Clearing the Main Sewer Line

When every fixture in the house drains slowly and the basement floor drain fills with grey water, the blockage is in the main pipe that carries everything to the street.

Sewer & main drains specialists

Old part shown to you first

Plain talk about repair or replace

Common parts already on the van

Licensed & insured (details on request)

Price agreed before work

Local to Richmond Hill

Telltale signs it is the main

Toilet bubbles when the washing machine drains
Water appears at the lowest floor drain first
Several fixtures on different floors are sluggish at once
The main cleanout cap is weeping or pushed up

Stop using water first

Until the line is cleared, every flush and each load of laundry ends up on the basement floor. Ask the household to hold off, and move boxes, rugs and stored items away from the floor drain.

How we open a main

Find the main cleanout, normally close to the front foundation wall in the basement or under the stairs.
Open it slowly with a pail and wet-vac ready, because built-up water will rush out.
Run a sectional machine with a root cutter to the city connection, often 15 to 30 metres away.
Flush with a hose run from a laundry tub and watch the drain take it at full flow.
Recommend a camera pass if roots or clay shards came back on the cutter.

Keeping it from returning

Mature maples and willows along older Richmond Hill streets push roots into clay joints, and a cut root grows back thicker. Long-term fixes include lining or replacing the lateral, covered under sewer line repair, and a backwater valve to protect against municipal backups during storms.

The short version

Tell-tale signs

Toilet bubbles when the laundry tub is emptied
Floor drain overflows the moment anything upstairs drains
Fine white root hairs wrapped round the cable tip
Soggy dip in the front lawn along the line route

Kit on the van

Self-righting camera on a 60 m push reel
Jetter hose with a rear-firing nozzle
Inflatable test plugs and a locator wand
Spades, shoring boards and a trench pump

How we go about it

Crack the main cleanout and let the backup drop
Cut through to the city connection at the property line
Send the camera down and log depth and footage
Mark sags, cracks and offset joints on the lawn

Your questions, answered plainly

How regularly do roots need cutting?

If roots return, many homeowners schedule clearing yearly until the lateral is repaired.

Will insurance pay for a sewer backup?

Numerous policies need a sewer backup rider. Inspect your policy wording long before an emergency.