The layout under a bungalow
Most 1950s and 1960s bungalows in Wexford, Clairlea and Bendale were piped the same way: one 4-inch cast iron stack drops beside the bathroom wall, turns at a cleanout in the basement floor or front wall, and leaves the house as a clay or early concrete lateral headed for the street. The kitchen sink often drains on its own 1-1/2-inch branch that ties in under the basement slab. The incoming water line enters at the front wall, usually within a metre of the meter.
What we find failing
- Clay lateral joints letting boulevard tree roots in, so the floor drain backs up after laundry day
- Cast iron stack with a rusted-through hub or a vertical crack behind the basement drywall
- Galvanized supply lines closed down with scale, so the upstairs tap trickles when the toilet fills
- Original floor drain trap dried out and letting sewer gas into the basement
How we work a bungalow job
- Find the front-wall cleanout and pull the plug with a bucket and wet vac standing by.
- Run a drum machine with a root cutter out to the property line.
- Push a camera through and record the footage so you can see each joint.
- Quote a spot repair or a full lateral liner only after the footage is reviewed.
Inside the house, we often swap the old galvanized feed from the meter to the kitchen and bath for copper or PEX while the basement ceiling is still open. That one change usually brings back flow at every tap on the main floor.
Bungalow basement apartments
Adding a basement kitchen or bathroom to a bungalow usually means a new below-floor drain tied into the existing building drain, and sometimes a sewage ejector pit if the fixture sits below the sewer line. Toronto requires a plumbing permit for that work; we pull the slab only where the drawing shows.