I should preface the explanation of this problem with some background about my plumbing in general. Half of the drains in my home (kitchen and bathroom sink) empty directly onto my back patio, inches from the house, in a weird medieval/questionably-legal fashion. The rest of the drains (toilet and shower) exit via pipes, presumably (hopefully) to the more traditional Culver City septic system.
Recently, the traditional drains (toilet and shower) have been behaving strangely. Specifically, in tandem, these drains clog completely and spontaneously (not like after I have just flushed something big down the toilet or accidentally washed a large item down the drain but just at totally random times). During this clogged time, the toilet starts leaking from the base and floods the bathroom floor (yuck!). By the way, the plunger does not help. Then, after a bit, loud noises start coming from under the house. Kind of rumbling noises accompanied by a slight shaking feeling, like a minor earthquake. Then both toilet and tub give a great gargling sound, some water shoots into the air, and the clogs are spontaneously fixed and the standing water quickly rushes away.
I 
am actually really worried about this. What should I do?
// posted by Behavior Analyst @
10:05 PM 
