12 years later and the video you did still keeps on improving people's lives. The paper towel trick worked like a charm at first try. Awesome and thank you!
13 years later, and this video is still saving the day!! Thank you so much for this helpful video! I was able to clear my clogged dishwasher air gap all by myself! I learned alot about how this all works, and now I am prepared in case in ever does it again. And I scrubbed and cleaned everything in the process. Wow, talk about disgusting, I never realized how dirty these air gaps are, once you take off the cap. Ugh! I also cleaned my disposal drain while I was at it. Those rubber flaps around the drain get really gross on the underside. I put on rubber gloves and went to work! Also, instead of pouring hot water down the air gap's opening, I filled a squirt bottle with hot water which allowed me to get the water in there perfectly. That is what did the trick - the clog then emptied into the disposal. Now my dishwasher is draining beautifully into my disposal, and I am so happy! Thanks again!!
You are my hero! FOURTEEN YEARS we let this go unfixed thinking it was going to be a major repair that we couldn't afford. Thank you so much for your help!
I know this is an old video, but I have to say Thank YOU! Your shop vac trick just solved my dishwasher problem! I have a slightly unusual setup & it is difficult to get to all the plumbing. You have saved me hours of dismantling my kitchen.
Thank you!! Nine years later and this video was still very relevant. Thank you so much for this great video. There is nothing like doing it yourself… My 82-year-old father will be so proud.
Greg, two gals here. Water going everywhere when the dishwasher was on... YOU SAVED THE DAY! We did it! We are so very proud of ourselves! Thank you for making this video and thank you RUclips! Rebecca and Tricia San Jose, CA
You are BRILLLIANT! I thought I was going to have to call a plumber, but I watched your video, took the paper towel tube, blew down into it and PRESTO! The blockage came out in the disposal like you said. Thank you!!!
Thank you SO MUCH for making this video Greg! The paper towel worked for me also, and saved me tons of work! You are so kind to share your "tricks of the trade" with us!!!
Thank you for the DIY tip with the ShopVac. It’s super useful especially at Midnight when I shouldn’t be calling my plumbers. I heard stuff running through the ShopVac hose and I feel secure to go to bed now. Thanks again!
Remarkably old video with remarkably valuable info. Thanks for increasing my knowledge and for the tips. Since going to some effort to punch a hole in our stainless sink and installed an anti-siphon air gap device, I've had many people tell me for years that I don't need an air gap and it's not required by code in my area (it was required where I lived last). The kitchen drain backed-up today and had I not had the air gap, I'd have filled the dishwasher with garbage disposal crud. Your tip helped me dislodge a partially plugged air gap that's been that way for years. Clear drain and clear air-gap. Life is back to normal.
Thank you so much. I tried everything with the washing machine first to try and solve a drainage problem. I took everything apart and cleaned the drain pump. It was a good thing because I did find some small debris, broken glass, and a pebble in there, but it did not solve my draining problem . In frustration I finally stumbled across your video. Sure enough, when I pulled the air gap cover off it was completely plugged with some gross food and debris. I had the dishwasher running at the time and I just pulled a little on the debris and suddenly, like a volcano, it started coming out of the air gap. It was funny watching me scramble around trying to stop the debris and water from getting everywhere. Needless to say, this INSTANTLY solved my drainage problems.
Didn’t think this was the problem, knew this wasn’t the problem...but, because you mentioned it and I have a shop vac I tried it. It worked! You are a genius. My wife said thank you as well for saving our 43 year marriage. Lol. God Bless!
Wow! ! You just taught me how to fix my dishwasher. Saved me the service fee and time that I don't have to accommodate a plumbers schedule. Thanks a million sir..
In all the dish washer hook ups I have seen. I have never seen an air gap used until now. I have refused to use dish washers because of the musky odors left inside the dish washers and now I understand why. An air gap was missing on all the installations I have seen. You are 100% right about the back flow contamination. How many people have suffered sickness due to back flow of nasty contaminated waste water flowing over their assumed cleaned sanitized dishes. With the air gap higher than the drain it breaks the siphon capabilities of the drain line. I thank you for taking the time to make this video. I wish all persons could view this whom have dishwashers would save on a lot of visits to the doctors. Have a good day.
