Drain Cleaner - 508-838-9645

Drain Cleaner is kind of a trash can word these days. All encompassing, the term drain cleaner conjures unsightly images. The act of having a drain cleaner to clean your drain lines produces foul odor. Having a drain cleaner to your home to clear a clogged drain is to have a physical person, contracted to perform a service on restoring flow to your drain lines. And, finally, you may visit one of the big box stores to purchase drain cleaner for your plumbing woes at home.

Unsightly Image of Drain Cleaning



Tool as a Drain Cleaner

Chemical Drain Cleaner

Drain Cleaning Service



Kind of like the Koinean Greek word for "love". Drain Cleaner is very specific.   O.k, enough playing around already.  Except for the Greek word for love.  (Five different words).

Drain cleaning is a dirty job, no matter how it is presented.  There are occasionally those jobs where a sewer bladder can be put into the line and the only mess the drain cleaner (technician) has is to clean up a little water that escaped the hose after the water was turned off.

If you are going to attempt drain cleaning on your own, try and steer clear of acids and caustic chemicals.  They can be effective.  However, there are a few safe drain cleaning methods the home owner should attempt before going to the acids and nasty chemicals. 

One method is to just get a plunger and attempt plunging.  However, you have to make effort to create a vacuum.  In other words, if your clogged drain is on your bathroom sink, block the overflow of the sink while plunging.  That will create a vacuum and also block any nasty stuff from being forced up the overflow, only to dowse the wood be drain cleaner (technician).

Another method, before getting into the equipment, is to add some vinegar and baking soda to the trap of the fixture with a clogged drain.  Then, come back and hit it with the plunger.

I mentioned a pressure bladder.  It is an oval shaped gadget that threads on to a garden hose.  You can find it in the big box shops of orange and blue.  Or your local hardware store.

Now, I'm about out of ideas that will allow you to safely approach cleaning a drain.  So, from here, I have to refer you to the equipment and tool section of the big box. Here, you will be looking for a hand held drain snake or cable.  Looks like this...

It is only dangerous if you force it to do something it doesn't want to do. The drain snake doesn't bite. However, suppose you have too much cable out of the drum. Then you may get wacked if the cable begins to wrap around itself. Or worse. There is the Jetter. Well, these days, the pressure washer companies are attempting to sell hoses and nozzels to anyone who owns a pressure washer for the purpose of creating a make shift hydro-jetter. Not always effective for the homeowner for lack of knowing how to use the jetter. And, the pressure is not very high. Believe me. Stay away from the chemicals. I don't want to have to show you what chemicals can do. However, a very sad thing happened to an elderly woman who was just trying to help herself and save money. Unfortunately, the drain cleaner was very strong and I don't think she knew what she was getting herself into. She allowed this picture to be published over the internet...

Enough said??? Call a drain cleaning company if the blockage gets too difficult.

E-1, Enviromental One Pumps - 508-838-9645

In the past, many home and businesses had to be built in lower elevation to city sewer and relied on having septic systems to process sewage coming out of the home or place of business.

Today, those same homes can delete the lines going out to the septic system, get rid of the septic system entirely and be connected to city sewer.  This is accomplished by adding a lift pump.  Lift pumps literally pump the sewage from a pit up to the city sewer in much the same way a small sewage ejector pump does.

The famed lift pump in New England is the Environmental One Pump.  These are easy to service lift pumps installed in a pit somewhere inline with the sewer line coming from your home or place of business.  The pit fills to a pre-determined level established by a series of float switches.  When the sewage reaches the level of the first float switch, the float rises and tips, using mercury or some other metallic conductor to complete a circuit.  When the circuit is complete, a pump activates and lifts sewage to the level of the city sewer.  Now the home is connected to city sewer.

The pump itself has the ability to grind solids.  However, do be careful for what you allow to go down the drain.  Disposable wipes, for instance do not do well.  Neither do feminine hygiene products or grease. 

