Help... need SERIOUS drain de-clogger

[wakosama]

the drain pipe under the back yard serving the laundry and kitchen clogs regularly, every 6mo. we get the maintenance guy to come snake it out but the garage floods and it's a recurring issue. we're not using the disposal for garbage or grease and have been dumping draino and Ridx down the sink but doesn't seem to be helping. Anyone got a suggestion to keep the pipe clean?

 

[Hoji]

Tannerite

 

[Hoji]

Seriously though, sounds like a section has separated. I had a similar issue. Dug up pipe until I found where it separated and was causing the back ups and fixed it.

 

[Tnhawk]

The source of the blockage needs to be found, tree roots, pipe separation. My previous house had tree roots clogging the pipe. Maintenance guy could run a camera to find source and location of problem.

 

[deemus]

Home Depot has Main Line Cleaner in a black gallon jug. Try that one out.

I have used it regularly for several years, and it worked well for me. Follow the instructions on the jug.

My girls all had a bunch of hair which clogged the drains. This stuff either great.

ETA:

 

[Brains]

Probably time to run a camera down there and see what's going on. But for a drain cleaner, I use the red label Pequa drain opener. As deemus mentioned they have a mainline cleaner too. The stuff I use will flat out dissolve all the hair and whatever else clogs my shower drains with ease. Sure I could probably unscrew the plate and pull it all out, but pouring a bit of this stuff on there, waiting 45 minutes, and rinsing it all down the drain is a whole lot simpler.

For standing water clogs, Zepp's Crystal Heat is a pretty good product too.

 

[Grumps21]

We had a line that kept getting clogged about five years ago, and found out the City of Houston would clear at no charge using a water jet. It took a few callouts before they finally ran a camera down the pipe, and they found a section had collapsed. Lucky me it happened to on the easement, so the city fixed it all at no cost to me. OP, if you are in a water/sewer district, might see if they do the drain clearing as a free service like City of Houston does.

 

[TexasRedneck]

If it's roots, google "copper sulfate roots". They'll give you dosage/frequency recommendations. You don't say what they find when they snake it, so hard to recommend anything.

 

[Axxe55]

Seriously though, sounds like a section has separated. I had a similar issue. Dug up pipe until I found where it separated and was causing the back ups and fixed it.

or it's full of roots that are clogging it!

 

[Texasjack]

Drano and such chemicals only work in limited applications (primarily for hair). Some plumbers will charge you extra if you use it and then they have to go in and snake it out. TexasRedneck is correct, if it's roots, you can kill the plants sending roots into the line.

If it's not roots, then it's important that the line has sufficient drop to keep stuff moving. That's a kind of fundamental flaw that can't be corrected by chemicals or snakes.

If it's just sediment, you might consider shooting water through the line periodically. They make a nozzle that swells up and fills the line, letting the water shoot down the drain.

 

[Lead Belly]

This stuff works well for drain clogs. Works great to keep A/C drains clear each year.

But sewer-cam will tell the story.

 

[striker55]

Had a similar problem for years. Tried an industrial roto-rooter, didn't get it. Even chopped up cement cellar floor were I thought the obstruction was. Nope. Ran into the guy who built the house, he owned an excavator business. Told him about my problem, he came out to the house with a backhoe. He dug a spot in the yard, knew where to dig, found a big rock that crushed the pipe. He said he knew it was there and hoped it wouldn't cause a problem. Moved the rock, replaced the section.

 

[Dawico]

For a basic " use what you have " attempt shove your garden hose down there on full blast. Don't force it or it may get stuck.

It'll blow out any sediment/ small obstructions and if it gets hung up it will give you a rough idea on distance for roots or breaks.