Thank you Sir! I noticed my air gap plugged and water flowing into the sink. I tried your paper towel trick and it worked like a charm. After pouring lots of hot water down the air gap, I noticed tons of crud draining into the garbage disposal. Thanks again!
14 yrs later and this saved me, thank you. I thoroughly cleaned out my dw drain basket, took apart my dw pump, I removed both hoses coming off air gap and cleaned them out, cleaned hole in garbage disposal.. refusing to believe prob was in air gap. After watching this video it took me 5 min to pop off top of air gap and found pumpkin seeds and piece of plastic fork- problem solved- Gracias!
I wish I'd found this 30 years ago. I usually pull the drain hose and take it outside and use a hose nozzle. That works well, but clearing out everything I have accumulated under the sink take the real time. It does get that cabinet cleaned out every few years though. Good video and good information. Thanks for taking the time to help others.
Omg! Thank you so much for this tutorial. I never understood it and really appreciated this. Now I understand why the water is all of a sudden flooding around my sink. And probably has something to do with why my drains smell like a gross hot mess. I reported it to maintenance and they supposedly fixed the issue but I don’t think they really figured out what the issue was. Thank you so much! I will try to update in a couple of weeks if this process cleared the problem that I’ve been having for so long that my maintenance couldn’t fix.
Well, I came online because I'm shopping for a new sink and I wondered how many holes I should get, since we are changing the faucet and only need one for that. Then I remembered that little thing sticking up on our sink and remembered how it had overflowed one time and made a mess. Thought it had something to do with the dishwasher, but I wasn't sure, so I googled "do I need a special kind of sink if I have a garbage disposal?" and after a few clicks, I came across this video. The entire video was very helpful and I'm bookmarking it, but the end where you talk about how many holes come with a sink (and why) was exactly what I was looking for! Thanks for this very informative video. Off to order my sink!
Took me a few minutes to watch this video and ten seconds to fix the problem. Paper towel method saved me hours and lots of headache. Happy new homeowner.
Many thanks for this. We were very frustrated trying to resolve the musty, mold smell. Almost bought a new dishwasher. Tried almost everything. There was no flooding or back-up and filter was clean, so we didn't think there was a blockage till I tried the paper roll trick. Sure enough I could hear something pop free in the waste line to the garbabge disposal. Just for good measure I also used the shop vac with the hot water running. All good now. You rock!
Really appreciate the video! paper towel trick was great! Even though I had to take off the drain pipe and clean it out (it was too clogged) - this video taught me how the air gap works and what steps to take first!!! Thank you Greg Chick!
YAY! Thank you SO much for this video! My air gap has been backing up water all over the place for over a year & we had no idea water wasn't supposed to be coming out of there! Then it became a real problem when it started backing up so much, the counter tops & floor were soaked. So I tried that paper towel method & it worked like a charm! I blew really hard & heard a "THUMP!" & proceeded to jump up & down! Works like new now! You're a lifesaver!
Very helpful. My dishwasher was not draining. This is my first house that has an air gap vent. I never knew what it did. After watching the video, I removed the cap (I have the rectangular one, so thank you for mentioning that) and what do you know…an unidentified piece of yuck was right there. I removed it, did the paper towel blow trick and put it back together. Dishwasher is back to sound what it does. Thanks Ramona’s plumber.
This was the best clear and concise video of air gap maintenance I have ever seen. Thank you for making this clever video. You demonstrate the purpose of an airgap. I will try your method.
Wow! Thanks for such easy tutorial! The hubby is out of town, and my dishwasher was not draining. Googled info and most posts suggested checking the air gap. Then I found your video and ... VOILA! Problem solved. Thanks a million!
I don't have a shop vac or a long brush, so I tried the paper towel trick. It worked like a charm! You just saved me from crawling under the sink to remove and clear all the hoses! Many thanks!!!
My plumber forgot to knock off the air gap stopper from brand new garbage disposal when he's installing it. The blowing air thing definitely helped track it down and I did it myself. Thanks Greg!!
Thanks so much!!!! I had no clue about plumbing and used your instructions to successfully unclog my air gap!. Saved the $60 fee to my home owners warranty.
