Retrieving screwdriver from toilet drain pipe?
Winston
to remind me.
Long story short, I dropped a 10" screwdriver tip-first down an open
2nd floor toilet drain pipe, and it is now stuck at the base of a
45-degree bend just under the basement ceiling. I know it couldn't have
gotten any further than this point, due to 2 sharp 90-degree bends that
follow the 45-degree bend. Unfortunately, I can't see it from the drain
opening because I can't look down the pipe due to a slight offset just
past the toilet flange. Do you know of any specialized plumber's snakes
or other tools that could be lowered into the pipe to grab the
screwdriver somehow?
bam...@localnet.com
piece of electricians fish wire on it to get down there and retrieve
it.
JoeSpareBedroom
news:1168028812.6...@v33g2000cwv.googlegroups.com...
Presumably, you've already been through the obscenities, two glasses of
scotch, and your wife doesn't know about this yet. I would get to Radio
Shack to pick up the biggest donut-shaped magnet you think you can slip down
the pipe without losing it. If the screwdriver's not tightly wedged, this
should do the trick. To hold the magnet, I'd take a piece of 12 or 14 gauge
3-conductor house wire, strip it back, and pull out just one conductor. I've
used that stuff as a snake in the past because it can be sort of shaped to
get around bends. Just be damned sure you put enough twists in it so the
magnet doesn't come loose. If you need something more flexible, use some
good quality nylon rope, and use a real knot, like a bowline to fasten the
magnet.
Good luck. Times eight.
Ivan Vegvary
throwing in a few silver dollars or expensive jewelry. No way am I going to
reach into the toilet for something worthless.
Ivan Vegvary
CJT
I think he needs to get it out so future contributions can pass.
--
The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to
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The Reverend Natural Light
casing was tugging at anything small and droppable until I covered it
up. Funny how that works.
Big magnet. Rope. No problem. Dont' worry too much.
-rev
hal...@aol.com
claw to grab foreign objects..... might call around.
have you considered a bulldozer? level home and start over
i am sorry this stiory is priceless and after today i needed a good
laugh
JoeSpareBedroom
news:1168033002.2...@s34g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
Bulldozers are for babies. Douse the place with gasoline and break out the
hot dogs.
Dan Espen
> Winston wrote:
>> Yes, I'm a dumbass. This has become quite apparent, so there's no need
>> to remind me.
>>
>> Long story short, I dropped a 10" screwdriver tip-first down an open
>> 2nd floor toilet drain pipe, and it is now stuck at the base of a
>> 45-degree bend just under the basement ceiling. I know it couldn't have
>> gotten any further than this point, due to 2 sharp 90-degree bends that
>> follow the 45-degree bend. Unfortunately, I can't see it from the drain
>> opening because I can't look down the pipe due to a slight offset just
>> past the toilet flange. Do you know of any specialized plumber's snakes
>> or other tools that could be lowered into the pipe to grab the
>> screwdriver somehow?
> You could probably take the magnet from a junk hard drive and put a
> piece of electricians fish wire on it to get down there and retrieve
> it.
I'm not sure every homeowner has one of those junk hard drives,
but I think that's a good suggestion.
If you haven't ripped open a broken hard drive,
I recommend it. There are magnets in those things that are
insanely powerful. Just be careful handling them.
It's not hard to hurt yourself with them.
You will pinch your fingers before you know it.
They aren't made to be opened, I found drilling out the
security screws worked best.
Bob F
The hard drive magnet will work if it's plastic pipe and the screwdriver
isn't wedged in too well. Since you dropped it tip first, a big tripple fish
hook might grab it if you are lucky or patient.
Bob
dpb
Assuming it's not cast iron drain, magnet has reasonable shot at it,
otherwise may not be able to get it down there.
Don't guess there are any cleanouts anywhere closer? Perhaps it's time
to install one--if it's plastic and an hour of fishing doesn't get it,
it may be simpler to just make the cut and go get it and put either a
cleanout or a coupling in to repair the damage.
tn...@mucks.net
I assume it's a cast iron pipe so a magnet is out of the question.
Fabricate a three prong fish hook retrieving device. Take a similar
screwdriver as a guide and apply the correct dimensions to the hooks
in order to facilitate successful hooking. Measure the exact length of
line you need to position the hook appropriately. Pretend you're
fishing and eventually you'll hook the tool.
Then don't be a dumb ass again.
HeyBub
How far down the pipe is the tool?
Here's a 24" grabber/pickup tool, but I bet you can find longer ones
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=94162
mm
Can't say more than others have, but to make you feel better, I've
dropped things down the toilet also.
I also dropped a big set of car and other keys down a water drain at
Union Station in Baltimore, right near Charles St. but before the
remodeling in 1995. I had to leave and come back the next day with a
bunch of nylon string and a big magnet from a junked speaker It came
with screws in it for easy attahcment. I put the magnet down the
drain, which was at least 15 feet deep to ground level, and tried to
pull up the steel part of the keyring. I never got it, but I did pick
up a 4 foot section of rebar. It's a good magnet.
