First sign of a sewer clog
Clogged floor drains, often in your basement, are usually the first sign of a sewer line clog. They tend to be the lowest drain in your house, so sewage can back up out of the floor drains and spill onto your basement floor.
If a floor drain clog happens in your home, it can cause quite a mess. You will likely have to pay to replace carpet or rugs, furniture or other items you have stored in the area.
Why do I need floor drain cleaning?
Dirt and sediment from your basement floor, as well as your water softener, can build up inside your floor drain and cause a clog. Another common cause of floor drain backups is a main sewer line disruption, which is often due to tree roots that can work their way inside your drain pipe.
Because floor drains are often the lowest drain in your house, sewage backs up out of the floor drains and spills onto your basement floor. Having your floor drains cleaned regularly may help prevent this before it happens.
Tips for keeping floor drains clear
- Floor drains are not trash cans. Do not sweep debris into a floor drain.
- Make sure your floor drains have screen covers. This prevents large items from entering the drain and clogging the line.
- Don’t cover over floor drains. If you install a rug or flooring, raise the floor drain to the new floor level.
- If your basement smells like a sewer and you don’t know why, check your floor drains. Floor drains have traps that hold water to block sewer gases. Since they are not used often, the water may evaporate and allow the sewer gas into your home or business. Pour a bucket of water to restore the water level and eliminate the source of the odor.
- Consider a preventive maintenance plan. By scheduling regular drain check-ups, you can minimize emergency calls.
How we clean floor drains
We use electric power snakes to not only clear your blockage, but to scrape all build up and debris from the inside of your pipe. Our technicians carry an array of snake machines to ensure that they can clear your drain properly the first time.
If you have a particularly tough clog, we also offer water jetting to clean and flush the line more thoroughly, and video inspection to see where the clog is and gain more insight into what it might be.
How often should floor drains be cleaned?
Often, enough dirt and sediment can build up over the course of a year to clog a floor drain. We recommend scheduling regular preventive maintenance if you live in an older home or your home is surrounded by trees.