A Big Mahalo Greg! Did the paper towel roll test and thought my eyes were going to pop out. Felt down the garbage disposal at the other end and found the clog. Cleared it out at that end and blew back into the roll and pushed clog out.
The wet vac is a great tip, however, I ended up using the blow application of the vac, taping my nozzle to the air gap and blowing out the obstruction. Would never have thought to do that without the Ramona Plumber's suggestion. Much thanks!
Thanks! Just changed my Air Gap and looked at the hose going to the disposal...GUMMED UP with fat, grease, and old chow. NASTY. I've just tested it and POW - FIXED! Thanks for your video and sharing your knowledge!
It took a video from 2009 to help me solve my dishwasher air gap problem in 2021! Thank you! And btw, who are the 76 "thumbs down" voters? I mean... really?
My wife insisted I fix the air gap valve today. I was anticipating going to the hardware store, buying tools, going under the sink and getting filthy. I decided to at least look on the internet to see if there was a video, and WALLA , there was Greg's little video. The suggestion to just blow through a towell tube seemed absurd, but guess what ? It worked beautifully !! I was done in one minute. This is incredible !! THANK YOU GREG for taking the time to help intellectual dummies like myself.
Wow - thank you for your help. I was getting frustrated and thinking I would need to be under the sink with tools for the remainder of the evening. Presto!
Thank you sir.. this seems have fixed my dishwasher not draining completely.. Greatly appreciate you taking the effort to put this education out there..
Thank you for posting this! I was getting ready to pull the dishwasher out and tear it apart, then I saw your video. I had looked at the air gap but not taken it apart! I put a large mouth glass jar over the air gap (with some of the mouth of the jar over the edge of the sink) with the cap removed and let the dishwasher pump some water out. POPCORN kernels were blocking it! Thanks again!
Came here looking for a video to show my friend how to fix his air gap - PERFECT! I also loved the shop vac/bathroom sink trick. What a wonderful thing you are doing. Thank you!!
Thank you so much for posting this video. You probably saved me a couple of hundred bucks. I tried the paper towel to blow some gunk out, but I also just put the my hand over the air gap and blew into which gave it an extra kick. I also used a long brush which I bought at Home Depot just to make sure I got everything out. After the doing above, a little water still came out, but I realized it was just overflow and it quickly drained into the disposal. Thanks again!
This worked like a champ for me. Thank you so very much Greg for this informative video. Mine was the pronged kind but once I got the cap off, the clog literally popped right out with it.
Your video was very helpful to remove about a foot of thick gunk from the airgap drain. the overflow was flooding my counter top every single day lately and it is a pain for me to wipe the counter top dry right after I get home from work. I was going to call a plumber or home warranty company to come to take a look at the issue. Thanks to your video upload on you tube-i removed the gunk and I think I am good to go. Thanks for the upload. you saved me lot of money and I can relax when I get home.
Thanks !!! I felt the blockage release with the paper towel, and did the finger in the disposal (there was gunk there), but it was finally a bottle brush (really an aquarium lift tube brush) that got everything. Saved me a plumber call!!!!!
I watched a couple other videos before I found yours and I'm so glad. Yours was easy to follow and although I was getting my shop vac ready, the paper towel tube worked before I had to go any farther. Thank you so much.
Saved me a ton of time. I thought you were crazy but the towel trick worked like a charm. Thank you for describing it visually and verbally so well. Problem solved. Hate to imagine going under the sink to fix this. I first stuck an ethernet wire and it was stuck. Then I tried hanger wire. Paper towel and blew and boom - heard the pop. My wife heard it too. Thanks you. Old is gold. Your video reminds me of that. Thank you!! It's physics really. Blowing into the paper towel force the air out and pop goes the weasel.
I have to say thank you one last time--saved me over $200 for plumber visit and a few hours under the sink after a 14hr day at work..now I can go sleep in peace thank you again man!!!
Wow... you are The Man! So glad my girlfriend searched this, the paper towel thing totally worked! I had just spent an hour taking the hose out from underneath and cleared that out, but was completely dumbfounded as to what was still clogging the system... the clog was just inside the disposal. You rock!.. and that probably saved us the couple hundred dollars a plumber would have cost.
