Drain Cleaning in St. George, UT

Where is the clog?

How far down a clog sits decides how it should be cleared and how urgent it is. In a typical St. George slab home, every drain runs under the concrete floor to a main line that leaves the house, usually toward the street, where it joins the city sewer. There is often a cleanout near the front of the house or along a side yard.

• One fixture is slow (a bathroom sink, one shower): the clog is almost always in that fixture's trap or branch line. Hair, soap and scale in bathrooms; grease and food in kitchens.
• Several fixtures are slow, or a toilet gurgles when a sink drains: the clog is probably in a shared branch or the main line.
• Water comes up in the lowest shower or tub when the washer drains or a toilet flushes: the main line is blocked. Stop using water until it is cleared.

What usually causes clogs in St. George homes

Hard-water scale plus soap and hair

St. George water is very hard; the city's water quality report suggests softener settings of 13 to 24 grains per gallon (City of St. George, 2024 Drinking Water Quality Report). Scale does not usually clog a drain by itself, but it builds a rough crust inside shower and lavatory drains, especially in homes without a softener, and soap scum and hair stick to that crust. Showers in rental and vacation homes with heavy use often clog this way.

Grease and wipes

Cooking grease cools and coats the inside of the kitchen line, and "flushable" wipes snag on that coating. Neither breaks down the way toilet paper does. The St. George regional treatment plant handles sewage from St. George, Ivins, Santa Clara and Washington (City of St. George, Wastewater Treatment), and what goes down your drain has to get through your own line first. Scrape grease into a can and put wipes in the trash.

Roots and sags in older laterals

In the older parts of town and in established neighborhoods with mature trees, roots can enter clay or older pipe joints. In any age of home, shifting or settling soils can leave a low spot, a "belly," in the sewer line where paper and solids collect. A camera inspection tells you which you have.

Sand and debris from outdoor living

Pool decks, desert landscaping and red sand get tracked into showers and laundry. Rinsing sandy towels and gear outside before washing keeps grit out of the laundry drain.

How drains are usually cleared

1. Pick the right access point. A fixture trap, an outdoor cleanout, or a cleanout in a garage or utility area. Working from the closest cleanout keeps the cable out of toilets and finished rooms.
2. Clear the clog with a cable machine. A drain auger with the right head breaks up hair, grease and paper; a root-cutting head clears roots in a main line.
3. Jet the line when it needs scouring. Hydro-jetting uses high-pressure water to clean grease and scale off the pipe walls. It is thorough but not right for every pipe, so older or damaged lines should be inspected first.
4. Camera-inspect repeat clogs. A sewer camera shows roots, breaks, sags and offsets and records video you can keep.
5. Test. Running water through every affected fixture confirms the line is flowing before the job is done.

Is it my line or the city's?

If several homes on the street back up at once, the public sewer may be the problem; call the city or the sewer district listed on your bill. If only your home is affected, the blockage is almost certainly in your own line. See sewer line repair and backups for more.

Skip the chemical drain openers

Caustic drain openers can dissolve a soft hair clog, but they rarely clear grease, scale or roots. When they fail, they sit in the pipe and make the next step dangerous for whoever opens the trap. A plunger with a good seal, or a hand auger for a bathroom sink, is a safer first try.

Keeping drains clear

• Pour cooled grease into a can and scrape plates into the trash.
• Use hair catchers in tubs and showers, especially in rentals.
• Flush only toilet paper.
• Consider a water softener if scale is building up in drains and on fixtures. See water softeners and hard water.
• If your main line has roots or a sag, ask about a maintenance cleaning schedule or a permanent repair.

Sources: City of St. George, 2024 Drinking Water Quality Report; City of St. George, Wastewater Treatment; EPA WaterSense, Statistics and Facts.