Thanks for looking in.

Here is the situation. I had our basement finished 4 years ago to include the addition of a full bath using the exisiting roughins. We noticed overtime the basement toilet will not drain properly after flushing. We'll have to plunge it and occasionally this has caused the sewage to back up into the bath tub drain. After 10 minutes of plunging and running the bath water, things can be basically be made operational - until the next time.

This problem did not reveal itself when we accepted the job (toilet didn't leak and flushed OK, what else was there to check??), but it has become more of a headache, especially as we get ready to sell.

We had a plumber come out and snake the toilet with a camera and sure enough there is a "belly" in the line where the slope of the pipe not as it should be. At this point I believe the only option is to dig up the concrete (about 15') in my finished basement to correct the problem. I haven't got an estimate yet, but I'm expecting one for several thousand dollars.

So now for my questions:

1 - Will any of the "flush mate"- type power toilets alleviate this problem? Is relaying the pipe really my only option (other than living with it?)

2 - The basement remodeller is still in business. I have not called him yet. This appears to me to be a construction issue that has just taken awhile to rear it head (We've had problems for 2-3 years but figured we maybe just had some blockage, etc.). Any advice or odds on my getting the builder to take some or all of the responsibility to fix this?

Thanks in advance for your response,

Ken