Standing in the strong wind at 50 meter high roof facing the stormy Mediterranean (Are you afraid of heights? the bastards asked) I formulated a theory: the strong wind may cause, by the Venturi effect, a suction force in the soil-air pipes and temporarily empty the odor traps in the higher floors. But why has appeared this issue now and never before? May be people was less sensible to air quality in the past, may be before the internet their opinion was of less consequence, and may be the climate has changed and the Eastern Mediterranean winds at that altitude are stronger than before. I asked for a thousand dollars for the solution. They insinuated that I was dirt cheap, the amount asked is insignificant relative the public relations disaster they are facing. They succeeded in spoiling my excitement of having a non-routine, interesting problem to solve. I'll keep myself (and you) posted about my progress.
10 comments:
http://www.studor.net/products/papa_UK.asp
K
Thanks. Never heard of it. Very interesting.
I recently installed Studor vents (one way air admittance valves) on my traps in my new kitchen instead of venting thru the roof and I am very happy so far - no smell, the drains run freely. There was a considerable savings in labor & material vs. running a pipe thru the roof (one more place for the roof to leak) plus this way the plumbers did not butcher the wooden structural elements as they usually do.
K
If current trends continue, vents will be prohibited.
The inspector was skeptical (they live in the past - there are still plumbers who work with oakum and lead here) but there was nothing he could do because the air valves are code approved.
K
Why you need an inspector for small in-house plumbing reparations and changes?
Air valves are in the market for a long time and never cought on. The problem is the everchanging air pressure in the pipes in a large building. May be some Israeli will invent a system to install sensors and control it by computer, as they do in water supply systems. The computer regulated pressure system would have the advantage of releasing less or no polluted air to the atmosphere. I am so busy with my work and preparing for th semester that have notime for nothing.
Hmmm.. no waterless urinals involved?
Legally, you need to get a permit for even the smallest change. The permits are issued routinely most of the time but there are fees involved. If it were really a small thing I wouldn't have bothered but this was a major addition - an addition of around 35 sq. meters, from the ground up (a new larger kitchen).
The ironic thing is that the inspectors are largely worthless in their consumer protection function. In order to get to the basement of the new addition where all the pipes are, you have to crawl on your hands and knees thru the old part of the house. When the inspector came, he didn't feel like doing such hard work so he never actually inspected the pipes that are under the floor.
K
K,
Experienced inspectors dont need to actually inspect anything, they see through the walls and under the floor.
I am not yet at level of experience but improving. I am hired to provide as made and actualized plumbing drawings of 50 years old buildings where the original plans were lost or never existed.
I am now in position to imagine how a system is laid out and works, without ever actually seeing a pipe, and my drawings are so convincing that I had never one be put in doubt.
Installing sensors seems overly complicated, like something the Japanese or Germans would do. The Studor vent is a very simple and relatively inexpensive (maybe $25) one way valve and the maker claim that it is good for millions of cycles. It doesn't require electricity to work. If it ever permits a smell to be omitted, you simply unscrew it and replace it with a new one - a 5 minute job.
K
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