Thank you, yes life can be shared, giving of skills that are simple and free can save sooooo much. Too many people just dont care to share. I would be very happy if our podcasts could help many more, and I get the gratification of knowing it helped. Thank you for viewing Greg Chick , AKA Ramona's Plumber
Thanks so much. I used the paper towel roll method that you suggested and it worked. I noticed resistance when I first blew and then heard a pop and then there was no resistance at all when I blew again. Ran my dishwasher and all is well again.
Thanks for taking the time to make this video. It's helpful and from those of us who learned something, I'll guess (safely) that there's a good deal of gratitude for people who create these tutorials. Cheers.
Worked perfectly- we were “ooc” for 6month - using it as a glorified drying rack- the blow method didn’t work but hot water and fingering from the sinks exit hole - gunk the size of dog feces came out and the smell was horrific - Clorox helped afterward- running like a champ now! Thanks
This advice saved me! Thank you so much, this is my first house and I didn’t know that air gap wasn’t supposed to dump water into my sink. Poor thing was like that for at least a year before it finally dumped enough water for me to look into it. I feel a little bit like a dope but I’m so glad I know now
Your video JUST helped me out! My air gap wouldn’t stop running water so I felt around in the disposal and felt something on the right side where the hole is. I kept digging at it and it popped out. It was an end of a carrot lol. THANK YOU SOOO MUCH!!
Awesome video, excellent explanation, great tips, amazing teacher.... Merry Christmas, you saved our holiday..... My loving wife, kids and son-in-law are in your debt and forever grateful.
Many thanks! Mine had been draining out the sink for a month, while I debated replacing the now 20-YO washer. I may still replace it, but now it'll be at my leisure.
12 years later and the video you did still keeps on improving people's lives. The paper towel trick worked like a charm at first try. Awesome and thank you!
@Alarge Corgi2 it's not the resolution we wanted. It's the resolution we needed.
13 years later, and this video is still saving the day!! Thank you so much for this helpful video! I was able to clear my clogged dishwasher air gap all by myself! I learned alot about how this all works, and now I am prepared in case in ever does it again. And I scrubbed and cleaned everything in the process. Wow, talk about disgusting, I never realized how dirty these air gaps are, once you take off the cap. Ugh! I also cleaned my disposal drain while I was at it. Those rubber flaps around the drain get really gross on the underside. I put on rubber gloves and went to work! Also, instead of pouring hot water down the air gap's opening, I filled a squirt bottle with hot water which allowed me to get the water in there perfectly. That is what did the trick - the clog then emptied into the disposal. Now my dishwasher is draining beautifully into my disposal, and I am so happy! Thanks again!!
You are my hero! FOURTEEN YEARS we let this go unfixed thinking it was going to be a major repair that we couldn't afford. Thank you so much for your help!
Greg, I only knew for 2:51 minutes before you saved my evening, my floor and probably my marriage. Thank you.
cool!
@@TheGregchick jnnjjjnjnnkBbbBBBbBBbobPbBbjjzOOBkjkJzoNOjobnbpJpbpozobBbnokkbbbObopbbJJOboJInojjjJoojjñjjjojjnooobobbobjpbpbnojkbbo+
I know this is an old video, but I have to say Thank YOU! Your shop vac trick just solved my dishwasher problem!
I have a slightly unusual setup & it is difficult to get to all the plumbing. You have saved me hours of dismantling my kitchen.
Glad to help..
Thank you!! Nine years later and this video was still very relevant. Thank you so much for this great video. There is nothing like doing it yourself… My 82-year-old father will be so proud.
Greg, two gals here. Water going everywhere when the dishwasher was on... YOU SAVED THE DAY! We did it! We are so very proud of ourselves! Thank you for making this video and thank you RUclips!
Rebecca and Tricia
San Jose, CA
You are BRILLLIANT! I thought I was going to have to call a plumber, but I watched your video, took the paper towel tube, blew down into it and PRESTO! The blockage came out in the disposal like you said. Thank you!!!
Paper towel trick is so simple yet so elegant. Worked like a charm!
