The first thing you have to do is find the best place to gain access to the clogged sewer line. This varies in different types of construction but the most desired location is always an outside cleanout. Other locations may be a cleanout in the basement, cleanout in a floor, via a pulled toilet, from an opened septic tank back towards the house, or in some areas going down a roof vent. You will also have to look at evidence to determine where the clog is and how to best get access to allow the snake to reach the clog. This is a decision easily reached by a pro but is often difficult for a DIYer.
Once the location of the clog has been determined the next thing to do is select the proper drain snaking equipment to clear the clog from the line and how long it needs to be. There are a variety of machines used and the cable length they need to reach to clear the clog is important. A cable too short may not reach the clog and a cable too long if fed out too far will get tangled and knotted in a septic tank or, city sewer line. Equipment selected may be a “sectional” or, a “drum” machine. Rental equipment selection may be very limited usually only provided with minimum sized blades and in questionable condition due to abuse by inexperienced users.
A Sectional Machine has a power-head which is set up near the cleanout and
the sections of cable are fed through the machine and added on as needed then after the drain is cleared the cable is backed out and sections are removed as they come out. This would be the top choice if you are going up on a roof to snake through a vent.
Drum Machines have a drum mounted on a hand truck which usually contain between 75 – 150′ of cable coiled inside the drum. The drum spins and the turning cable is fed out of the machine into the line. This would be my choice for almost everywhere except taking on the roof.
Either machine would have a cutter blade fastened on to the end of the cable. This cutter should be large enough to scrape the outside walls of the drain pipe to scrape all deposits from the inside wall of the pipe and cut roots that are coming into the pipe. Special gloves called “ugly gloves” are often used, to hold the cable while feeding it in and out of the pipe. These ugly gloves are rubber gloves coated with hard plastic grit that allows the cable to turn in the gloved hands without sticking to the rubber yet allow you to grip the turning cable to push and pull it in the line.
The turning cable is like a giant spring that has a tremendous amount of torque applied to it by the machine and you must hold it in your hands to guide it into the line. If you fail to control the torque of the spring it can turn into a pretzel instantly, and yes it may severely injure you. This is very likely to occur when you hit a strong root and the cable stops turning. You need to know just how much to let it build and be ready to snap the cable back and free for just a moment to allow it to unwind and plunge it back into the root while it is spinning fast. If the rental machine cable is in bad shape where it has been kinked previously it will easily wind up into a pretzel once again when pressured.
Okay, are you really getting what I’m saying here? Drain cleaning is serious business and it takes about a full year before a drain cleaner gets really good at what he does. The skills needed involve diagnosis to determine the best way to approach the clogged line, skills to safely and effectively operate the equipment, and the ability to detect problems with the line that require repair…
A DIYer seldom has the knowledge and skills required to do a good job and if they avoid the possibility of serious injury at best they may punch a small hole through a clog as rental equipment is seldom provided with maximum blade sizes. Most often the DIYer tries unsuccessfully for a day or two then gives up and takes the best option. Your best option is to first call in a drain cleaning pro. Call a plumber and your drain can be clear within a couple of hours from when the call is placed.
No doubt, drain cleaning is a task that takes some time to properly acquire the skill, otherwise you’ll spend money on broken cables, damaged equipment and unopened drains. I’ve used both of the machines pictured extensively and they both have their opportuntiies to effectively clear a drain.
Heck yea. Its a lot of money for that equipment for sure!!!
You can figure on a good snake for a main line with cables and everything to probably be about $2500-$3000,
A camera complete with locator $8-9,000.
A trailer jetter $35,000-$40,000
Thats part of the business overhead….
Yea wow, That’s a lot of money just to clean the drains ;0)
I had Rotto Rooter come out the other day because I have I believe what is a clogged main line. When I run my washer maching, shower, dishwasher, sink, my downstairs bathroom toliet over flows. So he took the toliet off, and use a power snake with 96 ft on it, and was unable to pull anything back, he then went under into the crawl space, and ran another 96ft, and was unable to pull anything back. After that he showed concern that it seems to be on the cities side of the plumbing, after that he used a water jetter and still the water came back up…640.00 dollars later I am still unable to run water consitantly without the toliet over flowing and flooding my downstairs. Do you think this is on the ciyt side or do you think that there is anything else in my home that could be causing this problem…Thanks
Hi Sadie,
I’m sorry to hear that Roto Rooter managed to run up a $640.00 tab without getting you any results.
