Drain unblocking in London
Blocked drains, sinks and outside gullies cleared. We find why it blocked, not just clear it and leave.
Service overview
A blocked drain gets cleared quickly or it becomes a much bigger problem, particularly in a flat where the waste from several properties shares one stack.
We clear blockages across London with rods, machine and jetting depending on what the pipe needs, and we look at why it blocked rather than clearing it and driving away. A drain that blocks twice in six months usually has something structural behind it.
Kitchen waste is the most common culprit in domestic property: fat and grease cool in the pipe, coat the walls and gradually close the bore until something small tips it over.
We work across Greater London and north Surrey, including Croydon, Bromley, Sutton, Orpington and Wimbledon. Gas Safe engineers do every gas job. See the gallery, about us or get in touch.
Get a quoteSigns you need drain unblocking
- Water standing in the sink, bath or shower long after use
- Gurgling from a plughole when a different appliance drains
- Smell of sewage from a gully or a plughole
- Toilet level rising then falling slowly
- Water backing up outside at the gully or an inspection chamber
- More than one fixture draining slowly at the same time
One fixture or several
It is the question that tells us where the blockage sits. A single slow sink is almost always local — a trap, a waste run, or the bend just past it — and it is a quick job. When two or more fixtures back up together, the blockage has moved further down into the shared soil stack or the drain run outside, and that is a different piece of work.
Gurgling matters too. If running the washing machine makes the shower gurgle, air is being pulled through the trap because the pipe is partly blocked further along. That is an early warning, and it is much cheaper to deal with at that stage than after it has closed completely.
Why it blocked in the first place
Fat and grease from kitchen waste is the leading cause in domestic property. It goes down warm and liquid, cools in the pipe, and sets on the walls. Wet wipes are the other big one — they do not break down the way paper does, regardless of what the packet says, and they catch on any roughness in the pipe.
Outside, root ingress and displaced joints are common in older London stock where the drain runs are Victorian clay. Roots find a hairline crack, get in, and then catch everything passing. Clearing that gives you a working drain for a while, but the roots come back, and the honest answer is that the pipe needs seeing on camera and repairing.
When a camera is worth it and when it is not
If a drain has blocked once and clears easily, a survey is money you do not need to spend. If it has blocked repeatedly, or it cleared harder than it should have, then seeing inside the pipe is the only way to know whether you are dealing with a build-up or a broken pipe.
We will not sell a camera survey to justify a call-out. When the pipe genuinely needs looking at we say so, and the survey gives you a recording you can use for an insurance claim or to get quotes for repair.
How the visit goes
Work out where it is
Which fixtures are affected tells us whether it is local or in the main run before we open anything.
Clear it
Rods, machine or jetting depending on the pipe, the blockage and how far in it sits.
Check it runs
Fixtures run through properly to confirm the blockage is gone rather than just moved along.
Say why it happened
If it is a build-up you can prevent, you get told how. If it is structural, you get told that too.
Standards this work is held to
Shared drains and sewers
Since 2011 most shared drains and lateral drains transferred to the water company. Where a blockage is on their section it may be their responsibility, not yours, and it is worth establishing before paying for work.
Victorian clay drainage
Much of the older London housing stock still runs on clay pipe with rigid joints, which is where root ingress and joint displacement come from.
Pipe sizes and where things stick
Sink and basin wastes run at 32mm and 40mm, baths and showers at 40mm, and the soil stack at 110mm. Fat narrows the bore at the smallest sizes first, which is why the kitchen sink is usually the first fixture to slow.
Drain ownership since 2011
Most shared drains and lateral drains transferred to water company ownership in October 2011. A blockage beyond the property boundary may be theirs to clear.
Drain unblocking: common questions
Related to Drain unblocking
Areas we cover
We work across Greater London and north Surrey, including Croydon, Bromley, Sutton, Orpington and Wimbledon. Pick your town.
Need an emergency plumber?
Burst pipes, boiler breakdowns and blocked drains across Greater London. We aim to be with you within 60 minutes.