Son of a gun Moosetrot! If I lived closer I’d help you out in a heartbeat!

Like someone mentioned above, I’d try blowing some compressed air in there and try blowing the clog out.

Or cut the line somewhere and get a shop vac sucking it out.

Get access to the basement and compressed air from bottom up instead of top down and blow it out the vent like a potato gun? Starling maybe?

Once you have access in basement, if its grease and copper heat it up in the basement maybe? Get it to flow out somehow?

Maybe check if your vent is larger diameter which logically a bird could fall down and then be stuck where it goes down in size?

If there was grease in my drain I'd be ready to fight someone probably. Good luck.

Getting closer. Did some cutting in the basement and have it pretty well nailed down to the southwest corner. Ran a snake up toward the sink from my first cut where it came into the basement. Found that I had gone right up and out the vent pipe. Everything clear from the sink to the first cut and water came rushing down when Wonderful Wife poured it into the sink.. Unfortunately my snake fell apart at that point. Ran it by hand down to the southwest corner but was not able to twist at all.

Removed the rubber joiner from my cut on the south run and ran my snake by hand both ways. On the side where it went to the southwest corner I kept pushing and slamming it into the pipe but is would not go around the corner. When I brought it back there was a small piece of what looked like saran wrap wrapped around what looked like white plastic....hard grease. Had Wonderful Wife pour water into sink and nothing came out of my south cut. Was pretty bushed by that point so closed up the cuts and called it quits for the day.

Tomorrow morning it's a trip to Menards for a new snake and more of the rubber joiners. I am going to cut the corner right out, clean it, and put it back with the joiners. I seriously think a pvc drain pipe is in my future. I could still keep the vent pipe but could replace the rest of it in the basement without much problem. Gotta wait till I have two arms to work with.

Right now it's going to be a shower and a cold beer...or two. Starting to feel and smell like Mike Rowe.

Thanks for the help, folks! Greatly appreciated and will update tomorrow.

Moosetrot

Looking forward to a good update tomorrow!

Me too, Jurassic! Learning to work with one arm has not been fun. Got covered with goddawful muck that came out of the pipe today.

As always, I will live though it.

Moosetrot

How is the saga going Moose?

After 7 more hours in the basement playing contortionist with a reciprocating saw, a screwdriver, and plenty of cussing, I finally got it, I did wind up cutting out the whole south west corner of the copper. There was about 2 ft. of muck which turned into a near solid for a foot either side of the corner. Had to use a piece of election sign wire followed by blasting it all out with high pressure water outside. Dragged outside a 10 ft. piece of pipe that I could not get to because yet another (brand new) snake fell apart on me.

This stuff really stunk and was mixed with hard white chunks that I assume were grease. I wound up wearing a lot of it. By the end, putting it all back together was really tough for me with a boogered up right shoulder but, I got 'er done and am glad.

Thanks to all for your ideas and encouragement. Time to have a beer and take a little rest.

Moosetrot

Glad you got it figured out Moose! I bet the cussing helped!

I put together a new trampoline this afternoon for the kids. Took 6 hours and a lot of swearing!

I know it helps me! Lol

I am good at it, too! My Dad used to say he was fluent in two languages...English and Profane!

Moosetrot

The Great Black Otter prevails!

Might want to stop pouring grease down the drain. That sounds like a big plug.

Always!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Moosetrot
(
AKA The Great Black Odor)

We don't. We are actually very careful about that. Must have been building for quite some time.

Moosetrot

Had old galv steel drain pipes that were clogged to a pencil thickness....I felt your pain, lol
Glad your draining again!

I always wondered if that sludge that you get covered with while doing this would make a good coyote rolling bait. Last time I did it, I took a piece of the pipe that was clogged (about 4') out into the yard and pushed it out with rebar. That sludge was still there and still smelling a month later.

So my clogged drain may have turned out to be a good thing????!!!!!! LOL!!!

Moosetrot