4 services · Des Moines
Drains & sewer in Des Moines, IA
A single slow sink is usually a local clog a plumber can clear in one visit. Several drains backing up at once, gurgling toilets or water at a basement floor drain point to the main sewer line, which may need cleaning, a camera inspection and sometimes repair.
- Licensed local plumbers
- The problem explained before work starts
- Price agreed before the job begins
Drains & sewer services in Des Moines
Drain cleaning
UrgentIf one fixture is slow, the clog is usually in that fixture's branch line. If several drains back up at once, or the basement floor drain fills when you run the washer, the main sewer line is blocked and needs a larger cable or a jetter.
Hydro jetting
Hydro jetting cleans the full width of a drain pipe with high-pressure water, washing out grease, scale and fine roots that a cable only punches a hole through. It works best on sound pipe and is usually done after a camera inspection confirms the pipe can take it.
Sewer camera inspection in Des Moines
A sewer camera inspection runs a waterproof camera through the line from your house to the city main and records what it finds: roots, cracks, sags, offset joints or collapsed pipe. It's the best way to decide between cleaning, spot repair and replacement.
Sewer line repair
UrgentA damaged sewer line can be fixed with a spot repair, a trenchless liner, pipe bursting or an open-trench replacement. Which one fits depends on what the camera shows, how deep the pipe is, and what's on top of it, such as a driveway, trees or landscaping.
Local conditions
Drains & sewer in Des Moines: what's different
Clay laterals in older Des Moines neighborhoods like Beaverdale and Sherman Hill collect roots from mature trees.
Basement floor drains show backups first.
A camera inspection shows whether a recurring clog needs repair.
Beaverdale's brick homes from the 1920s–1940s often have original clay laterals, and Sherman Hill's Victorians are older still. Roots from mature trees grow into the joints, and repeat clogs usually mean the line needs lining or replacement rather than another cleaning. Low areas near the rivers can also see backups during heavy rain, which a backwater valve helps prevent.
- Water and sewer in Des Moines
- Des Moines Water Works supplies water to the city.
- Permits in Des Moines
- Plumbing permits are issued by the City of Des Moines Permit and Development Center.
Des Moines housing and plumbing
Beaverdale and Sherman Hill have early 1900s homes with basements and older drains.
Other Des Moines conditions that affect plumbing
- Frozen pipes: Deep cold freezes pipes in exterior walls.
- Flood risk: River flooding and heavy rain test sump pumps.
- Older laterals: Clay laterals in older neighborhoods collect roots.
- 2008 flood history: The Des Moines and Raccoon Rivers have flooded the city in the past, so low-lying areas take sump pumps and backwater valves seriously.
Neighborhoods and ZIP codes
Plumbers on Thawline cover Des Moines and Polk County, including Beaverdale, Sherman Hill, Drake, East Village, Waveland Park, Highland Park. ZIP codes: 50301 · 50309 · 50310 · 50315 · 50317 · 50321.
When to call a plumber in Des Moines
- Water backing up in the tub or shower when a toilet flushes
- Several fixtures draining slowly at the same time
- Water or sewage at a basement floor drain
- Gurgling from drains or toilets
- Sewer smell inside or a soggy patch in the yard
- The same clog returning within weeks of being cleared
How these problems start and how to choose between repair options is covered in the drains & sewer guide.
Drains & sewer questions in Des Moines
Should I scope the sewer in Beaverdale?
Are chemical drain cleaners safe to use?
More plumbing in Des Moines
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