# blocked drains



## harvey69

hello has anyone got any ideas for unblocking a sewer pipe that goes from a toilet to a fossa without digging up the floor any ideas please


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## MrBife

harvey69 said:


> hello has anyone got any ideas for unblocking a sewer pipe that goes from a toilet to a fossa without digging up the floor any ideas please


Not enough info really but have you tried using an old mop like a plunger. Put lots of effort into it, keep flushing and force the water down the pipe.

If it doesn't work then call your local power jet plumber who will put jet from toilet down or from the fossa back until the blockage breaks up. Make sure you get an idea of prices before they come out and don't let them do it as an emergency.

Portuguese drains are half the diameter of UK drains and don't take much paper, that's why they fit bidets as standard.


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## canoeman

Most builders merchants, hardware shops sell rods, not as drain rods but as chimney cleaning rods, but same thing, ok if you've a manhole access somewhere in line, or can work from fosse back, you need to reduce diameter of brushes to just less than your pipe size and make an auger to fit on end if you can't get on.

You can try on of the chemical solutions but expensive unless blockage near toilet.

Long term if it's a possibility put a manhole in where there's likely to be a bend


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## paramonte

Please, please, bidets are not fitted in PT because toilet drains can't take the toilet paper. That will be a joke tomorrow in the office.

Old houses that did not not follow building codes may have drain problems but that is not the general case. I have seen that in the toilets of some restaurants that were build "under cover"

Bidets are actually instruments for feminine hygiene.....Not an accessory for toilet after cleaning. And I agree that the building code that says that the house must have at least one bidet is too old.

By the way, Portugal is among the first countries to implement building codes that makes compulsory to build at least 2 bathrooms if the number of bedrooms is more than 2, something I would like to have been implemented in others countries I have been....you take turns


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## Verinia

I Love the fact that the Portugese have bidets everywhere...apart from the obvious use they are also great for washing your feet! We don't put loo paper down our loo as worried about blockages and filling the fossa too quickly.( How long does it take for a fossa to fill up I wonder? I guess from the point of view of it not ending up in the sea it isn't a bad idea either although I suppose it's not great for landfill! I have thought that bidets may also be an inheritance from the old old days when much of Southern Portugal was inhabited by the Moors, who would have had to wash five times a day before prayer.

I blocked our drains recently with coffee grinds and despite the chimney sweeping implement we had to call someone in. It. Cost 150 euros but it solved all the problems with great efficiency.


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## canoeman

Put the coffee grounds around slug/snail susceptible plants, they don't like caffeine, won't block it then, ideally it never fills up as biological action breaks it all down, loo paper blocking a bit of myth really, ok Portuguese pipes aren't as big as UK ones but more than adequate for normal use, unless our granddaughters out who seems to think that anything less than half a roll isn't adequate


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## robc

canoeman said:


> , unless our granddaughters out who seems to think that anything less than half a roll isn't adequate


I agree, what is it about women, are they genetically pre-programmed to use half a roll per visit.

We seem to spend our entire time shopping for loo rolls.

Rob


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## jerryceltner

We had a problem with a blocked pipe where once emptying the wash basin the water would come up into the shower which was next to it and very slowly drain away. As this house was a new build we had warranty. First of all they tried chemicals to shift the blockage and then pushed a hose pipe down until they felt resistance and turned on the water supply. Alas in our case this did not work as the problem was a crushed pipe that was causing the problem. They had to remove the tiles and dig into the concrete walls and do a bypass. Everything is good now.
I think the pipes in Portugal are a 4" diameter and in the UK the diameter is so I am informed is a minimum of 6". A close friend is a building inspector.
We don't have a problem with toilet paper and it dissolves in the tank but our friends who have just finished their home in Portugal as a new build have problems and have to use bio degradable toilet paper otherwise they get blockages. It depends a lot on the installation. I was also told not to use bleach to clean the bowls as this affects the chemicals in the tank and stops them working properly. I think also that you are entitled to one free empty per year although you pay for it on your monthly bill.


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## canoeman

All soft loo paper is bio degradable, your right don't use bleach or bleach type products if you have a fossa/septic tank, it's not the chemicals it kills but the bacteria that break everything down, never heard of a free empty or paying on your monthly bill, for us it's always been a straightforward fee, but maybe different Camra different procedures.


