Al’s Plumbing, Heating & A/C in Plano, Texas provides maintenance & repairs for all brands of Central A/C, Gas & Electric Furnace, and Heat Pumps. Additionally we sell and install new HVAC Systems from American Standard (same company as Trane), Ameristar (same company as American Standard) and Coleman HVAC (same company as York HVAC).
Al’s also provides full service plumbing maintenance, repairs and replacements for every plumbing component in your home. Al’s sells and installs Rheem Professional Series gas & electric water heaters, and tankless water heaters. Al’s is near your home in Plano, Allen, and Frisco. We service all homes in southern Collin and Denton Counties with no travel charges.
Call Al’s today to discuss any concerns or problems you have with your HVAC System or Plumbing. We will arrange an appointment at your convenience and offer 24/7 Emergency Service.
Whole-House Sewer Clogs
This Article Explains:
1. How Sewer Main Line Clogs Are Cleared
2. Clogs Caused By Clay Sewer Pipes (in the lawn) In Older Homes
3. The Biggest Reasons Sewer Lines Become Clogged
1. How Sewer Main Lines Are Cleared
When every drain in the house stops working, there is a problem with the main sewer main line. The blockage can be in the lawn, or under the house (under the slab foundation). In most cases, the blockage can be cleared with a drain-cleaning “snake” machine.
This machine will enter the drain line through a plumbing clean-out in the lawn. If your home does not have a lawn cleanout, the auger-line will be inserted into a drain-vent stack on the roof. There are different styles, but most likely the one used with have blades that scrape the inside edges of the sewer line to ensure it’s quite clean and free of sludge once completed.
2. Clogs Caused By Clay Sewer Pipes (in the lawn) In Older Homes
The common name for the sewer pipe that connects to the house to the City’s Public Sewer, is a “Sewer Lateral”. This pipe is private (it serves only your home) and is entirely the Home Owner’s responsibility. Clogs, Repairs and Replacements of each home’s private sewer lines are paid for by the Home Owner. The city is responsible only for the Public Sewer Lines.
Most DFW homes built before 1975 had Clay Sewer Pipes installed in the lawn when the home was built. From the day they are installed, clay sewer pipes typically leak a little water at their connections. This attracts tree roots. Once the trees find the water, the roots often grown through the connection between two clay pipes in order to get larger amounts of water. Over time, the roots can become so invasive that they damaged the clay sewer pipe. The photo below shows this type of intrusion and damage.
Image Source: Dreamstime
SHOWN: Tree Roots Filled & Destroyed A Clay Sewer Line
Depending on how severe the tree-roots intrusion is, the clog can sometimes be temporarily cleared with a drain snake (as described above). BUT, the roots will regrow and clog the sewer line again. The dryer the weather is, the more aggressive tree roots become at searching for water, and the quicker the roots will grow back.
Once the tree roots find a leaking sewer pipe, they are likely to damage or destroy the pipe by infiltrating into the pipe more & more, in search of larger amounts of water. Once the pipes have been split open — sewage is now leaking into the lawn and the pipes must be replaced.
The pipes will be replaced with PVC / plastic pipes. PVC pipes do not leak at connections. Nearly all homes built since 1975 had PVC pipes installed when the home was built.
Al’s Plumbing Repairs Or Replaces Under-Slab & In Lawn Sewer Pipes
Al’s Also Offers Trenchless Sewer Line Installation (in lawn only).
Trenchless Sewer Line Replacement bursts the clay pipe while, at the same time, pulling a flexible sewer line through the opening in the soil where the existing pipe was. All this occurs underground and nothing is visible. There are two holes dug, one at the beginning and another at the end of the newly pulled flexible pipe. The holes give access to connect the new pipe to the home and where the new pipe connects to the city sewer line.
