Many homeowners will encounter a plumbing problem now and then, but diagnosing these problems includes more than checking the water pipes. Plumbing vents can become clogged and damaged, causing stoppages and a host of other problems. Understanding this sensitive part of your plumbing system is necessary to keep the drains flowing smoothly in your house. No bathroom plumbing system is complete without ventilation.
When you flush the commode or drain the tub, wastewater pushes the existing air in the pipes and can form a water lock if more air does alleviate the vacuum impact. You have some options to vent the bathroom group, but they must all meet local building codes. Standard plumbing operates on a gravity-flow system, in which wastewater exits through sloped pipes and air filters through vent pipes.
The plumbing vent regulates the air pressure in the plumbing system. The plumbing vent is also known as a vent stack. As drain pipes remove water and waste from the home, the plumbing vent pipe also called a plumbing air vent removes gas and odors. It lets fresh air into the plumbing system to help water flow smoothly via the drain pipes.
However, there is no water that runs through the plumbing vent pipe. It’s a vertical pipe attached to a drain line and runs through the roof of your house. The plumbing vent is the pipe that leads to the main roof vent. It channels the exhaust gases to the vent and helps maintain appropriate atmospheric pressure in the waste system.
The plumbing system is designed to effectively remove water and waste. Its drainage and vent functions are 2 systems that work together. Drainage pipes carry waste out of the home to either the city sewer or a septic tank. Vent pipes supply fresh air to every plumbing fixture in the home, which aids the system move water through the drainage pipes every time a toilet is flushed or a sink is drained. Plumbing air vents prevent sewer gases from entering the house and let wastewater gas and odor escape. Plumbing vent pipes are located on roofs so that the fumes can get dissipated.
Below are some easy ways to vent bathroom plumbing.
Vanity Venting
During new construction, a good way to vent is to install a vertical vent pipe behind the bathroom sink. It will work when all the plumbing fixtures are connected to the main drain line in the floor within 6-10 lineal feet of the sink drain. Local building codes control the maximum connection distance of plumbing fixtures for venting purposes. Because a standard sink drains exits via the wall behind the sink, it sits high than the tub, shower, and commode drain, making it the best spot for a vent. When a vent that connects a 1-bathroom fixture serves as the vent for other fixtures, it is known as wet venting. Because drainpipe size, fixture configuration, and distance all play a role in successful venting, an experienced plumber must design the waste and vent layout.
Venting Basics
The old way of venting is to have a separate vent pipe for all fixtures but it will cause multiple vent pipes that will be exiting the roof. Nowadays, plumbers combine vents, and a house with 4 or more bathrooms has the main vent-and-soil stack that exits the roof at the top and curves to form the horizontal sewer drain at the bottom. A good drain, waste, and vent layout take the bathroom, laundry room, and kitchen configuration into consideration when planning where the main vent-and-soil stack is situated and how each drain and vent will connect. Drainpipes all slope downward and tie into the stack, although vent pipes extend upward and meet the stack high on the line, frequently in the attic. The main rule is that a vent should not connect to the stack that is lower on the stack than a drain connection.
Separate Vents
Sometimes, it isn’t feasible to vent the sink, because a shower or tub is sitting too far away, or because one drainpipe or fixture doesn’t connect to the main bathroom drainpipe, which is the line running from the commode. When this happens, more vent is needed. In new building, the plumber will need to install a separate vent for the plumbing fixture that is not using the vanity vent. If there is a vent line in the fixture, the line will run vertically and tie into the vent-and-soil stack if it is possible. If not, a separate roof exit is important. the vent pipe can exit the house through an exterior wall, with the opening covered by a vent plate.
Mechanical Vents
In the case of remodeling, it isn’t possible to install vertical vents via finished walls, though that should be the first option. When this arises, it is possible to install an air admittance valve on a sink or tub drain line. An AAV attaches to an individual drain line of fixtures in the wall near the fixture. AAVs will replace the old mechanical vents, that are not up to code in some communities. It is important that all plumbing strategies be cleared with the local building authority. In several communities, a licensed plumber should do the work.
Wet Venting
Understand wet ventilation, where one fixture vent is the drain of another. Under this system, you can install many different fixtures in the same system of pipes, attached to different areas. Though this system complicates the layout of your plumbing system, it decreases the total amount of piping you require and can save space and effort.
Dry Venting
This’s a simple system in which every fixture has its own vent pipe. It’s simple to plan and implement because you will not have to worry about placing different fixtures close enough together or using pipes enough for different fixtures. All vents are small, isolated pipes that you can work with separately. However, having different vent pipes for every fixture will mean that you have many vent pipes running up through the building and out your roof. This uses unnecessary piping, and you will be doing extra work.