That $15 pipe clamp from Ace saved my bathroom remodel last weekend

I was swapping out the sink in my half bath off the kitchen, and the old drain pipe just crumbled when I touched it. Took a trip down to the Ace on Menaul, grabbed a new PVC setup and one of those cheap pipe clamps for the p-trap. Got home, got everything threaded, and realized the new trap was a quarter inch off from lining up with the wall pipe. That little clamp was the only thing that let me bend it into place without cracking anything. Now I'm wondering if I should've gone with a flexible drain pipe instead... Has anyone else run into this where nothing lines up in these old ABQ houses?

4 comments

4 Comments

kim19116d ago

Flex pipe seems like a fix but it never drains right. The $15 clamp was the right call. Old ABQ houses are never straight, my 1950s place has pipes all over the place. You did good sticking with the rigid stuff.

ryan_ellis16d ago

Man I heard somewhere that some building codes in the southwest actually require rigid pipe for drainage because of how the soil settles over time. Makes sense with those old ABQ clay soils shifting around. @kim191 you're spot on about the 1950s houses too, mine's got this weird dip in the main line that I had to work around with a couple extra fittings. That clamp is gonna hold way better than a flex piece would, especially with how hot it gets out here in the summer.

leo61213d ago

Bought myself a level for that exact job and realized my house is just built on a permanent lean so I stopped pretending pipes are level around here.

brian_ramirez13d ago

Wait what kind of dip are we talking? Like a belly in the line or a sharp drop? I've got a spot in my 60s place where the pipe literally sags like an inch between two supports, and I'm wondering if I should just brace it or repipe that section.