Drain cleaning
Slow drain? Clogged again?
Kitchen sink backing up. Tub draining in an hour. Toilet gurgling when the washer runs. Gary clears the line, finds out why it clogged, and tells you whether the problem is the drain or something bigger. Licensed Master Plumber serving Charlotte, Campbell, Prince Edward, and Lunenburg counties.
Every drain in the house
- Kitchen. Sink, disposal, and dishwasher drains. The most common clog we see, and almost always grease.
- Bathroom. Tub and shower drains packed with hair and soap. Bathroom sinks. Toilets that flush slow or not at all.
- Laundry. Washer standpipes that overflow on the spin cycle, usually lint and detergent scum.
- Main line. The big pipe that carries everything out to the septic tank or the sewer. When this one clogs, every drain in the house is affected.
If the clog is coming with a leak, a cracked pipe, or a toilet that needs resetting, that is plumbing repair and Gary handles it on the same visit.
Why it keeps coming back
A drain that clogs once is bad luck. A drain that clogs every few months has a cause. Out here, it is usually one of these.
- Grease. It goes down as liquid, cools, and coats the pipe. Every day adds a layer. The clog is just the day the pipe finally closed.
- Roots. Older homes around Charlotte Court House and Brookneal often have clay or cast iron drain lines. Roots find the joints and grow in.
- Old cast iron. Cast iron rusts from the inside. The rough surface catches everything, and the pipe gets narrower every year.
- Septic trouble. Most homes outside town limits are on septic. When the tank is full or the drain field is saturated, nothing leaves the house fast, and it looks like a clog.
Clearing the clog is step one. Telling you which of these caused it is step two.
On septic? Keep this out of the drain
A septic tank is a living system. What you pour down the drain either helps it or hurts it. If your house is on septic, and most homes outside Farmville and Victoria are, keep these out.
- Grease and cooking oil. Scrape pans into the trash. Grease floats, builds a crust in the tank, and eventually reaches the drain field.
- Wipes of any kind. Flushable on the label does not mean flushable in the tank. They do not break down.
- Chemical drain cleaners. They kill the bacteria that make the tank work, and they eat old pipe.
- Paint, solvents, and bleach in volume. Same problem. A little household cleaner is fine; a bucket is not.
- Coffee grounds, eggshells, and rice. They do not dissolve. They settle and they stick to grease.
Use a strainer in the kitchen sink and a hair catcher in the shower. Small habits, big difference.
When it's the tank, not the drain
Here is the tell. One slow drain is a drain problem. Every drain in the house slow at once, toilets gurgling when the shower runs, sewage smell in the yard, or a green, soft patch of grass over the drain field means the septic system is the problem. Clearing the line will not fix it, and we will not pretend it does.
Gary checks the line first, because that is the cheap answer. If it is clear and the house still will not drain, he tells you straight that it is the tank, and that means a pump-out or a look at the drain field rather than a drain job. You get the honest answer, not a bill for the wrong fix.
Iron and sediment in well water can also build up in drains and traps over time. If you are seeing orange staining along with slow drains, water filtration may be part of the answer.
How Gary clears and checks
First, find the clog. Gary works from the fixture, the trap, or the cleanout, whichever gets to it directly. Then clear it all the way, not just poke a hole through it so it closes back up next week. Then run water and watch. A drain that clears and stays clear under real flow is done. A drain that is still sluggish means the problem is further down the line, and Gary keeps going until he finds it.
Before he leaves, you know what caused it and what to change.
Questions we get
Related work
We do this work in Charlotte Court House · Brookneal · Meherrin, and everywhere between. See all services or every area we cover.
Drain not draining?
Stop running water if it is backing up, then call or text Gary. He will tell you what he can get to today.
Or email glwrighttouch@gmail.com