Drain from pan under hot water tank

[Marry Smith]

I have a pan under my hot water tank in the laundry room (1st floor). If has a one inch pvc pipe that goes through the floor into the crawl space and just hangs there about 1 foot into crawl space. It’s there in case of water tank leak or problem. Problem is that the pipe just goes into the crawl space to drain–it hooks into nothing (better than flooding the 1st floor I suppose.) Now that we have all new PVC drainage system in the crawl space I would like to hook this hot water tank into something so if a leak occurs it won’t flood the crawl space.
The washing machine drain pipe is right under it (in the crawl) and it would be easy to hook into that–but there would be no trap–can’t put a trap above the floor because the pan sits on the floor. Can I trap it in the crawl space? That would mean I would have a double trap going to the washer–one above ground and the one undergroud. I wouldn’t have to worry about the trap drying either since the washer would keep it full.

[Retired plbg1Participant]

First thing the line from pan should be bigger 1-1/2 or 1-1/4″ if the releif valve pops off the 1″ would not carry it, also you need a trap in waste line to drain the heater pan drain and it has to be indirect. The pan drain pipe should be 1″ above drain pipe openning that way you can tell if its leaking.

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Art retired plbg

[LanaParticipant]

Art
I checked the drain pipe it is more like 1 1/2″. It is in the side of the pan, so I can see if the tank is leaking. I don’t know what you mean by an indirect trap. Please explain.
By the way–I have officially adopted you as my e-plumber!

[Retired plbg1Participant]

Easy way to explain is you have a trap installed in a pipe and you have a drain pipe above dropping the water into trap . The openning of the above pipe is 1″ above the trap. E-Mail me and I will send you a drawing. Make suject on e-mail P- Trap.
[email protected]

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Art retired plbg

[Bendychicken1Participant]

It is not a sealed conection. think: water fall that lands in and open p-trap. there must be a minimum of 1″ from the “edge of the falls” to “the pool below”. A reducer coupling (with the larger side up) on the end of the trap will help catch the “waterfall” and ovoid spillige into the crawl space(or your floor if this is done up above….but then youd have to lift your heater up higher in order to drop into that…..and you would have to raise your supply lines up with the heater….

another thing to consider is that by doing either of those is going to leave an open sewar line to dump sewage under your house or onto your floor in the event of a back-up………………………..wouldn’t it be better to just leave it the way it is? when there is water in the pan you just go and get a new heater. This is just my opinion, but ide rather have my heater relieve it’s self under my house, than end up with the aftermath of me relieving myself underneath my house…… or on my floor…………but that’s just me………

BUT. If you are dead set on getting your tools out, I would recomend removing the 1″ pan drain and running a 1 1/2″ line down, and then out of the crawl space into the yard. Remember! only go down hill, never up hill. Pipe pitch isn’t really important on this one. Hope that helps. Ken Da Plumber

» This message has been edited by Bendychicken on 03 December 2004

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