I would call Roto Rooter and ask to speak to a manager asking about their guarantee and why you have paid $640 yet still can’t have a working drain.
I would also call your city sewer department and ask them to check their sewer line to make sure that it is functioning okay.
If it is I would expect Roto Rooter to come back and get your line flowing without charge. This stuff really bugs me!
I charge for results when I do work!
Yes I was a little confused when they left without it working, but left me a bill:) He kept saying it had to be the city, he did call someone who worked at the city and they told him it wasnt them, because if it was them then everyone on this street would be having problems, and they arent. Roto Rooter did say they would come back out Monday morning and go in with a camera to see what is causing the back up, and if they found something they would waive the 200.00 dollar charge for the camera, and if they didnt find anything they would work out a deal with me. Should the camera have been used first? If Rooter says its not my pipes and the city says its not their pipes….then how do I get my problem fixed? In Rooters defense, it was New Years day when they came out, so I knew it was going to be a little more in pricing, but he was only here for 3 hours. Should I be concerned that I got hosed with the price? Thanks
The sewer camera will not see anything in a clogged line. the water is too dirty to see anything. The only function it would have is to locate where the head of the camera is. Personally I’d close the pocket book and not give them another dime unless they come out with the camera and really discover something extraordinary like your house is on a septic tank and not hooked up to the sewer system like you think. If the line is hooked up to the city sewer they either have not cleaned it all the way to the sewer like they claimed or, they passed through the clog without opening it up which is pretty tough if they used a jetter properly. If they try to get any deeper into your pocket I’d really want a second opinion from another company. I’m really suspect about what they have done. Last I knew they got paid for results.
Good morning,
I was a little taken aback by the stuff mentioned about most DIY’ers giving up on clearing out a main line clog. I was faced with a main line clog through 2 bends in the line over 135′ . The clog was way down at ~104′ and was composed of a very dense root pack, scale, and backup residue upstream. I spent 4 hours reaming it all out with a series of attachments from a spud to a fill diameter grinder, cutter. Sewer runs like it was 1903 again.
You can get this tool, the Electric Eel 2 hp sewer snake with 175′ of line for 52.36 (4 hours) or 74.36 (8 hours) at The Home Depot Tool Rental Center. major toll rental companies have similar equipment.
So please give us DIY’ers some more credit. Add on a few bucks for a new clean-up plug and a hammer and cold chisel to get the old one out.
In this economy not everyone has 200-300 dollars to have a decent plumber come out and play.
Hi Max,
While I’m truly glad that you succeeded in cleaning your sewer line without suffering any injury I stand by my original statement that DIY’ers would do well to call in a professional. I’m not sure which machine you used the 2-hp and 175-feet with, it does not add up to any machine in Electric Eels present product line, even the sectional machines are 1/2 – 1HP but do come with enough sections to add up to 175′. These are definite professional grade equipment and I can’t conceive them being rented.
The Home Depot here rents a 1/3-hp open drum machine with 100′ of 5/8″ cable and a 2 1/2″ cutter blade, which is far from adequate and IMHO downright undersized and dangerous. I’ve seen enough customers that have tried for days to do what a pro can do in a couple of hours at great risk to themselves. The risks are quite real I assure you see below.
Worker killed after clothing got entangled in sewer equipment
Contractor dead after sweatshirt gets caught in power rodder
The danger is very rear as you can see and the person involved was experienced using the equipment and not just a person trying to save a couple of hundred bucks. You have to consider the true cost of the work whether your family is better of spending a couple of hundred bucks or, not having you around.
I’ll stand by my original advice,
Redwood
I am dealing with a clogged sewer and an unscrupulous plumber – My sewage backed up and overflowed in my house this past weekend. I called the contractor who has recently finished repairing my damages from Hurricane Ike because I thought it might be something wrong with how things were hooked up. My contractor, as a favor, had a plumber come out to check it out.
The plumber was at my house for under an hour – at least 1/2 of which he spent inside talking to me as though I were a five year idiot (I’m an attorney, so not too dumb, and am quite a bit older than 5!) and telling me how honest and good he was.
After about 20 minutes (he and one assistant), he showed me a section of pipe outside that he had disconnected and had “run 80 feet” and found no blockage. There was no cleanout on my property so he called the city to install one. The city did come out over the weekend and, after much persuasion and the plumber speaking to supervisors, did dig to find the connection. At midnight, the city workers told me they had checked the city line and found no blockage. They would have to return to place a cleanout.
