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I have a house that’s on a slab and the previous owner put the plumbing inside the slab. I have no access to the plumbing. My tub won’t drain. I tried a snake, plunger, boiling water Baking soda and vinegar, and drano. Nothing is working.

jsotola
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Josh
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    At some point you either hire a plumber in hopes they have some trick that won't require breaking concrete, or you break concrete, or the plumber you hire breaks concrete. When you patch the concrete, put in some clean-out accesses (you could look to see if there are any of those there now, but...) Classical tub plumbing is prone to issues with the stopper, if it's the usual concealed lever-lift type - that should be above the concrete. – Ecnerwal Dec 15 '22 at 01:36
  • Professional strength drain cleaner is sulfuric acid. But you're not supposed to use it after you've put all those other chemicals. – Mazura Dec 15 '22 at 02:54
  • https://diy.stackexchange.com/questions/95559/chemical-drain-cleaning-acid-base-or-something-else – Mazura Dec 15 '22 at 02:58
  • What happens with the snake, how many feet were you able to push? There is some technique to using a snake, have you watched any youtube videos on how to use a snake? – Fresh Codemonger Dec 15 '22 at 06:22

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You've tried many of the home remedies that are out there for clearing drains so the next step would be to check with your home store or rental place and rent a drain camera to find out exactly what's going on down there. Look for a drain cleanout on the inside or outside of the house for easier access to the inside of the drain. You could skip this step and rent a Roto Rooter machine and try to clean out the drain but the camera would give you a much better idea of what and where the problem is.

JACK
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  • The waterproof endoscopes on amazon are pretty cheap these days. You can get a 30' waterproof scope with light for under $50. The diameter of the scope is less than that of a pen. – Fresh Codemonger Dec 15 '22 at 06:20
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That sounds like a solid non decomposing item stuck in there.

Since it is the bath tub it should not be toys, or diaper or tampons probably just a lots of hair clog.

Hairs do not decompose and are only removable by mechanical method.

Another possibility are calcium deposits that are hardened and can not be removed by snake.

When using Baking soda and vinegar first pore in backing soda, add small cup of water to distribute it down to the clog. Then addd vinegar.

Since you do not know where it is or what it is, use a camera to find it then use proper length snake.

You last method before digging up the concrete would be to use diluted Muriatic acid. It will attack calcium deposits and not your PVC plumbing. Follow the safety instruction when using muriatic acid.

To prevent it in the future install/use hair drain stoppers, you will be surprised how much hair comes off during shower.

Ruskes
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