Grease is something that collects in the pump by virtue of washing dishes.  We can do our best to practice not allowing grease to go down the drain.  However, it will eventually accumulate in the pit just by doing dishes. 

The following picture illustrates that grease and disposable wipes will accumulate on the float system and other components of the E-1 pump.

As stated, we can prevent E-1 failure by not allowing disposable wipes to enter the E-1 pit.  However, grease will need to be cleaned away from the float surface as it will weigh the float down and not permit the float to rise, and complete the circuit for activating the pump.

Sewage in My Basement - 508-838-9645

Sewage in the basement is an obvious indication you are receiving back flow from the sewer.  If this were to happen to you, your first response would be to not use the water.  Now, you are not opening any faucets or flushing toilets and you continue to have surges of sewage leaking from under your toilet in the basement.

This situation is perplexing for most people who do not respond to these incidents on a daily basis.  What the home owner did, in this particular case, was remove the toilet from the flange and attempt to cable the line.  He met no resistance and did not resolve the problem.

The single most relevant piece of information to tell where the problem of having sewage back up into the basement is, is understanding why it will not stop when no water is being used.

If sewage continues flowing into the basement when water is not being used in your home, the problem is coming from some place other than your sewer line.

Sewage backing up into the basement resulting from a failed city sewer.

What had taken place for this person, is some bricks in the city's brick lined sewer had fallen from the wall of the sewer.  The fallen brick had created a dam just downstream of the man's sewer tap (the point at which his sewer line ties into the city's sewer).  When water use, upstream of this man's sewer line had been high, water did not make it over the dam before flowing up the man's residential sewer line and leaking out of the sewer from under his toilet.

This is in fact one reason back water valves exist.

A back water valve is installed on the residential sewer line.  Its' purpose is to stop sewage from the city in the event the city sewer fails. 

In this case, the customer paid for the service and was instructed to call the city.  The city responded and reimbursed the home owner for having the situation investigated and reported.

Failed Septic System - 508-530-1062

Failed septic systems may not have to be replaced!

A failed septic system is more often the result of the leach field no longer accepting effluent.  This is due to the type of bacteria the septic system relies on in order to break down solids in the tank and in the leach field.

Most septic systems in use today work by anaerobic bacterial action in the septic tank and in the leach field.  Anaerobic bacteria produces a slime.  Over a period of years, the slime, called bio mat increases, filling the porous soil and not allowing effluent from the septic tank to go anywhere but up.  That may mean your home will be the only place for effluent to go when water is in use.

Anchor Sewer and Drain Cleaning has knowledge and technology available to restore your failed septic system.  Before you call anyone else, call Anchor Sewer and Drain Cleaning.  We will come to your residents, perform a 30 point survey of your septic system to ensure your septic system and leach field is a candidate for our remediation system.  95% of all septic systems are.

Once our system begins the restoration of your septic system and recovers your failed leach field, the benefits (above functionality) are...longer life of the septic tank and components, no noxious odors, fewer pumping and cleaning of the septic tank, financial gain and added value to your property. 

For more information on septic system remediation, give us a call at 508-530-1062.   Also, visit our web page by clicking here..

House Traps in Woonsocket, Rhode Island

The worst condition for sewer and drain cleaners to take on is a clogged sewer with a house trap or building trap. The absolute worst condition for sewer and drain cleaners to be challenged with is a house trap in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.

If you don't know what a house trap is, congratulations. You have not had to experience clearing a clogged main sewer line with a house trap. Or, you have not had the misfortune of living in a home with one of these installed on your main sewer line. Here is a diagram to give you an idea as to what a house trap is...

The diagram above depicts the house trap as being buried in the floor of a basement.  It is the "U" shape to the bottom left. 

The trap has two covers on both the inlet side of the trap and the down stream side of the trap.  In Woonsocket Rhode Island, the traps are often buried beneath the soil or concrete.  You will be a bit more fortunate to have a basement with a dirt floor.  In Woonsocket, Rhode Island, the trap is often buried in the ground and sometimes completely unserviceable under cement floors.

