Roots in a Sewer Line? There's a Solution for that..

Here at Boden Plumbing, mainline stoppages - or sewer line backups - are one of the most common service calls we get. Oftentimes it is a straightforward stoppage and the location has a sewer clean out, which makes accessing the pipe pretty simple, so we can rooter the drain and have everything running smoothly again in short order. However, sometimes it's not a simple clog: our customer has roots in their sewer line.

Clearing a clog is one thing. Cleaning the sewer line of obstructions that will cause chronic clogging is something else again.

If you have roots in your sewer line, our big heavy duty snaking equipment can get the line open and even pull out a good portion of the roots so your line will function again. But the snake can not clean the line of roots completely and what roots are left behind will regrow and cause another clog. (Just so you know.)

Really cleaning a line takes a different type of equipment. We use what we call our "scorpion cutter", which has a rotating cutting head that spins inside the pipe cutting off the root intrusions essentially flush with the surface of the pipe.

That's the mechanical solution. It's a much better solution when you have roots in the line that repeatedly dealing with clogs. But the integrity of your sewer line is still compromised. The roots will be slower to grow back, but they will grow back.

We recommend following a scorpion cleaning with a treatment of Root-X, a herbicide product that really knocks the roots back. And then every six to nine months treating the line again with Root-X to keep those roots at bay.

If your pipe is really broken badly or very large roots have compromised the line, you might want to to ahead and replace some or all of the line. That's the final or ultimate solution - and the best choice in some instances.

The good thing is that if you do have roots in your sewer line, you also have options. And better still, we can inspect the line using a camera, which makes is super easy to decide on the best option for your particular situation.

Have questions? Just give us a call. We're here to help.

---

More info from Boden Plumbing on 'Roots in Your Sewer?':
Cameras help pinpoint sewer line problems - big time
Roots in the sewer line
5 tips for maintaining clear drains
Got clogs? Clear drain lines naturally