Thank for the reply. Before calling a plumber this morning, the 2nd floor called and told me that the standing water in her sink was now gone. I went up there and turned on the hot water on the 3rd and 2nd floor. Meanwhile, down in the basement, I could hear what sounded like chunks of ice hitting the elbow at the bottom of the waste riser. Now that that's the drains are all fine, I think I have a related problem. This morning, after going into the basement while running the hot water, I could see a puddle of water under the riser pipe. There was dirt in the puddle and the dirt was in a path down the foundation wall. On top of the foundation wall, there was a bunch of wet dirt. (I'm pretty sure the dirt has always been there from the fire stop material and dust and whatnot. Directly above the dirt on the top of the foundation is the hole in a 2x4 where the PVC riser runs up through the back exterior wall of the house, and then through the roof. The wood around the hole is wet with moisture, and some of the insulation I put in that hole around the pipe to stop a draft was moist too. Is it possible that the PVC waste pipe had standing water in it from the blockage (whatever it was) and froze and cracked overnight? The temp last night dipped to 15 degrees Fahrenheit and stayed below 25 until 10:00 this morning. This riser pipe is in an uninsulated exterior wall on this 1940's house, and vents through the roof. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks, Nick

Did you use a long enough snake to get to a part of the drain system that is shared by a drain that has no problem? Did you auger the snake the entire length that you inserted it? Snakes can punch their way through a clog without dislodging it unless the barb on the end thoroughly engages the material. I often use a power-driven snake that is continually turned by a drill motor. If the clog is more grease than solid, it takes repeated snaking to scour it out of the pipe.

seems like it could be a tough one since smell is subjective (although there's probably something out there that can measure smell) plus if more than 1 of u can smell it that'll help. I'm just thinking ahead if u need to file a complain with the licensing board. How long has it been since u texted him? was a good with texts before? i hope he's getting in touch with who he will and then get back to u but would be nice if he let u know he got your msg and will deal with it. I have a very sensitive nose so this problem would be a big one for me. I just got a bunch of air purifiers and have been learning more about pure air. your nose is telling u something. glad u r listening to your body

We have a ramp sink in one place of our house. I am always impressed how little it splashes compared to other sink designs. I am sure the type of faucet also makes a big difference. But you can experiment a little bit yourself. Temporarily prop up a cutting board in your kitchen sink and see which angle works best for you. On the other hand, since our ramp sink is built from countertop material, I also notice that it has sharp corners that are a little more difficult to keep clean. And the linear drain makes it impossible to stopper the sink. Neither one is a big deal to us. But be aware of these limitations.