In the diagram above, the vertical pipe extending up from the horizontal to the left of the trap is a vent.  Venting was almost understood in the era main line traps were installed.  In reality, the theory of venting a house trap was to supply air to the line when the sewer line had become completely inundated with water.  In the case of the trap, it is completely choking off the flow of air, down stream of the trap.  Venting the trap actually is accidentally accomplished by whatever air and gases are in the sewer system downstream of the trap.  Think about it, the vent through the roof supplies air upstream of the trap.

In Woonsocket, Rhode Island, the vent is often on the side of the building.  The diagram above shows the vent penetrating the basement wall and eventually making a vertical turn to the ground surface.  Again, a common mistake is to bury the trap vent when it is revealed in the ground. 

The house traps purpose was to inhibit sewer gases from the sewer from entering the dwelling or place of business.  That much the trap did do successfully.  However, once the sewer, upstream of the trap was soiled, the residence or place of business had noxious gases infiltrating the interior.  So, it was mandated that all fixtures be trapped with their own p-traps or drum traps.  The house trap is obsolete and a nuisance.

In some areas of Rhode Island, such as Cranston or Providence, house traps are often serviceable.  There is often at least one side of the trap where the cap can be removed and a cable manipulated up or downstream of the trap to clear a blockage.  However, since they are obsolete and in the day and age when disposable wipes are flushed, just have the trap removed.  If you have not had the misfortune to have a blockage due to a trap collecting debris, your time is coming.  Count your blessings while you can and plan to have the trap removed.

Sewer and Drain Maintenance (508) 838-9645

Sewer and drain maintenance prevents sewer backups and clogged drains.  No one wants the inconveniences of a sewer blockage.  Clogged drains are an annoyance and depending on where they occur, the stoppage stops more than the flow of water.  A clogged tub or shower drain stops daily activity.  So, why not implement a sewer and drain maintenance program?  But how?

Most people make the mistake of believing and trusting in caustic, corrosive drain cleaning solutions and gels.  Why not?  Surely no production company of sewer and drain cleaning chemicals would manufacture a product that would harm my plumbing?

Beginning with galvanized drain lines, using one of these caustic corrosives will erode the interior of the pipe.  Suppose, the blockage causes the pipe to be completely closed.  Adding a solution of corrosive drain cleaner to the problem means that once flow is restored, the corrosive coats the pipe above the water line in the pipe.  Water will not always reach all inside surface areas of the pipe and the corrosive is left to continue eating at the pipe wall.  Cast iron pipe meets a similar fate.  However, the density of the pipe allows it to survive longer than galvanized pipe.

Vitrified clay pipe (clay mixed with molten glass) is somewhat durable to impact and will support the weight of earth packed around it.  Aside from being subject to root intrusion, vitrified clay pipe stands up well and generally maintains a clean surface, resisting buildup.  Buildup does occur when the pipe is infiltrated with roots or offsets occur at the joints.  The following video demonstrates the effects chemical drain cleaners can have on vitrified clay pipe due to its' glass property...




Rather than take the short term goal approach to maintaining a sewer and drain system with corrosives, begin a regiment of bacterial sewer and drain maintenance.

First, start fresh.  Have all of the lines in your home and main sewer line cleaned by a professional.  High pressure water jetting is the industry standard.  Water jetting will allow the pipe to be completely free of scale, grease and buildup. 

After having your sewer and drain lines water jetted with high pressure water, begin a regiment of bacteria sewer and drain maintenance.  Bacteria (non-pathogenic) will survive and repopulate in the sewer and drain system.  To a point, bacteria is both temperature and chemical resistant. 

Bacteria approaches solids and buildup in sewer and drain lines, identifies the substance and determines what enzymes are needed to break down the offending agent to smaller particles, digestible by bacteria.  The end result of the digestive cycle is water and carbon monoxide.  The fats, vegetables other substances are evicted in the form of carbon monoxide gas through the sewer vent and water draining out into the sewer.