Winston
tn...@mucks.net wrote:
>
> I assume it's a cast iron pipe so a magnet is out of the question.
> Fabricate a three prong fish hook retrieving device. Take a similar
> screwdriver as a guide and apply the correct dimensions to the hooks
> in order to facilitate successful hooking. Measure the exact length of
> line you need to position the hook appropriately. Pretend you're
> fishing and eventually you'll hook the tool.
>
> Then don't be a dumb ass again.
LOL!
It's a copper pipe, so I'm going to give the magnet a try first, then
the hook.
Thanks for all the replies, everyone!
CJT
Copper drains? Somebody has money to waste.
> Thanks for all the replies, everyone!
>
Dan_Musicant
:Presumably, you've already been through the obscenities, two glasses of
:Shack to pick up the biggest donut-shaped magnet you think you can slip down
:the pipe without losing it. If the screwdriver's not tightly wedged, this
:should do the trick. To hold the magnet, I'd take a piece of 12 or 14 gauge
:3-conductor house wire, strip it back, and pull out just one conductor. I've
:used that stuff as a snake in the past because it can be sort of shaped to
:get around bends. Just be damned sure you put enough twists in it so the
:magnet doesn't come loose. If you need something more flexible, use some
:good quality nylon rope, and use a real knot, like a bowline to fasten the
:magnet.
:
:Good luck. Times eight.
Sounds like good advice. I still have a real nice screwdriver I fished
out of the bilge of a boat I was working on using a magnet attached to a
nylon line as recommended. I was trying to get a different ferrous
object out and the screwdriver came as an added bonus.
Of course, this will only work if your sewer pipe isn't cast iron or
galvanized.
Good luck!
Dan_Musicant
<dishbo...@yahoo.com> wrote:
:<hal...@aol.com> wrote in message
Oh, gee, now you're bringing back memories of Goodfellas and Office
Space (pyromaniacal episodes in those flicks).
Dan_Musicant
:
Copper! I was just reading a book today that said that copper DWV piping
is getting pretty rare. Lucky you!
aeme...@att.net
"CJT" <abuj...@prodigy.net> wrote in message
news:459F0346...@prodigy.net...
> Winston wrote:
>> tn...@mucks.net wrote:
>>
>>>I assume it's a cast iron pipe so a magnet is out of the question.
>>>Fabricate a three prong fish hook retrieving device. Take a similar
>>>screwdriver as a guide and apply the correct dimensions to the hooks
>>>in order to facilitate successful hooking. Measure the exact length of
>>>line you need to position the hook appropriately. Pretend you're
>>>fishing and eventually you'll hook the tool.
>>>
>>>Then don't be a dumb ass again.
>>
>>
>> LOL!
>>
>> It's a copper pipe, so I'm going to give the magnet a try first, then
>> the hook.
>>
>
> Copper drains? Somebody has money to waste.
>
of the country. Worked better than iron or galvanized, nobody used lead any
more, and PVC or other plastics were just starting to be used, and not
code-approved in many areas. For several years after PVC was allowed for
drains, many areas still required copper feed lines. Properly installed, and
in the absence of bad water or other chemical or galvanic weirdness, copper
will basically last forever.
aem sends...
hal...@aol.com
> From early fifties to early seventies, 4" copper was standard issue in much
> of the country. Worked better than iron or galvanized, nobody used lead any
> more, and PVC or other plastics were just starting to be used, and not
> code-approved in many areas. For several years after PVC was allowed for
> drains, many areas still required copper feed lines. Properly installed, and
> in the absence of bad water or other chemical or galvanic weirdness, copper
> will basically last forever.
>
> aem sends...
i have some copper lines now 60 years old that are paper thin and
leaking in places. nothing last forever i just wish they had been
heavier from the get go
Tom The Great
>Winston wrote:
>> tn...@mucks.net wrote:
>>
>>>I assume it's a cast iron pipe so a magnet is out of the question.
>>>Fabricate a three prong fish hook retrieving device. Take a similar
>>>screwdriver as a guide and apply the correct dimensions to the hooks
>>>in order to facilitate successful hooking. Measure the exact length of
>>>line you need to position the hook appropriately. Pretend you're
>>>fishing and eventually you'll hook the tool.
>>>
>>>Then don't be a dumb ass again.
>>
>>
>> LOL!
>>
>> It's a copper pipe, so I'm going to give the magnet a try first, then
>> the hook.
>>
>
>Copper drains? Somebody has money to waste.
I was shocked at this too! I saw on This Old House San Fran have bans
on PVC waste lines. I'm guessing some copper lobby group has deep
pockets. :D
tom @ www.MedJobSite.com
JoeSpareBedroom
news:jb1up2pfscoccs856...@4ax.com...