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## jerryceltner

Hi,
residuos solidos (solid residues) is on our monthly bill with SMAS and we are in the Tomar region. This is at 2 euro per month even though we don't need it as in the last 4 years we have never used the facility. It's not going to break the bank though anyway just in case!!.....Expect that's why a free empty as already paid for it.


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## canoeman

residuos solidos = Dustbin collection, if you where charged for sewage waste it would be Saneamento and that is only if your on main drainage, although you do pay in addition to water you use, a charge for waste water whether your on main drainage or fossa, ours is 0,0160c per cubic metre + a flat fee of 2,06€


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## jerryceltner

What do I know......I bow down to your superior knowledge. I got the translation from an internet translator and after trying 3 different ones they all said the same ..... solid residue which I presumed was our human waste.... none mentioned that it was dustbin collection so who is right? Dustbin collection = Coleção de lata de lixo is the translation from the translators I used.
Obviously you either are fluent in Portuguese or we are useing different translators.
Take Care,
Jerry


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## canoeman

Try this link http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resíduos_sólidos_urbanos or Resíduo sólido ? Wikipédia, a enciclopédia livre maybe a bit more explanatory than a direct translation which doesn't always work


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## jerryceltner

Solid wastes are generally what is called junk : materials solids considered useless, unnecessary or dangerous, generated by human activity , and should be discarded or eliminated. [1]
The concept of "junk" can be considered as a human invention, it processes natural no trash. The substances produced by living organisms and are useless or harmful to the body , such as feces and urine of animals, or the oxygen produced by green plants as a byproduct of photosynthesis , as well as the remains of the dead are, under natural conditions recycled by decomposers . Moreover, the products of processes geological as erosion can also, to a geologic time scale , become sedimentary rocks .
Although the term waste applies to solid waste in general, much of what is considered waste can be reused or recycled , provided the materials are adequately addressed. In addition to generating employment and income , recycling provides a reduction in demand for raw materials and energy , contributing to the increased lifespan of landfills . Certain residues, however, can not be recycled, such as the medical waste or nuclear .

Just sent from the link you gave me previously. I don't know do you really know but faeces and urine from animals and we are animals of a kind seems to back up my argument and is nothing to do with dustbin collection. I know that translators aren't perfect but is Wikipedia.

I think it is best to agree to disagree!!!


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## canoeman

Probably, or you could just ask at the Camra for an explanation of the charge.

It's one of those phrases that our conception is different to the Portuguese understanding of the term, if you look at the tariffs for Tomar SMAS the charges for emptying a fossa are

3.8. Transporte e destino final de lamas e águas residuais recolhidas através de meios móveis 

Uma deslocação (até 6m3 de despejo) ........................................................................... 32,5910€
Por cada deslocação seguinte ......................................................................................... 16,2955€


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## jerryceltner

But you still haven't answered the point of dustbin collection "residuos solidos = Dustbin collection" as a translation for human waste even though you quoted a website interpretation which was far from clear and off scale and completely wrong. Now you have changed tack back to waste charges for the particular Camera.

I put down our charges per month which are added to our monthly water bills by direct debit. That is what we pay. The figures are off the invoice (Factura) which we receive monthly.

Do you actually live locally to Tomar and have all the info as I do as I have to pay the bills.

I only know about our local area and don't pretend to be a guru for all of Portugal. Some people are a lot more skilled as far as this is concerned...............be careful who you listen too unless they are talking from personal experience other than reading stuff from the internet and repeating it t give you advice. That is mine and no one else's opinion may I add.


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## canoeman

I have not changed tack at all, I have clearly stated that I believe "residuos solidos * is *Dustbin collection" of course it's human waste but in the context that we buy and dispose of things. 
The two links I posted clearly give information on the disposal of waste generated by humans by various means, you took out of context "such as feces and urine of animals" to prove your understanding of the translation.

I added the information about Tomar, because we have frequently visited and did look at property in the area, one of the things I use when checking an area is the Camra website, Tomar being one of the better ones, for lots of things one of them being Water, so if you look you'll see there is a Manual about water supply, in that manual it also states that the Tomar Camara is responsible for the collection of "residuos solidos" whereas SMAS is responsible for water, fossa and main drainaige.

Having owned property or lived in so far 6 different Camara's, both of these services have always been billed through the Camara's "water department" the Factura having 3 sections
Aqua, Saneamento and Residoes Solidos (Limpeza - Utente Domestico - Noa Diaria) we pay a princely sum of 85c pm, generally a min 2 collections a week.


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