Clogged Drain Cleaning in Virginia

What clogs a drain changes across Virginia. Cast iron and clay lines under big trees are the issue in older neighborhoods, grease and wipes in newer subdivisions, and septic tanks in much of the countryside. Find your city or the nearest one below. Each city page has a rough cost range, a look at what local soil and trees do to drains, and one number that connects you with a local plumber.

From the Tidewater to the mountains, drains in Virginia face very different ground. Near the coast, low land and a high water table stress septic fields and slow drainage after storms. The Piedmont has clay that holds water around buried pipe, and the Shenandoah Valley has harder water over limestone. Older homes have cast iron and clay lines, and oaks, maples and tulip poplars find the joints. Septic systems serve many rural and some suburban homes.

• High water table near the coast
• Clay soil in the Piedmont
• Harder water in the limestone valleys
• Roots from oaks, maples and tulip poplars
• Septic systems at many rural homes

Ask whether the plumber can locate the cleanout and the path of the sewer line before digging, since older lots often have neither marked.

• Kitchen sink. Cooking grease and oil that cool and harden on the pipe wall, plus food scraps, coffee grounds and soap scum that stick to it. A garbage disposal sends more solids down, not fewer.
• Bathroom sink. Hair mixed with soap, toothpaste and shaving residue, caught on the pop-up stopper or in the trap. Small items dropped down the drain add to it.
• Tub or shower. Hair is the main cause, bound together with soap scum and conditioner. Older tubs with a trip lever drain collect it in the overflow and the drum trap.
• Toilet. Too much paper at once, wipes labeled flushable, paper towels, cotton swabs, dental floss and toys. Low-flow toilets from before about 2005 clog more often.
• Floor or laundry drain. Lint from the washing machine, sand and grit, soap, and in basements the silt that washes in. A dry trap lets sewer gas up as well.
• Main sewer line. Tree roots coming in at joints in clay and cast iron pipe, grease built up from years of kitchen use, wipes, and pipe that has sagged or cracked.
• Outdoor or yard drain. Leaves, dirt, sand and roots in yard drains, area drains, driveway trench drains and the pipes that carry downspout water away.