The plumber had left the section of pipe disconnected so that it would not overflow into my house again. He advised me to avoid using dishwasher, clothes washer, etc. and to minimize toilet flushing because it would all drain out onto my backyard patio. He told me to call him when the city was done so he could reconnect it.
He came back yesterday and was very upset because the city had said there was no blockage. He asked me where’s the blockage, then?? Then, he denied saying there was no blockage on my side. He also denied telling me to minimize use of the water systems. When I turned the blockage question back to him and reminded him that he had told me the day before that there was no blockage on my side, he turned psycho. He started screaming in my face that I wasn’t to “talk to him like that, woman!” and “don’t you ever question me, woman!”
I have since talked to other plumbers, as well as filed a complaint with the state plumbing board, and doubt this guy ever really checked my line.
He did not go through any toilet line and certainly did not go to my roof vent (My home is a very tall, Victorian that requires extra-extra tall ladders and safety equipment because of the steep roof pitch). Also, since he was actually “working” only 30 minutes or less, I just doubt that he could have done any work on it.
I liked the replies to other posts on here and would just like your opinion. Could this guy have actually done any cleaning out of my line under these circumstances?
Hi Elizabeth,
I’m sorry to hear that you and your plumber have failed to click.
Unfortunately both of our professions seem to catch more than their fair share of jokes regarding honesty and ethics.
I’m sure that you too have had moments where you were talking to a client and they had doubts about what you were telling them. This can lead to some very frustrating moments that can get tense. Not being there to see what went on I’d like to think that I would have handled it differently and been able to work with you. It certainly sounds like he doesn’t have the skills to deal with customers on a regular basis.
I believe since you used a plumber recommended by a building contractor that you may have gotten a plumber that specializes in new construction and remodeling. What you needed was a service or, repair plumber that also does drain cleaning. There is a big difference! The new construction and remodeling plumber generally has very little interaction with the customer and the work they do is pretty much design and installation. The service/repair plumber typically has interaction with the customer in every job where he is expected to diagnose a problem, propose and sell a solution to the customer and do the work required with a satisfactory resolution. Your plumber may have been an excellent new construction and remodeling plumber but when faced with your problem and dealing with you was a fish out of water.
It is hard for me to say what he did and if he had correctly diagnosed your problem. I will say that the amount of time he spent to correctly rod 80′ of line sounds like he did not spend a lot of time working on it but I have correctly diagnosed city line blockages without spending a lot of time on them too. It can be as simple a seeing water rise in the pipe and knowing the water in the house is not being used, that water is coming from somewhere else. I also have seen clogged city lines suddenly break free and clear on their own from the pressure build up pushing against the clog.
It is also possible for your line to have a problem where there is a clog that a snake can pass through multiple times without clearing the clog. These can be very frustrating especially when you are not used to snaking drain lines. I once worked on a line where I knew where the clog was in a 15′ section of pipe between 2 clean outs and I snaked that section countless times for over 3-hours before the clog finally cleared.
It is also possible to misdiagnose when a clog is located and snake the line til the cows come home without the clog clearing because the snake is being used in the wrong place and is not even touching the clog.
I would like to tell you that many times it is not necessary to pull a toilet to snake a line and if other access is available that can reach the clog I would use it before using a toilet for access. I also have never had to snake the line from a roof vent and I would not dream of doing so on a tall high pitched roof. I also understand that many times particularly in the south on homes with low shallow pitch roofs and slab foundation it is common to snake lines through a vent but in your situation with a tall steep roof I’m afraid most plumbers would insist on installing an outside clean out. Here we certainly do.
My recommendation to you is to find a service/repair plumber who regularly does drain cleaning that you can have a trusting relationship with and go from there to solve your problem. A plumber that normally handles this nature of work will have the proper tools to take care of your problem and provide an accurate diagnosis including a camera which can pass through the line allowing you to see and locate where problems exist. Unfortunately a new construction and remodeling plumber that is taking care of a customer for a builder may be well intentioned but inexperienced and ill equipped to handle your problem. With today’s economy and a construction slowdown we are seeing a lot of construction plumbers branching out into service to survive and may of them are having a tough time and have gained a new found respect for the service plumber. You are probably seeing similar things happening in your field as well with lawyers facing a slow down in their area of expertise taking work outside of their usual scope of work. I do hope that that is what you have had happen in this case and the plumber you had is not a bad apple. But finding another plumber is probably best for you in this case.
I hope this helps you out,
Redwood