The paper towel trick is amazing! I heard the pop sound and the drain pipe was cleared! Thank you so much for this great video!!
Thank you SO MUCH for making this video Greg! The paper towel worked for me also, and saved me tons of work! You are so kind to share your "tricks of the trade" with us!!!
Thank you for the DIY tip with the ShopVac. It’s super useful especially at Midnight when I shouldn’t be calling my plumbers. I heard stuff running through the ShopVac hose and I feel secure to go to bed now. Thanks again!
Sweet dreams in chaos!
Remarkably old video with remarkably valuable info. Thanks for increasing my knowledge and for the tips. Since going to some effort to punch a hole in our stainless sink and installed an anti-siphon air gap device, I've had many people tell me for years that I don't need an air gap and it's not required by code in my area (it was required where I lived last). The kitchen drain backed-up today and had I not had the air gap, I'd have filled the dishwasher with garbage disposal crud. Your tip helped me dislodge a partially plugged air gap that's been that way for years. Clear drain and clear air-gap. Life is back to normal.
10 years later, still helpful! Thanks so much!
Thank you so much. I tried everything with the washing machine first to try and solve a drainage problem. I took everything apart and cleaned the drain pump. It was a good thing because I did find some small debris, broken glass, and a pebble in there, but it did not solve my draining problem . In frustration I finally stumbled across your video. Sure enough, when I pulled the air gap cover off it was completely plugged with some gross food and debris. I had the dishwasher running at the time and I just pulled a little on the debris and suddenly, like a volcano, it started coming out of the air gap. It was funny watching me scramble around trying to stop the debris and water from getting everywhere. Needless to say, this INSTANTLY solved my drainage problems.
Posted 12 years ago but still helpful today. This fixed the issue I was having with my dishwasher not draining. Thank you very much for the help!
Didn’t think this was the problem, knew this wasn’t the problem...but, because you mentioned it and I have a shop vac I tried it. It worked! You are a genius. My wife said thank you as well for saving our 43 year marriage. Lol. God Bless!
You have saved my dishwasher life with the paper towel trick THANK YOUUUUUU!!!!! you get a million virtual hugs for THAT!!! it worked!
Wow! ! You just taught me how to fix my dishwasher. Saved me the service fee and time that I don't have to accommodate a plumbers schedule. Thanks a million sir..
This video was PERFECT. Enormously helpful, simple language, descriptive, and effective. Thank you so much and keep posting!
In all the dish washer hook ups I have seen. I have never seen an air gap used until now. I have refused to use dish washers because of the musky odors left inside the dish washers and now I understand why. An air gap was missing on all the installations I have seen. You are 100% right about the back flow contamination. How many people have suffered sickness due to back flow of nasty contaminated waste water flowing over their assumed cleaned sanitized dishes. With the air gap higher than the drain it breaks the siphon capabilities of the drain line. I thank you for taking the time to make this video. I wish all persons could view this whom have dishwashers would save on a lot of visits to the doctors. Have a good day.
This was PERFECT for advising me on how to clean the overflow valve. I used the long brush method. It worked GREAT!! THANK YOU
13 years later for me and the paper towel trick worked!! Thank you so much!
Thank you Sir! I noticed my air gap plugged and water flowing into the sink. I tried your paper towel trick and it worked like a charm. After pouring lots of hot water down the air gap, I noticed tons of crud draining into the garbage disposal. Thanks again!
14 yrs later and this saved me, thank you. I thoroughly cleaned out my dw drain basket, took apart my dw pump, I removed both hoses coming off air gap and cleaned them out, cleaned hole in garbage disposal.. refusing to believe prob was in air gap. After watching this video it took me 5 min to pop off top of air gap and found pumpkin seeds and piece of plastic fork- problem solved- Gracias!
I wish I'd found this 30 years ago. I usually pull the drain hose and take it outside and use a hose nozzle. That works well, but clearing out everything I have accumulated under the sink take the real time. It does get that cabinet cleaned out every few years though. Good video and good information. Thanks for taking the time to help others.
