What is a blocked drain?

A  drain is an outlet where water can be piped away from a plumbing fixture like a toilet or WC, a basin, bath or shower, a kitchen sink, laundry tubs or an external drain, known as a gully.

Stormwater drains can take discharge from roofing guttering and pits and grates installed to take runoff  water collected from hard surfaces.

A blocked drain is usually referred to when waste water accumulates around any of the drains and can not be evacuated.

Most drains run to either sewer or stormwater mains that are assets of Water authorities, municipal councils and the cities and towns across the country

Most blockages are generally caused by tree roots, grease, hair, sanitary products, dirt and debris or a multitude of foreign items including broken pipes.

Blocked drains are the responsibility of the property owners.

This series of blog posts will be aimed at blocked drain basics.

We will discuss who owns the drains, how to maintain them, what you should and should not put in your drains and what to look out for if your drains are about to block up.

We will look inside pipes, show you a drainoscopy or pipe survey so you know what it’s like in the network of pipes under your homes and buildings.

I encourage your feedback, so please ask questions and we will answer them promptly!

Sewer snake is an Anaconda

Last week we removed this large tree root from a drain in Kingsford Sydney.

In fact, it was a tree root anaconda, measuring 6.3 metres long and it had completely blocked the pipeline. After removing the tree root from the pipeline and carrying out a “Drainoscopy” to determine that there was nothing else wrong, our client elected to have Vaporooter sewer root control applied to his pipeline.

He understands the Vaporooter Guarantee:

” If you have a blocked drain caused by tree roots after an application of Vaporooter, we will clear your blocked drain for free”

Now, will someone call a reptile handler and have this beast removed!

Nightmare Christmas…will this happen to you?

Christmas is fast approaching…

…and I’ll let you in on a little “trade secret”…

…that I guarantee will make me very unpopular with a lot of emergency plumbers!

You see, Christmas tends to be a busy time for emergency plumbers getting called out to deal with blocked drains caused by tree roots!

Why?  Well when you think about it, blocked drains almost always happen at the WORST POSSIBLE TIME!

For example, at holiday times when the whole family is at home…

…and when you’re in the middle of a big get together, BBQ or party.

And when it’s an EMERGENCY or “after hours” you know that fixing the problem can be very costly.

Now, of course, at the “Lone Drainer And Pronto” we  provide emergency and after hours service and we know how to Stop tree roots in drains.

And our customers are very happy indeed with our service.  For example, here’s what Georgia Cleary in Sydney has to say…

“Thank you again for all your assistance (at all hours-weekends and whenever was required) over the past 10 years. You have dealt with some very difficult plumbing problems and always found a solution, without fuss and fanfare. This has been greatly appreciated.”

But my business philosophy is that we’re here to help you with the best and most cost effective solution for your plumbing and drain problems.

And in the case of tree root blockages in your pipes and drains…

…that means Vaporooter.

Vaporooter is the proven and effective solution that stops tree root damage…

…and continues to protect pipes and drains so you can sleep peacefully at night.

And it’s dead easy to make sure that you’re not at risk of having your Christmas ruined by tree roots causing blocked drains or (even worse) clogged sewers.

Get your pipes and drains checked out with our CCTV survey…

…the Vaporooter “Drainoscopy”.

It’s inexpensive and if you call now we can arrange to carry out the survey quickly.

Simply call me on 1 800 637 600.

If you have trees on or near your property, then you’re at risk of tree roots penetrating your drains and pipes and causing a blockage.

Why risk having Christmas ruined by an ugly drain overflow or similar problem?

Call me on 1 800 637 600.

Summer brings mysterious outbreak of blocked drains across Sydney suburbs…

…as well as NSW and the rest of Australia.

With summer now here and the weather getting warmer…

…there is one BIG PROBLEM that rears its ugly head at this time of the year.

Mysteriously, there is often a surge in the number of cases of blocked drains and clogged sewer pipes. Some years it’s so bad, you can rightly call it an epidemic (even a plague)!

And it has serious consequences for property owners and public authorities.

This epidemic is not often talked about. Most people are completely unaware of the problem until disaster strikes and they find themselves facing severe inconvenience and often costly repair bills.

And the cause of this huge headache for property owners and householders? It’s the penetration and invasion of sewer pipes and drains by tree roots.

That’s right. The roots of those lovely trees that grace many of our neighbourhoods and public places are silently causing havoc as they grow more rapidly in spring and summer. Blocked drains, backed up sewers and damaged foundations are just the most obvious consequences.

