Clogged Drain Cleaning in Connecticut

The causes of a clogged drain change from one part of Connecticut to the next. 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 closest one below. On each city page you will find a rough cost range, notes on local soil and trees, and one number for a local plumber.

Much of the housing in Connecticut is old, and older houses usually have cast iron stacks and clay sewer lines, while some mid-century homes were built with Orangeburg pipe that deforms with age. Water here is mostly soft, so scale matters less than roots, grease and age. Winters bring frost and frozen ground, and mature oaks and maples crowd the lines in many yards. Outside the cities many homes use septic, and some older cities still carry storm water and sewage in the same pipes.

• Cast iron and clay pipe in older homes
• Orangeburg pipe in some mid-century houses
• Septic systems in many towns outside the cities
• Combined storm and sewer lines in some older cities
• Roots from mature oaks and maples

Ask the plumber to check both the cast iron stack inside and the line out to the street, since older homes often have trouble in both.

• 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.