Sewer drain line clearing

[tarmy]

I have a 3” plastic drain line along the side of my house that run roof drains and a rear yard deck drainage system out to the street. Under the driveway (of course) there was a tree root that grew into that line. I ran a hand snake up there and cleared out enough to get it to work…but any leaves or whatever gets In there it plugs.

This being GJ, I bought a 50’ long drain camera on Amazon for 75 bucks and ran that up the line and found out exactly where the root is. The camera works fantastic by the way. They are a tangle of little roots that run about 4’ along in the line.

I dug a pit on the side of the driveway and have a straight run about 6’ to hit the root clump. I also have cut that root where it goes under the driveway to avoid future issues.

My question is…again being a GJ issue…has anyone bought or use a 1/2” solid core Vevor or similar drain auger( I am considering buying one) with a root cutter bit with success…or should I just rent a big damn auger from someone and be done with it?

thanks for comment/input

 

[no704]

Have had good luck with water jetting. As long as the doors are small. Got a 50’ kit on Amazon pretty cheap. If you already have a pressure washer. Or a good excuse to buy one.

 

[Odd-job]

Have had good luck with water jetting. As long as the doors are small. Got a 50’ kit on Amazon pretty cheap. If you already have a pressure washer. Or a good excuse to buy one.

+1 for water jetting, especially if you have a big gas pressure washer already.

 

[OccupantRJ]

This being GJ, I vote for a 5/8” long steel rod or thick tubing with an air chisel end welded on to drive it, plus a sharp curved plate welded on the output end. 10 foot air chisel and have at it!

 

[mike93lx]

You aren't cutting any decent size roots with most homeowner pressure washers. You'll rinse the line well, but that's about it.

I'd rent a real auger before screwing around with vevor junk

 

[alfadan]

Along these lines (ha!) how about those 1/2" snakes like HF has. Would those be worth a ****?
I've rented one that had 3/4" line and it worked great but was heavy as balls.

 

[Jerrysends]

Rent the drain auger, you won't regret it. Afterwards, use root killer a couple of times a year.

 

[RAS61]

This ^ !

I just cleared a 4" sewer line, was a heavy paper clog (paper towels or mesh wipes) instead of roots, but rented a 1/2" Electric Eel auger with a cutter bit for about $45 for 4 hours at Sunbelt rental. I doubt very much a jetter will do much with roots, they need to be cut. This should be a one time job, why buy an expensive machine that will just end up taking space in storage? Also not sure the Vevor is a quality machine, the real good ones I believe are 3 or 4x more. My 2 cents - Good Luck!

 

[mike93lx]

This ^ !

I just cleared a 4" sewer line, was a heavy paper clog (paper towels or mesh wipes) instead of roots, but rented a 1/2" Electric Eel auger with a cutter bit for about $45 for 4 hours at Sunbelt rental. I doubt very much a jetter will do much with roots, they need to be cut. This should be a one time job, why buy an expensive machine that will just end up taking space in storage? Also not sure the Vevor is a quality machine, the real good ones I believe are 3 or 4x more. My 2 cents - Good Luck!

With enough pressure and flow, a jetter can clear concrete from a pipe. It's absolutely wild. The pros run 20+hp machines. If you get bored, look up Drain addict on YouTube and go down the rabbit hole.

Ain't happening with a little single cylinder PW and a Amazon jet, though

 

[RAS61]

With enough pressure and flow, a jetter can clear concrete from a pipe. It's absolutely wild. The pros run 20+hp machines. If you get bored, look up Drain addict on YouTube and go down the rabbit hole.

Ain't happening with a little single cylinder PW and a Amazon jet, though

Maybe true, but a pro jetter service with one of those big machines that have their own trailer is gonna run north of $400, at least in my area. A $45 rental is how I'd go, especially if the OP has a camera to inspect the work and progress

If the OP does rent a machine one bit of advice is to not force it, when you feel resistance go slow, back and forth a little at a time. If you're too aggressive, especially with a cutter head, you run the risk of the cable binding on the clog and then getting all twisted up in the cage, a real bear to untangle

 

[mike93lx]

Maybe true, but a pro jetter service with one of those big machines that have their own trailer is gonna run north of $400, at least in my area. A $45 rental is how I'd go, especially if the OP has a camera to inspect the work and progress

If the OP does rent a machine one bit of advice is to not force it, when you feel resistance go slow, back and forth a little at a time. If you're too aggressive, especially with a cutter head, you run the risk of the cable binding on the clog and then getting all twisted up in the cage, a real bear to untangle

Absolutely. If cost is the main concern, rent something. Those augers can be dangerous and can do some damage, just like a pressure washer jetter. Plus heads can get stuck for both, as you noted.

 

[tarmy]

Thanks for all the responses folks. I think I will go ahead and rent a 5/8” or 3/4” auger type. I bought three heads I plan to use as all the rental companies around here had trashed bits or ones that wouldn’t actually clear most of the pipe. Seems most rentals provide bits that will clear out enough to get flow rather than clean out the pipe.

 

[Rusty Wrench]

I have cleaned a couple root masses and have had a couple done professionally. There's a bit of skill, I think. The pros have a 'feel' for feed rate and nibbling. The first time you get the cutter stuck you'll appreciate that profoundly. At least that's my experience.
I try to flush 1/2 cup copper sulfate down the commode every month. That will help with future root intrusion.