Snaking the Main Line
The posted labor for main line clearing is $300. This is through an existing cleanout. We run a heavy cable with a cutting head down the line to break up the clog and pull back the debris. The machine has enough torque to chew through grease, sludge, paper, and small root masses. The cable goes until it hits the stoppage and then works through it. Water flow is tested before and after. You flush a toilet and watch it drain fast. That is the proof.
This price is provisional. It is the posted labor figure, not a promise of final cost. If the cable hits something solid that will not break, like a collapsed pipe or a root mass that fills the entire diameter, snaking alone will not hold. That is when we stop and tell you what the cable is telling us. The $300 covers the attempt and the clearing if the line is clearable. If the pipe is broken, you need a different fix and we quote that before doing anything else.
Roof access is a different animal. Some homes have the cleanout on the roof. That means ladders, tie offs, and a lot more labor. Roof access gets quoted first, not done at the $300 posted price. Same with digging. If the cleanout is buried under six inches of sod and you did not know it was there, we quote the dig before we touch the line. Transparency means telling you what the job actually needs, not guessing low and adding later.
- Heavy cable machine through an existing cleanout
- Cuts through grease, sludge, paper, and small roots
- Flow tested before and after the cable run
- Roof access or buried cleanouts quoted separately
Hydro Jetting for Stubborn Lines
Some clogs come back a month after snaking. That means the pipe walls are coated with grease or packed with roots that a cable pokes a hole through but does not remove. Hydro jetting uses high pressure water, up to 4000 PSI, to scour the inside of the pipe completely. It blasts grease off the walls and chops roots into mulch. The posted labor for hydro jetting is $550. This is provisional, same as snaking, and depends on what the line looks like when we start.
Jetting is not always the first step. Snaking is faster and costs less. But if you have had the line snaked twice in a year, jetting is the real fix. It restores the pipe to near original diameter. The water does the work. No chemicals, no digging. The jetter hose has a forward and backward spray pattern that pulls itself down the line and then scrubs on the way back. You get a line that flows like it did when it was new.
Jetting requires a cleanout with enough diameter for the hose and the backflow. If your cleanout is too small or in a bad spot, we talk about options before we fire up the machine. The posted labor is $550. Parts are separate at cost, no markup. You can buy any needed fittings yourself if you prefer. The drive is still $1 per mile both ways, added to the labor. No hidden pump fee, no water surcharge, just the posted number.
- High pressure water scours the pipe walls completely
- Cuts through grease and root masses that snaking will not hold
- Posted labor $550, provisional on line condition
- Requires a cleanout with adequate access
Sewer Camera Inspection
Sometimes you need to see what is down there. A camera inspection puts a waterproof camera on a reel and sends it down the line. You watch the monitor in real time. You see the cracks, the roots, the belly in the pipe, the standing water. The posted labor for a sewer camera inspection is $250. You get the footage, not just our word for it. The video file is yours to keep, share with a realtor, or send to the city.
A camera inspection answers the question of whether snaking or jetting will hold. If the pipe is offset at a joint and catching solids, clearing it is temporary. If there is a full collapse, you see the dirt and the broken edges. The camera tells you what the next step actually is. No guesswork. No selling you a dig you do not need. The $250 is the labor to run the camera and give you the footage. Plain and direct.
This is not an upsell. It is a diagnostic tool. When a main line clogs repeatedly, a camera pays for itself by preventing the wrong fix. You do not want to jet a collapsed pipe. You do not want to dig up a pipe that just needs jetting. The camera shows the truth. The posted labor is $250. Parts are not a factor here unless the camera access point needs a gasket or cap, which you pay at cost or supply yourself.
- Real time video of the inside of your sewer line
- You get the footage file, not just a verbal report
- Shows cracks, roots, offsets, bellies, and collapses
- Posted labor $250, no hidden recording fee
When the Pipe Needs Digging
A camera might show a single break in an accessible yard run. No concrete, no deck, no utility lines in the way. The posted labor for a spot dig and repair is $1450. This is digging down to the pipe, cutting out the bad section, and replacing it with new PVC. The hole gets backfilled and tamped. The sod goes back on top. This is provisional. The price holds if the dig is straightforward and the break is a single point.
If the break is under a driveway, a patio, or deep enough to need shoring, the job changes. That gets quoted after we see the camera footage and mark the ground. The $1450 is the posted labor for a standard yard dig. No hidden disposal fee for the dirt. No extra charge for the PVC. Parts are at cost, separate from the labor. You can buy the pipe and fittings yourself if you want. The drive is still $1 per mile both ways.
A spot dig is not a whole house repipe. It fixes the one broken spot. If the camera shows multiple breaks or the pipe is deteriorated along its entire length, a spot dig is not the answer. We tell you that straight. The goal is to fix what is broken and not sell you work you do not need. The posted labor is $1450. The drive is added based on the round trip miles from Killeen. You see the total before the shovel hits the ground.
- Spot dig and repair for a single break in an accessible yard
- Posted labor $1450, provisional on dig conditions
- PVC replacement, backfill, and sod replacement included
- Under slab or deep digs quoted separately after camera
Cleanout Install and Toilet Pull
If you do not have a cleanout on your main line, the first clog is the expensive one. The posted labor to install a cleanout is $650. This puts an access point in the ground, usually in the front yard where the line runs to the street. The next time the line clogs, the cable goes right in. No pulling toilets, no cutting walls, no guesswork. A cleanout pays for itself on the second clog. It is the single best thing you can do for an older home.
A toilet pull and clear is a different job. Sometimes the clog is in the toilet trap or just downstream of the toilet flange. The posted labor for a toilet pull and clear is $200. We pull the toilet, run a cable through the line, clear the blockage, and reset the toilet with a new wax ring. This is not a main line clearing. It is for a single toilet that will not drain and the problem is close to the fixture. If the whole house is backing up, this is not the fix.
Both of these jobs have posted labor prices. The cleanout install at $650 and the toilet pull at $200. Parts are separate at cost. A wax ring costs a few dollars. A cleanout fitting and riser cost what the supply house charges. No markup. You can buy the parts yourself if you prefer. The drive is $1 per mile both ways, added to the labor. Add either job to the cart on the homepage and the total updates before you commit.
- Cleanout install posted at $650 labor, provisional
- Toilet pull and clear posted at $200 labor, provisional
- Parts at cost, no markup, or you supply them
- Drive added at $1 per mile both ways, no hidden fees