How do drain lines work?

Naturally, water flows downhill with gravity. A building’s drain system is designed according to that principle.

All the water pipes in your home are connected to take advantage of gravity, so that wastewater flows down, vertically or at an angle, into your sewer lateral pipe. The sewer lateral is also sloped, to run the water downhill into the sewer main in the street. Some properties are actually below the street – in this case, when the sewer main is above the level of the house’s drain lines, a pump is installed to move the water up.

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Why isn’t your sewer drain line working? There are many flaws that can create backups in your sewer and drain lines. Improper slope, broken pipes due to age, impact or ground shifts, and infiltration by tree roots are the most common causes of a backed-up sewer pipe or slow-running drain line.

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To properly diagnose your sewer pipe or drain line problem, a sewer line camera inspection is the best place to start. Pipe Spy service technicians are trained experts and are experienced in proper sewer line diagnostics and troubleshooting. We can address your backed-up or slow-running sewer pipe problems with repairs, snaking or hydro-jetting, and sewer line replacement. Please call us if you have any problems with your drain lines.