Toughest Part of the Waste Plumbing Project

Last weekend, I decided it was time to tackle the most difficult part of the waste plumbing project for our new half bathroom.

Designing this plumbing was a bit of a challenge because of the very tight, cramped quarters. Not only is everything very close together providing little room for pipes to change directions, but there was very little room to work! Part of my struggles with Systemic Mastocytosis includes cognitive difficulties as well so this hindered my ability to effectively design a drainage plan for this new bathroom.  I must have been having an unusually good day a few weeks ago when I finally was able to clearly envision what I needed to do and I was able to sketch some plans.

What is photographed here wass the first part of this project... cutting into the existing waste line and installing a new waste line with fittings for the new toilet, pedestal lavatory, our washing machine, and two new plumbing vents to the roof... all in a very tiny space! I'm no small guy so fitting between these floor joists and reaching into the shallow, dark, dank crawl space was tough.

The toilet fitting with a wide bend placed nicely between
the rough framing for the new toilet...

This part of the project was critical. Everything needed to be installed perfectly in order to line up perfectly with the toilet, sink and washing machine. I had very little room for error nor did I want any problems with flowing waste water, particularly leaks.

An added obstacle was trying to squeeze the new fittings into place where I had cut out some of the old waste line. This is like trying to parallel park a car in a spot between two other cars but having only enough space for the car to fit snugly leaving no room for maneuvering whatsoever. This took some persuasion on my part in the form of brute strength and even some poetic choice words. It felt like trying to fit a large square peg into a small round hole. 

In the end, this part of the project only required a couple of hours of work. With the help of Sheila, I managed to finish plumbing the entire bathroom and laundry room over the course of the weekend. When I have more time, I'll write more and include some additional photos of the new plumbing and the rest of this renovation project.  

Because of the cramped space, I have this large, sweeping wye coming off
the main stack at a 45 degree angle. The large sweeping arc of this fitting keeps
the waste water from the washing machine moving quickly.

(There is some lens distortion here giving some straight lines a curved look.)
This view shows the section of main waste line I had  to cut out
and replace with new fittings. You can also see how I've had
to reinforce the framing for the floor. That break in the back wall
is to make room for a pocket door on the other side of that wall. 

I've already accomplished much more since shooting these photos as the project slowly progresses each day. More photos of the progress of this little project to come...