Plumbing rough in got inspected today and I'm still fuming about the drain slope

Three weeks ago my GC let the plumber run a 2 inch drain line for the basement bath with barely 1/8 inch per foot fall, and the inspector flagged it this morning in Austin. The guy argues it's fine because the pipe is short, but I measured it myself with a level and it pools water in two spots. Has anyone else had to force a contractor to redo work after the city already signed off on the first pass?

2 comments

2 Comments

terry_jones24d ago

Austin's pretty strict on that. City inspectors there usually know their stuff. Short pipe or not, that slope rule exists for a reason. Standing water in a drain line is a mold problem waiting to happen. Good on you for catching it with the level. Most people just trust the guy and move on. The inspector flagged it, so that's your ammo. Make the GC fix it now, before drywall goes up. Once that wall's closed, you'd be tearing out tile and studs to fix it later. Cheaper to fight about it now.

lopez.simon22d ago

Man, you're spot on @terry_jones! That drywall closing is the real deadline here. Once that's up, you're looking at cutting into the wall, maybe even the slab if it's on the first floor, and that's way more cash than just redoing a pipe now. Plus, Austin humidity is no joke, standing water in that line will turn into a science project real quick, and you'll smell it before you ever see it. I'd be taking pics of that level and the inspector's note and texting them to the GC every single day until it's fixed, lol. Better to be the annoying homeowner for a week than the one with a moldy wall and a fat repair bill in six months.