Click Here To See A Diagram Depicting Trenchless Sewer Line Replacement: Trenchless Sewer Line Replacement
The #1 Cause Of Whole-House Sewer Clogs Is Grease Flushed In Drains
Photo Source: Photo by Narclique from Pexels
Click Here To See Photos (from inside the sewer pipe) showing common clogs: Photos Of Common Sewer Line Clogs
When you flush grease down the drain, as it travels down your sewer line, the grease cools and sticks to the pipes. Over time, there will be enough grease to block the entire sewer line. This results in a Whole-House Sewer Clog.
HomeAdvisor.com States The Cost To Clear A Whole-House Sewer Clog Is Up to $900.00!
Never Put Any Type Of Grease Or Cooking-Oil Down Drains — It Is Certain To Clog The Sewer Line Over Time. Instead, let the grease cool, put it in a container, and place with your trash.
Click Here To See A Sewer Line Clog Due To Grease: Sewer Line Clogged With Grease
2. Whole-House Clogs Occur Due To Products Other Than Toilet Paper Being Flushed Down Toilets.
One Of The Worst Is “Flushable” Baby Wipes.
Photo Source: Shutterstock
Regardless Of What Is Stated On The Label — These Wipes Are Not Flushable. They Don’t Break Down Like Toilet Paper. Instead, They Settle To The Bottom Of The Sewer Lines And Form Clogs.
Click Here To See Why You Can’t Flush Baby Wipes: Baby Wipes Don’t Break Down. They Settle In Sewer Pipes & Clog Them
3. Expecting Too Much From A Garbage Disposal
Photo Source: Shutterstock
Many Types Of Food Waste (that will pass through a garbage disposal) Create Blocked Sewer Lines.
Never put something in the disposal that is not food waste. Additionally, there are several types of food wastes that cannot go down the disposal too. When in doubt, throw it out (in the trash).
DO:
- Use only COLD water when grinding waste.
- Feed waste into disposal slowly with the cold water running.
- Run the motor or water for 15 seconds after grinding is completed.
- If you have put a large amount of waste down the disposal during a short period of time, fill sink 1/3 full with cold water, removed the stopper and turn disposal on to “power flush” the pipes. Once the waste has been pushed from the smaller pipe into the sewer mail line, there is far less chance of stoppage.
- Use cleaners specifically designed for disposals. Don’t use harsh chemicals like bleach or drain cleaners, they will dull the blades and can damage the disposal.
DON’T FLUSH DOWN A DISPOSAL:
- coffee grounds
- cigarette butts
- grease, oil or fat
- extremely fibrous material such as: corn husks, celery stalks, onion skins, & artichokes.
- potato peels
- expandable foods (get larger when wet) pasta & rice
- large animal bones
4. Foreign Objects Flushed
Photo Source: Shutterstock
There are many things which fit through a toilet, but won’t make it to the City’s Public Sewer Line. Once they land at the bottom of your sewer main, they provide a surface for other things to get caught on, eventually causing a Whole-House Sewer Clog.
Other things make it into the sewer line on purpose. It’s not uncommon to discover a child flushed something which caused a Whole-House Sewer Clog. As parents, we tell our kids not to put stuff down the toilet, but sometimes the temptation (to see if it will flush) is simply too much.
5. Sludge Build Up
Over time, all sewer mains accumulate sludge. Sludge is a sticky mixture of soap-scum, grease, hair, food particles and dissolved minerals in the water. Once a layer of sludge forms, more sludge tends to accumulate within that area of the pipe. Sludge increasingly narrows the size of the pipe until only a small channel exists. Once this has occurred, even small amounts of solid human waste flushed down the toilet can cause a total blockage.
The Good News. Sludge Can Be Minimized With Drains Maintenance.
Routinely using an organic, Enxyme Drain Cleaner will help keep drain and sewer lines mostly free of sludge. These natural drain-cleaners use enzymes & bacteria that eat away at accumulations in drain lines. They do not eat inorganic things (like sewer pipes). They continue to clean and move down the sewer lines in search of food. They stay in your sewer lines until they pipes are clean and there is nothing more for them to eat. Then they move out of your sewer line into the City’s Public Sewer Lines. They continue to reproduce & multiply as long as there is “food” for them to eat.
