Blocked Drain?
Jackal Plumbing can find the cause and get your drains flowing again.
Blocked drains can start as a slow-flowing sink or shower and quickly turn into overflowing toilets, backed-up wastewater or a completely blocked sewer line.
Why Do Drains Become Blocked?
There are many possible causes of a blocked drain. Some are caused by what goes down the drain, while others are related to the condition or location of the pipe.
Common causes include:
🌳 Tree Roots
Roots naturally seek water and can enter small cracks or joints in underground drainage pipes.
🧈 Grease and fat
Kitchen grease can build up on the inside of pipes and trap other debris.
🪀 Foreign objects
Items that shouldn’t be flushed or washed down a drain can become lodged in the pipe.
🧱 Building materials
Sand, cement, grout and other construction debris can cause particularly stubborn blockages.
🪨 Collapsed or damaged pipes
Old, cracked or collapsed drainage pipes can restrict flow and cause repeated blockages.
🍂 General build-up
Over time, dirt, leaf litter, sediment, paper and other material can accumulate inside drainage pipes.
What can high-pressure drain jetting remove?
High-pressure water jetting is a non-invasive plumbing solution. The aim is to blast away debris causing the blockage to restore full water flow. Instead of poking around with rods and pouring harsh chemicals down pipes, a water jetter simply uses a higher-pressure stream of water to scour every last spec of dirt from pipes. The long hose enables us to clear nearly all lengths of sewer and stormwater pipes.
The process removes:
- Stubborn grease build-up
- Tree root intrusions
- Hardened scale and mineral deposits
- Food debris and other gunk clinging to pipe walls
The aim isn’t simply to punch a hole through the blockage — high-pressure jetting cleans the pipe and removes material from the walls of the drain, helping restore proper flow.
CCTV Drain Inspections
Sometimes clearing the blockage isn’t the end of the problem.
If a drain keeps blocking, there may be an underlying issue such as tree root intrusion, damaged pipework, a collapsed section of pipe or construction material inside the drain.
A CCTV drain inspection allows us to see what’s actually happening inside the pipe.
We can inspect the drain before or after clearing it to:
1. Locate the problem
Identify where the blockage or damage is located.
2. Find the cause
Determine whether roots, debris, building materials or damaged pipework are responsible.
3. Check the condition of the pipe
A drain can be flowing again while still having an underlying problem. There may be a crack in the pipes, especially in older areas in Manly and the Northern Beaches area were terracotta pipe is still in use.
4. Recommend the right solution
Once we know what’s happening inside the pipe, we can recommend the appropriate repair or maintenance. This may be a case of regular drain clearing, digging up a section of pipe and replacing the section, or a partial or full pipe reline.
What Does a Blocked Drain Look Like Inside?
A Broken Terracotta pipe
This is a picture of a broken terracotta pipe. This happens because of the degradation with age, external pressure and sometimes due to ground movement.
Building materials
Building and renovation work can introduce materials such as sand, cement, grout or other debris into drainage pipes. These materials can create extremely difficult blockages.
Tree roots
Tree roots can enter through joints or cracks in underground pipes. As they grow, they catch toilet paper, grease and other debris, eventually restricting the flow.
After high-pressure jetting
High-pressure water jetting can remove the accumulated material and restore the internal diameter of the pipe.
Got an issue with your drains?
Our new RANGER T30 jetting truck uses high-pressure water to break apart blockages and clean the inside of the drain. The system operates at up to 5,000 PSI with a flow rate of 35 litres per minute, providing the power needed for serious drain cleaning.
The truck is equipped with a 100-metre jetting hose, allowing us to reach deep into drainage systems, and specialist jetting nozzles for different types of blockages.
