Toilets venting

Incidentally, if a bird builds its nest on top of one our roof toilet vents, we find the toilet will no longer flush properly. The experienced plumber states that the toilet won t flush because it is suffering from vapor lock and this is true. A working knowledge of process equipment fundamentals often comes in quite handy around the home. 

Incidentally, if a bird builds its nest on top of one of our roof toilet vents, we find the toilet will no longer flush properly. The experienced... 

Install a composting toilet, which uses no water. Rather, it allows human wastes to decompose aerobically as air is vented over the waste, which is buried in peat moss. Dried, odor-free compost is removed every few months and is useful as a garden fertilizer. 

This suggests that the pressure in a water drain can get so low, that air could be sucked out of the bathroom and down the drain. Of course, we all see this happen several times a day—typically when we flush a toilet. So much air is drawn into the water drainage piping, that we install vents on our roofs, to release this air. The only requirement, then, for vapors to be drawn into a flowing nozzle is for the nozzle exit loss to be larger than the static head of liquid above the nozzle. 

The mechanical contractor is usually also responsible for providing adequate pressurized water supply, drainage (with special provisions for low-level areas of the closed-loop water system), bypasses, an electrical supply (typically 110 V, 1 phase, but also 3 phase where temporary pumps are required), HVAC system air purge vents, as well as other facilities, such as site access, toilets, security, and equipment handling systems. 

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Tape plastic over any windows in the room. Use duct tape around the windows and doors and make an unbroken seal. Use the tape over any vents into the room and seal any electrical outlets or other openings. Sink and toilet drain traps should have water in them (you can use the sink and toilet as you normally would). Push a wet towel up against the crack between the door and the floor to seal it. If it is necessary to drink water, drink the stored water, not water from the tap. Turn on the radio. Keep a telephone close at hand, but don t use it unless there is a serious emergency. 

The first skill that a new homeowner should acquire is toilet repair. 1 had my first lesson on this vital skill in 1969. We had just moved into our first house in south Chicago when 1 discovered our toilet wouldn t flush. An experienced co-worker at the American Oil Refinery in Whiting, Indiana (now BP), suggested that 1 check the roof vent (see Fig. 1.2). 

Climbing onto the roof I found that a pigeon had built its nest on top of the 3-inch diameter vent pipe. I removed the nest and the toilet flushed just fine. The water swirled around merrily in the bowl for a few seconds. Next, the water gushed and rushed down the toilet s drain with wonderful speed and vitality. The water seemed to be in such a hurry to leave the toilet bowl and escape through the sewer that it dragged a small amount of air with it. 

When the air-water mixture enters the larger, vertical stand-pipe in Fig. 1.2, the velocity of the air-water mixture goes down. Some of this reduced kinetic energy is converted back into pressure. This I know because the pressure in the stand-pipe is atmospheric pressure. This has to be because the top of the stand-pipe is the 3-inch vent pipe sitting on the roof of my house. The air sucked down the toilet bowl escapes through this 3-inch vent. If a bird s nest or snow clogs the vent, then the trapped air builds pressure in the stand-pipe. The backpressure from the stand-pipe restricts the flow of water from the bowl, and the toilet can no longer flush properly. 

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