Only marginally related, but if you haven't seen the movie "Snatch", go rent
it. Amazing. You'll thank me.
Ivan Vegvary
"Tom The Great" <Po...@here.com> wrote in message
news:0ncvp21vkdul0ru44...@4ax.com...
about 30-40 years behind the rest of the country regarding building codes.
Vested interest. It is what keeps us from having affordable health plans
etc. Interestingly the rest of the cities in the S. F. Bay Area have broken
semi-free of the union dominance and their codes are quite modern, at worst
some of them are typically one update (four year cycle) behind.
Ivan Vegvary
Steve Barker LT
--
Steve Barker
"Tom The Great" <Po...@here.com> wrote in message
news:0ncvp21vkdul0ru44...@4ax.com...
>
Tom The Great
<railph...@not.hotmail.com> wrote:
>think earthquake. plastic breaks, copper bends.
imho:
I wonder, if you do enough damage to a building to be concerned about
'bending' piping, I think you don't have to worry about broken pvc
piping. That building should be evacuated.
later,
Bob F
<hal...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:1168058869.1...@s80g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
For that reason, I've been buying thicker copper as I replace piping.
Bob
Stormin Mormon
copper, but I am not sure that was you writing. If it's copper,
get the biggest magnet you can from the hardware. Also buy a
plumber's drain snake. Atach the magnet to the snake with several
tie straps (cut the loose ends off). Send the drain snake down.
Use some common sense, and some of your other five senses to
figure out when you stuck the screw driver. Withdraw it up the
pipe very slowly.
I've never done this. But I did score a free screw driver and
pair of diags someone dropped into the wall. Cept, with this
moment I used a magnet and string.
--
Christopher A. Young
You can't shout down a troll.
You have to starve them.
.
"Winston" <sumb...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1168028812.6...@v33g2000cwv.googlegroups.com...
Dan_Musicant
<dishbo...@yahoo.com> wrote:
:"Dan_Musicant" <dmus...@pacbell.net> wrote in message
I own it on DVD. Only watched it once, though, over two years ago. Have
to rewatch it. Snazzy British comic action thriller with very snappy
dialogue is my recollection. Very impressive.
Mike
"Dan Espen" <dan...@MORE.mk.SPAMtelcordia.com> wrote in message
news:icmz4x6...@mk.telcordia.com...
sue
>
> Yes, I'm a dumbass. This has become quite apparent, so there's no need
> to remind me.
> Long story short, I dropped a 10" screwdriver tip-first down an open
> 2nd floor toilet drain pipe, and it is now stuck at the base of a
> 45-degree bend just under the basement ceiling. I know it couldn't have
> gotten any further than this point, due to 2 sharp 90-degree bends that
> follow the 45-degree bend. Unfortunately, I can't see it from the drain
> opening because I can't look down the pipe due to a slight offset just
> past the toilet flange. Do you know of any specialized plumber's snakes
> or other tools that could be lowered into the pipe to grab the
> screwdriver somehow?
strong acid. No results, I can still hear it rolling around. I have been
thinking about trying to use a magnet to get it out. This is the first
time, I seen anyone considering this attempted stunt of desperation! Did
you try the magnet and did it work?
thanks
--
Thomas
I read no solutions to this post, but I too had the same problem tonight.
I dropped a 7" screw driver down the toilet pipe while cleaning the flange
after removing the toilet.
I tried magnets, pushing it through, etc, etc. Nothing worked. Here is
what DID work! (I got the driver out!!!)
I used 130 lb test fishing line and tied 5 fishing hooks 4/0 to the end of
a 1/4" plumbing snake. I fed it to the point where I felt the driver, and
just played with it, over and over, and then brought it up. This lasted
about 10 minutes. Alot of back and forth, but, eventually I hooked it just
right an it came right out....surprised the heck out of me too!
So there you go. What I just offered actually worked. Wish you all the
best in your efforts. This was not clean or fun. But when I saw that
driver! I was all ear to ear!!!
Thomas
--
blake...@gmail.com
> Yes, I'm a dumbass. This has become quite apparent, so there's no need
> to remind me.
>
> Long story short, I dropped a 10" screwdriver tip-first down an open
> 2nd floor toilet drain pipe, and it is now stuck at the base of a
> 45-degree bend just under the basement ceiling. I know it couldn't have
> gotten any further than this point, due to 2 sharp 90-degree bends that
> follow the 45-degree bend. Unfortunately, I can't see it from the drain
> opening because I can't look down the pipe due to a slight offset just
> past the toilet flange. Do you know of any specialized plumber's snakes
> or other tools that could be lowered into the pipe to grab the
> screwdriver somehow?
bonnie
how much does it cost to retrieve a screw driver down the drain pipe from the
commode
--
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