You may think I’m just telling you that main line drain cleaning is really important for every home just because I want to book an appointment for our plumbers.
But you’d be wrong.
I’ll be brutally honest.
Main line drain cleaning is not really important if you don’t mind the risk of raw sewage backing up into your tub or sinks.
It’s not really important if you don’t mind standing ankle-deep in used water when you’re taking a shower because it won’t drain fast enough.
It’s not important if you like unpleasant odors, scary burbling sounds, and high water bills.
But most people don’t.
Main line drain cleaning is really important for every home to keep all the water flowing unimpeded from the multiple appliances and fixtures you use on a daily basis.
What, exactly is a “main line?”
Don’t be embarrassed if you don’t know exactly what a main line is.
Your dishwasher. Your washing machine. Each sink in your home. Every toilet, every bathtub, every shower. Anything that you use in your home that involves running water has a line going in with fresh water and out with dirty, used water.
Each of those lines carrying used water from your fixtures goes into your main line.
Main lines are usually located under your concrete slab or in a crawl space, and they lead directly to your sewer line or septic tank which is located outside underground.
Most houses have outdoor line cleanouts, but some older homes with cast iron piping have buried cleanouts that you cannot see. Cleanouts are important to have for maintenance and also for emergency relief should your home start flooding with raw sewage because you can open the cleanout cap and let it relieve outdoors.
Consider this…
The last thing I want to do is gross you out, but if you think a main line drain cleaning isn’t really important, I want you to think about what you put down your drains and toilets.
For each person in your household, you are putting 50-70 gallons of wastewater into the main line every day.
Think about what you put down the garbage disposal. Food scraps. Rinds. Peels. Grease.
Consider how much dirt, mud, and sand might get into the water from a load of filthy laundry. (Multiply that amount if you have babies or young kids.)
I won’t even ask you to list what goes down your toilet, but I will tell you that more and more problems with clogged main lines are coming from “flushable” wipes. (Do you know what a FATBERG is?)
Day after day. Week after week. Month after month.
All that waste piles up, and over time, you can have blockages in your main line.
Signs you need a main line drain cleaning
How do you know you really need a main line drain cleaning?
- You hear burbling, gurgling sounds from any drain
- You start to smell nasty odors around your fixtures
- Your drains start running slowly
- Water backs up into your shower when your toilet flushes
- Worse yet, raw sewage backs up into your sink, tub, or floor drain.
Sometimes, there’s a blockage in the main line from items that have been flushed.
Often, tree roots have grown into or around the pipes and obstructed the flow of wastewater.
Occasionally in older homes, the pipes become brittle and break open.
Another sign you need a main line drain cleaning
How long has it been since your home had a main line drain cleaning?
Main line drain cleaning is NOT something you need a maintenance contract for or something that needs to be done frequently, but most experts recommend a cleaning about every two years, so if you don’t know when yours was last done, it’s probably due.
Good news from ServiceOne
Whether you have noticed the signs that you might need a main line drain cleaning, or whether you believe in preventive maintenance, ServiceOne has good news for you.
We are professional, certified plumbers who have advanced equipment, hydro-jetting capabilities, and special cameras to solve any main line drain problems. We know how to take quickly take care of smelly, messy problems so you don’t have to.
Even better news from ServiceOne
Now through February 28, 2023, ServiceOne is offering $50 OFF on any main line drain cleaning, provided you have a ground-level cleanout.
You can decide if a main line drain cleaning is important for every home.
We think it is.
Call us to keep from getting all clogged up.