are concerned.

Having an indirect discharge going into a laundry tub is common sense as having a washing machine discharge going into either a 2″ stand pipe individually trapped and vented OR a kitchen sink waste is NOT going to hold the volume discharged in case of a stoppage.

As an indirect waste pipe empties in a laundry tub it allows for the water to be a controlled flow into your system.

Think about this for one moment. The non caring home builders “plumber” connects a dishwasher (grease) A washing machine (soap scum and lint) all connected on a 2″ kitchen waste line with food scraps from a possible garbage disposal.

The internal wall of this piping gets really reduced in a short period of time.

Now the washing machine encounters a restriction and the filthy washing machine water backs up into the sink where food preparation takes place NOT A PRETTY SIGHT HUH? But Hey it did save the non caring bums a few dollars as they used one pipe for everything.

Another point about this Cheap non professional installation.

With everything going into one line there is the very real possibility of a flood on the kitchen floor as WHEN (not if but when) the kitchen line does become completely filled with grease deposits and this 2″ line does back up think of the mess that is going to be encountered with grease/soap/ food particles/ spilling out of the kitchen sink which is NOT deep enough to contain this volume of water.

Deep sinks cost more money so it isn’t going to happen as the installer is looking to cut corners as he gave a contract price to a builder looking to get a cheap as possible job so they can make more profit.

Your plumber sounds very astute for showing you this and he/she sounds like a real professional. Be thankful someone finally knows the job right

[DaveAParticipant]

Thanks for the reply. Not sure that I followed everything though.

My situation is that I have the potential for a malfunctioning/overflowing washing machine to empty directly into my basement due to the fact that the washing machine tray drain is piped
directly to the basement and goes nowhere else.

Given that this cannot be tied into the sewerage line, what can I do to eliminate the chance of water in my basement via a malfunctioning washer.

[SylvanLMPParticipant]

Today more then ever insurance companies are going nuts because years ago washing machines were installed in the basement area.
Now for convince they are installed in the living area and a small leak becomes major damage to ceilings and floors.

There is no way to guarantee that any fixture will not over flow.

What you could do is as follows

1- Install a sump pit with a cheap up right pump or a submersible type
like a little giant or blue angel brand

2- Have the washing machine put into a PAN under it like we do over food establishments with a full sized drain leading from this pan to this sump pit.

Now if this WM should over flow the pan could handle the run off as it drains safely into this sump pit by way of a 2″ drain line.

The third possibility is just relocating this machine into the basement where a back up would cause minimal damage and inconvenience.

Talk to your local plumber about having this machine discharging directly into a sump pot if gravity system is not applicable, then it may be allowed to be discharged into a dry well. Good luck

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