Now, of course, if you’re protected by Vaporooter, you can sleep soundly and not have to worry about the problem. That’s because Vaporooter is the proven treatment system that keeps tree roots away from drains and sewer pipes, without harming the tree itself. It was originally developed in California in 1967 to deal with a serious problem of tree roots blocking public sewer pipes.

Today, the patented Vaporooter system removes tree roots to protect the vital infrastructure of cities and towns, as well as residential homes and commercial property around the world.

Vaporooter…

• Is 100% safe; tried and tested around the world for over 40 years
• Deals with ONLY the tree roots in pipes and leaves the rest of the tree and surrounding plants healthy and intact
• CONTINUES to protect pipes and drains so property owners can sleep safe at night and not have to worry about waking up to crushed pipes and collapsed drains

Tree root damage is a growing problem. Here at Vaporooter Australia we’re having to deal with emergency calls pretty much every day (including the weekends).

The harsh truth is that if there are trees anywhere near your property, sooner or later the tree roots will be attacking the drains and sewers. Every single client we’ve had to rescue in an emergency wishes they had known about the potential problem and done something about it. Firstly, because of the huge cost to deal with the damage and secondly, because of the massive inconvenience of the mess and chaos that follows…often for days and sometimes weeks.

In one recent case, a property owner was faced with a potential bill of over $40,000 for sewer replacement. And it could all so easily have been avoided.

To find out if you have a problem with tree roots invading your pipes, give us a call on 1 800 637 600 to arrange a Vaporooter “Drainoscopy”.

A “Drainoscopy” is a CCTV survey that will quickly reveal if there are tree roots in your drains or sewer pipes. It’s not expensive. Better to be safe than sorry as every day you delay can make the problem worse.

Call us on 1 800 637 600.

A tale of two drains

These 2 sewer drain  pipes with their lids removed are taking the discharge from neighbouring properties. They are surrounded by different species of large trees. Tree roots are growing into the sewer pipe through the pipe joints

The drain on the left belongs to a client who, after many years of tree root blockages to her sewer pipes, grew tired of the sewer overflow running through her home.

The pipeline runs underneath her marble tiled entrance and the suggestion to renew the pipeline would mean excavating the black and white tiled floor. Matching the tiles would be difficult!

The drain on the right is as we found it. We told the owner about Vaporooter!

The images below show the inside of each pipe.

Guess which drain has had Vaporooter?

Protecting Your Pipes And Drains From Tree Roots

If you’ve ever had to deal with tree root blocking your plumbing, you know that it’s an experience that no one would want to have twice. Drain back up leads to health hazards and removing tree root blockages can be costly.

Many home and business owners attempt to prevent future root intrusion through pipe maintenance and preventative measures.

Much of the root removal process includes measures that protect your plumbing from roots growing back into your pipes. Defensive measures include chemicals or chemical foam, such as Vaporooter,  that coats the inside of your plumbing with root killing herbicide.

Other methods of plumbing maintenance include routine pipe and joint replacement or a complete overhaul of your plumbing (known as relaying). This protective measure is considered undesirable because it’s a very expensive maintenance option.

Mechanical plumbing maintenance might include regular pulling or rodding, which clears root obstruction before it grows to completely block pipes. This sort of maintenance keeps tree roots and other obstruction at bay, but it’s not a complete protective measure.

Protecting you pipes could be as simple as regular chemical treatment of your plumbing system. Chemical powder, liquid or foam is applied to the pipe to reinforce plumbing and prohibit future tree root intrusion. However, many home and business owners are nervous about dumping chemicals down their plumbing.

The best preventive measures often include a combination of several maintenance techniques. For example, regular mechanical maintenance followed by chemical treatment is a popular way to support plumbing.

Even careful pipe maintenance may not be enough to keep tree roots out of your plumbing, epically if you have numerous tree roots growing near your underground pipes.

The best solution is one that’s discussed with, and executed by an experienced plumber. A good plumber will help you decide the management method that’s ideal for your plumbing needs, such as Vaporooter.

Tree Roots in Pipe And Drain Joints

So, how did the tree roots get into your plumbing in the first place?

Pipe Joints – Protect Them With Vaporooter

It’s possible that the three roots found their way in through a damaged pipe or a weak spot in your plumbing system. Most likely, they first infiltrated through pipe joints, which are one of the weakest points in the drainage system.

The joint is the part of the plumbing system that connects one pipe to another. Tree roots seeking food and moisture will travel along the outside of a sewer pipe until it finds a defective area that can be used to infiltrate the pipe.

Pipe joints are often made of one of three materials, rubber, cement or an unplasticized polymer material know as UPVC. Each kind of material has a different level of resistance to tree root intrusion.

