Clues that a drain needs attention
- Water that lingers in the sink for a minute after the tap is off
- The toilet bowl burping while the washer pumps out
- A sour or swampy smell rising from the plughole
- Two fixtures on the same floor slowing down together
- Plungers and store-bought gels that help for a day, then stop helping
What clogs pipes in this part of Toronto
Most Scarborough streets filled in from the post-war years through the 1980s. Older bungalows carry cast iron stacks whose inside walls roughen with age, so hair, soap and grease catch more easily. Later houses use ABS plastic, which stays smooth but still collects whatever goes down it. Add mature boulevard trees, hard Lake Ontario water that leaves scale, and busy family kitchens, and blockages are a regular part of homeownership here.
Our method, from first look to final test
- We find out which fixtures are involved and run water through each one to watch it.
- The nearest access point is opened: a trap, an overflow, or a cleanout plug.
- A drain cable sized for the pipe is fed in to cut through the blockage.
- Hot water is run hard to flush loosened material down to the sewer.
- If the cable brings back roots or broken pipe, we recommend a camera inspection.
Things that affect the price
How far the blockage sits from an opening, whether a cleanout exists and can be reached, and what time of day you call all play a part. A trap clog at a vanity is a short visit. A line packed solid three metres beyond a finished basement wall takes longer. We tell you what we see before the work starts.
When a slow drain becomes urgent
Phone at once if murky water rises from a basement drain or the lowest toilet, or if the whole house stops draining together. That pattern points to the main sewer line, and running more water only makes the mess bigger.