There are many brands of Enzyme Drain Cleaners. Bio-Clean is one of the best brands (which is why it’s more expensive). Higher priced Enzyme Drain Cleaners have more bacteria than lower priced brands.
Used as directed, Bio Clean can all but eliminate sludge build-up in your sewer lines. That said, it’s still not OK to flush grease or baby wipes. They will build up faster than the drain cleaner can get rid of them.
BIO-CLEAN is… a blend of bacteria and enzymes. The bacteria are natural. The enzyme concentration is the most powerful on the market. Bio-Clean is non-poisonous. It creates no: heat, fumes, or boiling.
BIO-CLEAN’s bacteria eat accumulated waste on all interior surfaces of sewer lines. It removes only organic wastes like grease, hair, food particles, paper, cotton & sewage. BIO-CLEAN converts waste particles into water, carbon dioxide & mineral-ash that exits your waste system.
NOTE: BIO-CLEAN Is Not A Solution For Grease Flushed Down Drains. It Can’t Remove Grease As Quickly As It Builds Up.
NOTE: BIO-CLEAN Does Not Eat Baby-Wipes — They Are A Man-Made Product, Not Organic (organic waste listed above).
6. Sewer Pipe Dislocation / Break In The Line
Because clay pipes leak a little at the connections, this can cause problems with DFW’s Expansive Clay Soil. When expansive clay gets wet it swells to a larger size. When it dries out, it shrinks to as little as a powder. This occurs each time it rains, and each time the lawn gets overly dry.
Photo Source: DreamesTime
Expansive Clay Soil Cracks At The Surface When It Gets Overly Dry
When the soil gets wet, it can push upward on sewer pipes (and home foundations). When it dries out, it won’t provide enough support and the sewer pipe move lower than its proper location. This causes movement of horizontal sewer main lines (laterals). If extreme enough, it can cause the pipes to fall out of alignment with each other. Worse yet, it may break the line. Either problem will result in a whole house sewer clog.
On A Side Note:
This is the #1 reason for foundation damages is heaving or settlement of the soil under the home. The primary way to reduce this movement and potential damage is to keep the lawn fairly consistent in moisture level. If you water your lawn to keep it looking nice, the chances of sewer pipe lateral damage, (resulting from pipe movement) is reduced.
You can dramatically reduce the chance of foundation damage with “foundation watering”. This waters the soil around your home roughly 18″ from the edge of the foundation. Slab foundations move notably more around the edges than at the center. This is because the soil moisture level changes less & less as you get closer & closer to the center of the home.
During times of heavy rain, the edges of the foundation raise upward (known as cupping). The edges will be higher than the center of the foundation. When it’s quite dry, the edges of the foundation drop below the center. This recurring movement will crack the foundation. To keep this movement minimized, a foundation watering program must be part of routine home care.
Click Here To Learn About Foundation Watering From A Foundation Repair Company: Foundation Watering W/O An Automatic Lawn Sprinkler
If your home has an automatic lawn sprinkler, it may have been designed to also water the home’s foundation. If you are unsure, consult a company that installs these systems to inspect yours to see if it waters the foundation, or if upgrades to the system must be made to make it capable of doing this.
Al’s Plumbing, Heating & A/C in Plano, Texas provides maintenance & repairs for all brands of Central A/C, Gas & Electric Furnace, and Heat Pumps. Additionally we sell and install new HVAC Systems from American Standard (same company as Trane), Ameristar (same company as American Standard) and Coleman HVAC (same company as York HVAC).
Al’s also provides full service plumbing maintenance, repairs and replacements for every plumbing component in your home. Al’s sells and installs Rheem Professional Series gas & electric water heaters, and tankless water heaters. Al’s is near your home in Murphy, Rowlette, and Wylie. We service all homes in southern Collin and Denton Counties with no travel charges.
Call Al’s today to discuss any concerns or problems you have with your HVAC System or Plumbing. We will arrange an appointment at your convenience and offer 24/7 Emergency Service.