Emergency drain unblocking
Emergency Drain Unblocking
A blocked drain rarely improves on its own, it backs up, smells and eventually overflows. We clear blocked and slow drains inside and outside the property, find out why it happened and help stop it coming back.
Your drains carry waste water away from every sink, bath, shower, toilet and appliance in the property, running through waste pipes into an underground drain and on to the sewer. When something narrows or blocks that path, water starts to back up at the lowest point it can find. A single slow sink is often just a local blockage in its own waste pipe, but when several appliances gurgle or back up together, the obstruction usually sits in the shared drain that serves them all.
A blocked drain is worth dealing with quickly, because a drain that cannot cope will push waste water back into the property, create a health risk and damage floors and fittings. We clear blocked and slow drains for homeowners, tenants, landlords and businesses, and we do not stop at getting the water moving: we check why it blocked so the same thing is less likely to happen again.
Inside and outside
Where the blockage sits changes the job
Internal waste pipes
These run from each appliance: the trap under a sink, the waste from a bath or shower, the soil pipe from a toilet. A blockage here tends to affect just one appliance, and it usually comes from whatever goes down that particular drain, such as grease from a blocked sink or paper and wipes from a blocked toilet.
External drains
Below ground, the waste pipes join a main drain that passes through inspection chambers and gullies before it reaches the sewer. A blockage out here can back up into several appliances at once, and it may be down to silt, root ingress or a structural fault. These usually call for rodding, jetting or a camera survey to find and clear.
Warning signs
How can you tell a drain is blocking?
Drains usually give plenty of notice. The sooner you act on these signs, the smaller the job tends to be.
Slow draining
Water that lingers in a sink, bath or shower instead of flowing away points to a partial blockage building up.
Gurgling sounds
Air trapped behind a blockage makes plugholes or the toilet gurgle as water forces its way past.
Unpleasant smells
Waste caught in the pipe gives off a stale odour around plugholes, drains and outside gullies.
Backing up
Waste water rising in a sink, shower tray or toilet when you use something else points to a shared blockage.
Water at a drain cover
Water pooling at an outside drain, or welling up from an inspection chamber, means the underground drain is blocked.
Repeat blockages
A drain that blocks again soon after clearing often has a deeper cause, such as roots or a damaged pipe.
Root causes
What actually blocks a drain
- Fat, oil and grease poured down the kitchen sink, which cools and sets hard on the pipe walls.
- Wet wipes and sanitary items flushed away, which do not break down and snag on joints.
- Hair and soap binding together in bathroom and shower wastes.
- Food waste and coffee grounds collecting in the kitchen waste pipe.
- Leaves, silt and debris washing into external gullies and drains.
- Tree roots working their way through pipe joints in search of moisture.
- Structural faults such as cracked, displaced or collapsed pipes that trap everything passing through.
Clearing methods
How we clear and investigate drains
We match the method to the blockage and start with the least invasive approach that will do the job properly.
Drain rods
Flexible rods are fed into the drain to push through or break up an obstruction, which clears many straightforward blockages in accessible drains.
High-pressure jetting
A jet of water at high pressure cuts through grease, silt and compacted debris and scours the pipe walls clean, which suits recurring build-ups.
Camera survey
Where a drain keeps blocking or a fault is suspected, a drain camera shows the inside of the pipe so the cause can be seen and any emergency plumbing repairs planned.
Before we arrive
What to do while you wait
- Stop using sinks, baths, the washing machine and toilets so you are not adding water to a drain that cannot take it.
- Leave chemical drain cleaners out of a fully blocked drain, as they sit on top of the blockage and can be hazardous when we open it up.
- If waste water is coming up indoors, move rugs, boxes and valuables clear and open a window to keep the area ventilated.
- If you can, lift an outside drain cover to see whether the chamber is full, which helps us locate the blockage; wear gloves and wash your hands afterwards.
Keep clear of any electrics the water has reached, and if you ever smell gas, leave the property and call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999.
Keeping drains clear
Preventing the next blockage
Most blockages are avoidable with a few habits. Let fat and oil cool and scrape them into the bin rather than down the sink, fit a strainer over the plughole to catch food and hair, and flush only the three Ps, pee, poo and paper. A kettle of hot water down the kitchen sink after washing up helps move grease along before it sets. For a fuller checklist, and a sense of the costs if a job does need a plumber, see our guides on preventing common plumbing emergencies and what an emergency plumber costs.
Frequently asked questions
Blocked drains, answered
What are the signs of a blocked drain?
Typical signs include water draining slowly from sinks, baths or showers, gurgling noises from plugholes or the toilet, unpleasant smells around drains or gullies, and water rising at an external drain. If more than one appliance is affected at the same time, the blockage is usually in a shared drain rather than a single waste pipe.
What causes drains to block?
Common causes are fat, oil and grease poured down sinks that set hard, wet wipes and sanitary items flushed down toilets, hair and soap in bathroom wastes, and a build-up of food debris. External drains can block from leaves and silt, tree-root ingress through joints, or structural faults such as cracked or collapsed pipes.
How are blocked drains cleared?
The method depends on the blockage. Drain rods clear many obstructions, while high-pressure water jetting cuts through grease and compacted debris and scours the pipe walls. Where a drain blocks repeatedly or a structural fault is suspected, a camera survey shows the inside of the pipe so the cause can be identified and the right repair planned.
Who is responsible for a blocked drain?
As a general guide, you are usually responsible for the drains within your property boundary, while shared drains and public sewers beyond it are often the responsibility of the local water company. Responsibility can vary, so if a blockage sits beyond your boundary it is worth checking with your water company. We can clear the drains on your property and advise where the problem appears to lie.
Drain blocked or backing up?
Email our team for immediate help and safety guidance, or request a call back and we’ll get the information we need to arrange assistance in your area.