Hydro Jetting
Hydro jetting clears a drain or sewer line by blasting high-pressure water through a special nozzle, scouring the pipe walls clean rather than just punching a hole through a clog.
Hydro jetting uses a hose fed with water at very high pressure, often several thousand PSI, tipped with a nozzle that sprays jets both forward and backward. The forward jets cut into the blockage while the rear jets pull the hose down the line and scrub the pipe walls in every direction. Unlike a cable snake, which bores a hole through a clog and leaves the surrounding gunk behind, jetting strips grease, scale, sludge, and root hairs off the full circumference of the pipe.
Homeowners hear about jetting when a drain keeps clogging after snaking, when grease has coated a kitchen line, or when roots have invaded a sewer lateral. A plumber usually runs a camera first to confirm the pipe is sound, because the same pressure that cleans a healthy line can blow out an old, cracked, or fragile one. Done on the right pipe, it leaves the line nearly as clear as new and buys far longer before the next clog than snaking does.
Jetting is also used on a maintenance schedule for restaurants and homes with chronic grease or root problems. It will cut fine roots and clear the line, but it does not repair the cracks or joints that let roots in, so it often pairs with a lining or repair plan.
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- Drain Field / Leach Field : A drain field, or leach field, is the network of buried perforated pipes and gravel that releases treated septic effluent into the soil for final filtering.
- Septic Tank : A septic tank is the buried watertight container that holds household wastewater long enough for solids to settle out before the liquid flows to the drain field.
- Backwater Valve : A backwater valve is a one-way gate installed in a sewer line that lets wastewater flow out but slams shut to stop sewage from flooding back into the house.
- Effluent : Effluent is the clarified liquid wastewater that flows out of a septic tank to the drain field after the solids have settled and floated out of it.