Omg! Thank you so much for this tutorial. I never understood it and really appreciated this. Now I understand why the water is all of a sudden flooding around my sink. And probably has something to do with why my drains smell like a gross hot mess. I reported it to maintenance and they supposedly fixed the issue but I don’t think they really figured out what the issue was. Thank you so much! I will try to update in a couple of weeks if this process cleared the problem that I’ve been having for so long that my maintenance couldn’t fix.
Holy crap! The paper towel roll-trick is ingenious. Blew out a three inch long monster of built up gunk.
Thank you!
Well, I came online because I'm shopping for a new sink and I wondered how many holes I should get, since we are changing the faucet and only need one for that. Then I remembered that little thing sticking up on our sink and remembered how it had overflowed one time and made a mess. Thought it had something to do with the dishwasher, but I wasn't sure, so I googled "do I need a special kind of sink if I have a garbage disposal?" and after a few clicks, I came across this video. The entire video was very helpful and I'm bookmarking it, but the end where you talk about how many holes come with a sink (and why) was exactly what I was looking for! Thanks for this very informative video. Off to order my sink!
Took me a few minutes to watch this video and ten seconds to fix the problem. Paper towel method saved me hours and lots of headache. Happy new homeowner.
Many thanks for this. We were very frustrated trying to resolve the musty, mold smell. Almost bought a new dishwasher. Tried almost everything. There was no flooding or back-up and filter was clean, so we didn't think there was a blockage till I tried the paper roll trick. Sure enough I could hear something pop free in the waste line to the garbabge disposal. Just for good measure I also used the shop vac with the hot water running. All good now. You rock!
I love to help, thanks for watching..
Really appreciate the video! paper towel trick was great! Even though I had to take off the drain pipe and clean it out (it was too clogged) - this video taught me how the air gap works and what steps to take first!!! Thank you Greg Chick!
YAY! Thank you SO much for this video! My air gap has been backing up water all over the place for over a year & we had no idea water wasn't supposed to be coming out of there! Then it became a real problem when it started backing up so much, the counter tops & floor were soaked. So I tried that paper towel method & it worked like a charm! I blew really hard & heard a "THUMP!" & proceeded to jump up & down! Works like new now! You're a lifesaver!
Dude, the paper towel fix did the trick.... Thanks!!! I like the reassuring feeling of the blockage purging as you blow. You da man!!!
that is awesome! saved me $40.00 and a trip to Lowes. unlike a lot of videos on RUclips this one worked just like you showed!
Very helpful. My dishwasher was not draining. This is my first house that has an air gap vent. I never knew what it did. After watching the video, I removed the cap (I have the rectangular one, so thank you for mentioning that) and what do you know…an unidentified piece of yuck was right there. I removed it, did the paper towel blow trick and put it back together. Dishwasher is back to sound what it does. Thanks Ramona’s plumber.
The paper towel trick saved me time having to track down an "air gap cleaning tool" ... thanks so much!
Thanks for the paper tower method, it worked ,just took me one big blow, no more mess, thank you very much!!!
Wow, you ROCK! I tried everything and was about to give up when I found your video. The shop vac was the trick! Thank you!!!
This was the best clear and concise video of air gap maintenance I have ever seen. Thank you for making this clever video. You demonstrate the purpose of an airgap. I will try your method.
The paper towel method worked like a charm. Thank you very much.
Thank you so very much. My husband has past and I am having to fix these things myself, with your guidance, of course. 😊
Wow! Thanks for such easy tutorial! The hubby is out of town, and my dishwasher was not draining. Googled info and most posts suggested checking the air gap. Then I found your video and ... VOILA! Problem solved. Thanks a million!
I had my doubts, but the paper towel tube trick worked! Thanks so much!
Fantastic job Greg! You helped me fix my dishwasher. You're the man!
We are one! making the world a better place one act at a time, Namaste!
You just saved me a lot of money - thank you! Paper towel method blew out a nasty chunk and a rubber band! Dishwasher drains great now!
I don't have a shop vac or a long brush, so I tried the paper towel trick. It worked like a charm! You just saved me from crawling under the sink to remove and clear all the hoses! Many thanks!!!
My plumber forgot to knock off the air gap stopper from brand new garbage disposal when he's installing it. The blowing air thing definitely helped track it down and I did it myself. Thanks Greg!!
