4 services · Salt Lake City
Drains & sewer in Salt Lake City, UT
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 Salt Lake City
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
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 Salt Lake City: what's different
The Avenues and Sugar House have early 1900s homes with older drains and laterals that collect roots and crack.
A camera inspection shows the lateral's condition.
Mature trees in The Avenues and Sugar House send roots into older clay laterals, and earthquake-related settling can offset joints. A camera inspection shows the problem's location before any repair. Salt Lake City Public Utilities maintains the public sewer, and permits come from the city's Building Services division.
Scoping before buying an older home is a common step in these neighborhoods.
- Water and sewer in Salt Lake City
- Salt Lake City Public Utilities provides water and sewer service.
- Permits in Salt Lake City
- Plumbing permits are issued by the Salt Lake City Building Services division.
Salt Lake City housing and plumbing
The Avenues and Sugar House have early 1900s homes with basements and older drains; newer suburbs are post-1970.
Other Salt Lake City conditions that affect plumbing
- Hard water: Scale shortens water heater life.
- Altitude and gas appliances: At about 4,200 feet, gas appliances must be set up for elevation.
- Frozen pipes: Winter inversions and cold snaps freeze exposed pipes.
- Earthquake readiness: The Wasatch Fault runs along the Salt Lake Valley, so strapped water heaters and flexible connections are recommended.
Neighborhoods and ZIP codes
Plumbers on Thawline cover Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County, including Sugar House, The Avenues, Liberty Wells, Federal Heights, Rose Park, Capitol Hill. ZIP codes: 84101 · 84102 · 84103 · 84104 · 84105 · 84106.
When to call a plumber in Salt Lake City
- 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 Salt Lake City
Should I scope the sewer in an Avenues home?
Are chemical drain cleaners safe to use?
More plumbing in Salt Lake City
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