Why is a Hydrovac Crew the Only Solution to a Blocked Septic Pipe in Winter?

Hydrovac crews are very dynamic and flexible; they have solutions for an assortment of problems. In the winter months, there are some additional issues they work to resolve and bring things back to normalcy. Among these are frozen septic pipes, which require the expertise of hydrovac services in Cold Lake.

Is a clean septic pipe important?

Septic pipes carry drainage from homes and buildings. They are responsible for draining the used water or effluents from sinks, toilets, and showers. In some cases, distillers or water conditioning systems drain into septic systems also. In the winter months, septic pipes freeze sometimes and may crack. If you notice in time that something is wrong, it is possible to avoid damage caused when the pipes are fully frozen.

The first sign that the septic pipes are frozen is when the drains start overflowing with dirty water backing-up into your home or your septic tank outdoors overflows. If you see gray water with nowhere to be pumped or the septic field is frozen, it’s time to call the septic cleaning & Snaking experts from the crew offering hydrovac services in Cold Lake! Let’s look at some of the most common reasons a septic pipe might be blocked to ensure you avoid these mistakes:

  • Grease – One of the biggest culprits for frozen septic pipes, hot grease from a frying pan or pot dumped down the drain cools and solidifies in the septic pipes! Doing this multiple times in a day will block the line eventually. Running hot water will not make it melt because it takes much higher temperatures to turn into a liquid again.
  • Solids – Putting wrappers and peels from fruits or vegetables in the drain can cause a blockage. The waste from washing utensils accumulates too and causes a choked pipe.
  • Hair – Over time, a clump of hair that has collected close to the surface can clog the drain.
  • Frost – In the spring, frost travels deep into the ground and freezes the lines that are buried underground.

Won’t a local hardware store have an appropriate solution?

When timely action is not taken for a drain that is slow in clearing, the sewage inside will coagulate, causing an impenetrable blockage. You can purchase a chemical at the local hardware store to clear a partial blockage. In the case that it’s a significant blockage, contact a reliable vendor for hydrovac services in Cold Lake that has expertise in septic cleaning & snaking.

If luck is on your side, you will have access points on a septic field that you can run a snake through to break through the frozen section or blockage. Sometimes you will have access points in your home where you can push a snake through to clear the blockage.

The snake is a small hose with a special tipthat has a minute jet that water is forced through.It creates a tiny stream of water with extremely high pressure to penetrate the blockage in front of it. The back of the snake tip has six jets at a 45-degree angle that point backwards. The jets thrust the snake forward and push the broken-up debris or frozen chunks of ice back to the suction hose at the entrance of the pipe where the hydrovac’s vacuum is pulling it out. An experienced operator can manipulate the tip using the hose to maneuver it around corners and elbows in the septic pipe ensuring the drains are usable again.