10 years later and you've just saved me a very expensive phone call for a 2 minute fix. Thank you very much!
Good deeds are timeless... thanks for watching
14 years and still the best video. Super helpful. I even have that same shop vac! 🤣
Thanks so much!!!! I had no clue about plumbing and used your instructions to successfully unclog my air gap!. Saved the $60 fee to my home owners warranty.
Thank you! That paper towel tube trick is incredible!
A Big Mahalo Greg!
Did the paper towel roll test and thought my eyes were going to pop out. Felt down the garbage disposal at the other end and found the clog. Cleared it out at that end and blew back into the roll and pushed clog out.
The wet vac is a great tip, however, I ended up using the blow application of the vac, taping my nozzle to the air gap and blowing out the obstruction. Would never have thought to do that without the Ramona Plumber's suggestion. Much thanks!
Thanks! Just changed my Air Gap and looked at the hose going to the disposal...GUMMED UP with fat, grease, and old chow. NASTY. I've just tested it and POW - FIXED! Thanks for your video and sharing your knowledge!
I tried the paper towel roll method and that cleared it up !!!!
Thank you for your kind response Greg!
Omg!!! Thank you! Saw tons of stinky sludge after I blew now its clear. Crossing fingers when I use the dishwasher tomorrow. Thanks again.
It took a video from 2009 to help me solve my dishwasher air gap problem in 2021! Thank you!
And btw, who are the 76 "thumbs down" voters? I mean... really?
My wife insisted I fix the air gap valve today.
I was anticipating going to the hardware store, buying tools, going under the sink and getting filthy.
I decided to at least look on the internet to see if there was a video, and WALLA , there was Greg's little video.
The suggestion to just blow through a towell tube seemed absurd, but guess what ? It worked beautifully !!
I was done in one minute. This is incredible !!
THANK YOU GREG for taking the time to help
intellectual dummies like myself.
super great and easy. the paper towel tube and long bottle brush did the trick! NASTY gunk in there! thanks for the video, easy and fast!
Wow - thank you for your help. I was getting frustrated and thinking I would need to be under the sink with tools for the remainder of the evening. Presto!
Thank you sir.. this seems have fixed my dishwasher not draining completely..
Greatly appreciate you taking the effort to put this education out there..
Thank you for posting this! I was getting ready to pull the dishwasher out and tear it apart, then I saw your video. I had looked at the air gap but not taken it apart! I put a large mouth glass jar over the air gap (with some of the mouth of the jar over the edge of the sink) with the cap removed and let the dishwasher pump some water out. POPCORN kernels were blocking it! Thanks again!
Thank you! This saved me from what I am sure would be an expensive repair call. Dishwasher is running fine now.
Thank you so much for posting this!
I enjoy helping others, thanks for watching.
Very detailed and easy to follow. Thanks so much, the paper towel roll worked great!
Thank you, made my Saturday a much happier day, will keep this information in a safe place.😁
Came here looking for a video to show my friend how to fix his air gap - PERFECT! I also loved the shop vac/bathroom sink trick. What a wonderful thing you are doing. Thank you!!
The paper towel method worked for me! Thank you for taking the time to post this!
Thank you so much for posting this video. You probably saved me a couple of hundred bucks.
I tried the paper towel to blow some gunk out, but I also just put the my hand over the air gap and blew into which gave it an extra kick. I also used a long brush which I bought at Home Depot just to make sure I got everything out.
After the doing above, a little water still came out, but I realized it was just overflow and it quickly drained into the disposal.
Thanks again!
This worked like a champ for me. Thank you so very much Greg for this informative video. Mine was the pronged kind but once I got the cap off, the clog literally popped right out with it.
Greg, you saved me a service call! I fixed the clog with your simple paper towel roll technique. Thank you!
Perfect explanation for us novices. Thanks for the video
Your video was very helpful to remove about a foot of thick gunk from the airgap drain. the overflow was flooding my counter top every single day lately and it is a pain for me to wipe the counter top dry right after I get home from work. I was going to call a plumber or home warranty company to come to take a look at the issue. Thanks to your video upload on you tube-i removed the gunk and I think I am good to go. Thanks for the upload. you saved me lot of money and I can relax when I get home.
