Hydro jetting for lines that keep clogging
Hydro jetting sends water through your drain or sewer line at very high pressure and scours the walls clean. It is the fix for grease, sludge and fine roots that a cable only pokes a hole through. We offer it across Damascus, Gaithersburg and the rest of Montgomery County.
When jetting beats a cable
- 01
Clogs that return within weeks
A cable opens a path, the buildup on the walls stays, and the clog comes right back. Jetting removes the buildup itself.
- 02
Kitchen and restaurant lines
Grease coats the pipe and hardens. Water under pressure cuts it off the wall and flushes it out.
- 03
Fine roots in the line
Hair roots at the joints get cut back and flushed. Heavy roots may need a cutting head first.
- 04
Sludge in a main line
Old lines collect a layer of sludge along the bottom that slows everything down.
- 05
Before a liner goes in
A liner needs a clean, bare pipe wall to bond to. Jetting is how the pipe gets that clean.
- 06
Scheduled maintenance
Buildings with heavy use, like restaurants and apartment blocks, stay ahead of backups with regular jetting.
How hydro jetting works
A jetting machine pumps water through a tough hose to a nozzle at the end. The nozzle has small openings that point mostly backward, with one or two pointing forward. The forward jet breaks up whatever is in front of it. The backward jets push the nozzle up the line and scrub the pipe wall on the way, all the way around.
Because the rear jets clean the full circle of the pipe, the line ends up close to its original size instead of having a narrow tunnel bored through a clog. Everything that comes loose gets flushed downstream to the main.
Jetting is powerful, which is exactly why we look before we jet. A camera pass tells us whether the pipe is sound enough. A cracked clay pipe or a badly rusted section of cast iron needs a gentler approach, and we would rather tell you that than make a weak spot worse.
There are no chemicals involved. It is water, pressure and the right nozzle for the job.
A typical hydro jetting visit
- 1
Camera first
We look inside to see what the buildup is and whether the pipe can take the pressure.
- 2
Pick the nozzle
Different nozzles for grease, for sludge and for roots. The right one does the job faster and more gently.
- 3
Jet from the cleanout
We work the nozzle up the line in passes, flushing debris toward the main as we go.
- 4
Flush and check
We run water through the line and watch it keep up.
- 5
Camera again
A second look shows the pipe wall is clean and whether anything behind the clog needs attention.
Hydro jetting or snaking
Both have a place. Here is how they differ in practice.
| Cable snaking | Hydro jetting | |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | Bores a path through the clog | Scours the whole pipe wall |
| Best for | Simple clogs, hair, paper, a toy down the toilet | Grease, sludge, scale and fine roots |
| How long it lasts | Fine for one-off clogs, short-lived on buildup | Much longer on lines that load up over time |
| Pipe condition needed | Works in most lines | Needs a sound pipe, so we check first |
| Before a liner | Not enough | The standard way to prepare the pipe |
What affects the cost of hydro jetting
Jetting usually costs more than a single cable cleaning, and it usually lasts a lot longer. The price depends on the job.
Read the full cost guide- Length and size of the line
- A long main line takes more time and water than a short branch.
- What is in it
- Soft grease flushes faster than hardened grease or a root mass.
- Access
- A clean outside cleanout is ideal. Tight access adds time.
- Camera work
- Checking before and after is part of doing it right.
At home and at work
For homeowners
At home, jetting is usually the answer to a kitchen line or main line that keeps backing up no matter how many times it is snaked. One thorough cleaning often ends the cycle.
Residential servicesFor businesses and property managers
For restaurants and commercial kitchens, jetting keeps grease from building up in the lines between pump-outs. We can set up a schedule and work around service hours.
Commercial servicesQuestions we hear about hydro jetting
For pipes in reasonable shape, yes. For cracked clay or badly corroded cast iron, the pressure can make a weak spot worse. That is why we put a camera in first and adjust the plan, or recommend a different approach.
It cuts back fine roots and flushes them out, but roots grow back through the same gap. To stop them for good, the joint has to be sealed, usually with a liner or a repair.
Most residential lines take a couple of hours including the camera work. Heavy grease or long runs take longer.
We work from the cleanout whenever we can, which is usually outside or in the basement, and we protect the area around it.
It depends on the menu and the volume. A kitchen that fries a lot needs it more often. After the first cleaning we can tell from the camera how fast it is building back up.
Often done together
Where we do this work
Water where it should not be?
Backups and broken lines get worse the longer water runs. Call us and tell us what you are seeing. We will tell you what to do right now and what it will take to fix it.
Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM. Free estimates on every job.