Cement (or mortar) joints are not very stable, and lend to the exact ruptures and cracks that let tree roots right in.  Cement is unstable because it’s so rigid that any movement of the surrounding soil can cause it to fracture. Cement joints cannot be treated with root fighting chemicals because the chemicals can cause the cement to degrade. On the upside, if they don’t crack or degrade, cement joints offer good resistance to roots that would degrade other types of joints.

Rubber ring joints are both easy to install and flexible enough to withstand shifts in the surrounding soil. But, they are an easier material for the roots to penetrate. Rubber joint’s resistance to roots rests on factors such as the quality of the ring installation and chemical treatments to the material. For example, some manufactures treat the rubber rings with root fighting chemicals.

UPCV pipe joints are the plumbing joint superstars.  These plastic-like pipes offer huge resistance to root intrusion. They offer the same tree root resistance as undamaged cement joints and like rubber joints, they can be treated with resistant chemicals.

Tree Root Removal From Pipes Without Using Chemicals

There are two surefire ways to remove tree roots from pipes and protect plumbing from further tree root intrusion. One: dig up the pipes, cut out the section that hold the roots, and replace the plumbing with new, root resistant pipes. And two: completely remove all plants that could grow into plumbing.

Unfortunately, these options are all but infeasible to the average home or business owner. This system of tree root removal is expensive, and in some cases, impossible.

On top of those drawbacks, cutting the roots can actually make the trees (and roots) grow faster. Add to that the fact that replacing sections of pipes weakens plumbing, which raises the chance that tree roots will find their way back into pipes. This method of removal could make the situation ten times worse!

Some plumbers recommend this removal method for emergency situations only.

Alternative methods might be just as ineffective. Pipes can be relined with cement or mortar, which seals the pipes and kills invasive roots. But, cement often cracks when the surrounding ground shifts and the compromised pipes become a welcome mat for nearby tree root systems.

Other, interesting, non-chemical solutions exist. One method creates a new pipe inside existing plumbing, rerouting water through the new pipe and killing the roots that live in the pipes. Plumbers feed a cloth-like, collapsed pipe down the plumbing system and then fill the pipe with cold water which expands the pipe and activates chemicals that harden the cloth. Voila! A new pipe inside your old pipe.

Another method does the exact opposite. A new PVC liner is placed around the existing damaged pipe, cutting off root access to the old pipes and forming a new plumbing system.

Inside and outer pipe replacement is often more cost effective than substitution of pipe sections, but there are many chemical alternatives that are cheaper, easier and longer lasting, including Vaporooter.

5 Things You Can Do To Prevent Blocked Drains

Here are a few measures that go a long way to prevent roots from infiltrating and destroying your pipes.

1. Use pipes made of Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) for new and replacement drains. PVC pipes are strong enough to repel the tree roots. Experts agree that PVC is the best material for reducing the risk of tree root blockages.
2. Don’t plant trees near pipes. This seems simple enough, but many home and business owners don’t realize what constitutes as ‘near’ when we’re talking about tree roots.   Many Australian trees have roots with an incredibly wide spread.
3. Choose proper foliage. Eucalyptus, for example, can have roots systems that spread out as much as 60 meters. Hills Weeping Fig, on the other hand, can have a root spread as small as 6 meters.
4. Maintain your pipes. Wear and tear, cracks, and leaks can cause nutrient-rich water to seep into the soil around your pipes. This attracts tree roots like mad.
5. Routinely check and clear your sewer drain. Though roots can be attracted to any type of water-bearing line, they are most often lured towards sewer drains. Have an expert come by and clear roots out of your pipes before they become a big problem.

The First Sign Of A Tree Root Blockage

The first sign of a tree root blockage is a slow drain.  Simple right? But, this won’t be an average slow drain that can be cured with a plunger or a drain cleaning solution. The blockage may be accompanied by a gurgling sound from within the drain, which can be heard when no water is running.

A quick visual diagnosis will let you know if there is a tree root blockage. Any trees that are within 60 meters of the building, or within ten meters of any known pipes, have root systems that might penetrate a line.

Tree roots are more likely to grow into your lines during winter and other cold months. That’s because tree roots have to travel farther for moisture during these months. Older pipes, especially those laid before the 1980s, can be made of materials that are easy for tree roots to infiltrate.

Some plumbers use high-tech cameras to determine whether a blockage is common, or caused by a tree root system. A camera is attached to a drain snake and run down the affected pipe so that the tech savvy blockage experts can use this camera to explore every aspect of a blocked pipe.   They’ll take a video, diagnose the problem, and then suggest the best course of action.