Great video. Very clear explanation and tips. Thank you so much for posting this. I'll try the various methods to see if I can unclog mine now.
Thanks !!! I felt the blockage release with the paper towel, and did the finger in the disposal (there was gunk there), but it was finally a bottle brush (really an aquarium lift tube brush) that got everything. Saved me a plumber call!!!!!
I watched a couple other videos before I found yours and I'm so glad. Yours was easy to follow and although I was getting my shop vac ready, the paper towel tube worked before I had to go any farther. Thank you so much.
Thanks Greg! The paper towel trick worked instantly. You saved me a lot of time and hassle. Thanks for posting!
Hey thanks!! my dishwasher wouldn't drain and this is the video that saved me! Thank you sir!
Thanks - the tips about the paper towel roll and the bottle brush were very helpful!
Glad to find yours, which reminded me how I cleaned mine months ago by this trick from another video and did it again.
Saved me a ton of time. I thought you were crazy but the towel trick worked like a charm. Thank you for describing it visually and verbally so well. Problem solved. Hate to imagine going under the sink to fix this. I first stuck an ethernet wire and it was stuck. Then I tried hanger wire. Paper towel and blew and boom - heard the pop. My wife heard it too. Thanks you. Old is gold. Your video reminds me of that. Thank you!! It's physics really. Blowing into the paper towel force the air out and pop goes the weasel.
Greg, thanks for an excellent video. I fixed my my air gap problem quickly and easily thanks to you.
I have to say thank you one last time--saved me over $200 for plumber visit and a few hours under the sink after a 14hr day at work..now I can go sleep in peace thank you again man!!!
Wow... you are The Man! So glad my girlfriend searched this, the paper towel thing totally worked! I had just spent an hour taking the hose out from underneath and cleared that out, but was completely dumbfounded as to what was still clogging the system... the clog was just inside the disposal. You rock!.. and that probably saved us the couple hundred dollars a plumber would have cost.
Thank you, yes life can be shared, giving of skills that are simple and free can save sooooo much. Too many people just dont care to share. I would be very happy if our podcasts could help many more, and I get the gratification of knowing it helped.
Thank you for viewing
Greg Chick , AKA Ramona's Plumber
Thanks so much. I used the paper towel roll method that you suggested and it worked. I noticed resistance when I first blew and then heard a pop and then there was no resistance at all when I blew again. Ran my dishwasher and all is well again.
Thanks dude,had no idea why mine was leaking! A little "blow" and that made my day!! Have Ramona give u a hug for me! 😀
Thanks for these simple tips! This video saved me a lot of angst and money.
Thank you so much for your detailed video. We had this problem for more than a month and your video helped resolve the issue. Thanks again.
Thanks for taking the time to make this video. It's helpful and from those of us who learned something, I'll guess (safely) that there's a good deal of gratitude for people who create these tutorials. Cheers.
Worked perfectly- we were “ooc” for 6month - using it as a glorified drying rack- the blow method didn’t work but hot water and fingering from the sinks exit hole - gunk the size of dog feces came out and the smell was horrific - Clorox helped afterward- running like a champ now! Thanks
Greg, you just saved me a couple hundred bucks. Thanks man.
This advice saved me! Thank you so much, this is my first house and I didn’t know that air gap wasn’t supposed to dump water into my sink. Poor thing was like that for at least a year before it finally dumped enough water for me to look into it. I feel a little bit like a dope but I’m so glad I know now
Your video JUST helped me out! My air gap wouldn’t stop running water so I felt around in the disposal and felt something on the right side where the hole is. I kept digging at it and it popped out. It was an end of a carrot lol. THANK YOU SOOO MUCH!!
You just saved me time, money, and a ton of grief. Thank you so much!!
Thank you! It worked exactly as you described. The paper towel trick was genius!
Awesome video, excellent explanation, great tips, amazing teacher....
Merry Christmas, you saved our holiday.....
My loving wife, kids and son-in-law are in your debt and forever grateful.
Thank you for sharing the paper towel method. It solved my clogged drain
Many thanks! Mine had been draining out the sink for a month, while I debated replacing the now 20-YO washer. I may still replace it, but now it'll be at my leisure.