Hydro Jetting in Dunn, NC

Warning signs worth acting on

• A toilet that gurgles or burps when another fixture drains
• Gray water rising in a tub or floor drain
• A main line that has needed clearing more than once in a year
• Root fibers or black sludge on a cable after a drain was snaked
• Wet, sunken or unusually green ground over the sewer path in the yard

Older homes, older pipe

Dunn's housing is among the oldest in this part of Harnett County. Census survey data puts the median home at 1973, with about two-thirds built before 1980 and only around 9% since 2000. Homes from those decades often have clay tile or cast iron sewer laterals. Clay comes in short sections joined every few feet, and roots find those joints. Cast iron scales and rusts from the inside, narrowing the pipe until paper and grease catch on the rough surface.

Jetting suits both problems, within limits. It cuts fine roots and scours scale, but a cracked or offset section can be made worse by high pressure. That's why a camera look, before or after, is common on Dunn's older lines.

On the public side, the City of Dunn runs about 88 miles of sewer to its Black River Wastewater Treatment Facility, and it says it aims to clean at least 10% of that system each year. City crews also repair water and sewer services and mains, so if the problem turns out to be on the city's portion, Dunn Public Utilities is the right call.

After a root cut, many Dunn owners put the line on a cleaning schedule rather than wait for the next backup. Others decide the pipe has had enough patching and look at relining or replacing the worst section. Seeing the line on camera right after it's been jetted makes that choice much easier, because the pipe wall is clean enough to judge.

Price factors

• Where the plumber can get into the line, and whether a cleanout needs to be added
• How dense the roots are and how much scale lines the pipe
• Length of the run from the house to the city main
• Camera work, which some plumbers include and others bill separately
• Whether the visit is during normal hours

When you call

You'll be connected with an independent plumber who covers Dunn. Tell them roughly when the house was built, whether roots have been a problem before and where any cleanout is. If sewage is coming up inside, stop running water until the line is open.