Plumbing · Master Plumber PL17071-M · South Shore MA
Drain Cleaning & Clogs
One slow sink is a nuisance. Every drain in the house backing up at once is a main line problem, and those two need completely different work. We clear the blockage, then find out why it happened—because a clog that returns every few months is telling you something.
Please stop pouring chemical drain cleaner down it. It rarely clears a real blockage, it sits in the pipe corroding older waste lines, and it turns a routine job into a hazard for whoever opens that trap. If you have already used some, tell us when we arrive so we can protect ourselves properly.
Reading the Symptom
Where the backup shows up tells us roughly where the blockage is. It also tells you how urgent it is—one fixture is a fixture problem, several at once is the main line.
One slow fixture
Local blockage in that trap or branch line. Bathroom sinks are hair and soap; kitchen sinks are grease and food. Usually a quick job and often the whole visit.
Everything at once
Main sewer line. Stop running water and call—this is the one that ends up on the basement floor. Often roots, a collapsed section, or years of accumulated buildup.
Gurgling & bad smell
A venting problem or a partial main blockage pulling air through traps. Sewer odor indoors means a trap has lost its seal—worth addressing, not just masking.
Toilet backs up, sink is fine
Blockage in the toilet itself or its short branch—frequently wipes, or a toy in a house with small children. See toilet service.
Backs up when laundry runs
A partially restricted main that handles a trickle but not a washer dumping thirty gallons at once. It will become a full backup—get ahead of it.
Same clog, every few months
Cabling it again is treating the symptom. That pattern means roots, a belly in the line, a bad slope, or a broken section—time to put a camera down it and see.
Older South Shore Homes
A lot of houses here still have their original waste piping. Cast iron scales up and eventually rots from the inside, and older clay or transite sewer laterals are wide open to root intrusion—which is why mature trees between the house and the street are so often the actual cause.
A camera inspection settles it. We can see whether we are looking at soft blockage that cabling solves, roots that will return every spring, or a structural failure that needs the line repaired. That changes what you should spend money on, so it is worth knowing before you decide.
Worth knowing if you are buying: a sewer camera inspection before closing is cheap relative to discovering a failed lateral afterward, and it is not part of a standard home inspection.
Common Questions
Is a home drain snake worth trying first?
For a hair clog in a bathroom sink or tub, sure—a small hand auger or even pulling the stopper and cleaning it out often does it. Do not run a hardware-store snake into a main line or a toilet; it is easy to scratch porcelain or push the blockage into a worse spot.
What actually causes most kitchen clogs?
Grease. It goes down warm and liquid, then cools and coats the inside of the pipe, and everything else sticks to it. Pour cooking fat into a can and throw it away. Also worth knowing: a disposal grinds food finer, it does not make the pipe bigger.
Are flushable wipes really a problem?
Yes. They clear the bowl and then do not break down the way toilet paper does, so they catch on anything slightly rough and build into a mass. They are behind a large share of the main line clogs we pull. Same for paper towels and so-called flushable cat litter.
Do you offer camera inspection?
Yes, and we recommend it whenever a main line clog is a repeat rather than a one-off. You see the footage too—we are not asking you to take our word for what is down there before committing to a repair.
Draining slow, or not at all?
If every drain is backing up, stop running water and call now.