Gauteng · Vetted local plumbers
How much does it cost to unblock a drain?
It depends on where the blockage is and what it takes to clear it. A slow sink that clears with rods is a short job. A main line that needs a drain machine, a camera or digging is a bigger one, and the plumber should tell you which before starting.
Why there is no rand figure here
Each plumber we work with prices their own jobs, and the one who takes yours quotes before any work starts. We are not going to copy a figure off another website or an industry average instead. You would plan around it, and it would not be the price of your job.
What we can tell you is what moves the price and what to ask, so the quote you get makes sense and two quotes can be compared.
The longer answer
A single slow fixture is usually a local blockage. Several fixtures backing up at once, or a gully overflowing outside, points at the main line. That needs proper equipment, not a bottle of drain cleaner.
If the same drain keeps blocking, paying to clear it again is the expensive way round. Something structural is usually behind it, such as roots in a cracked pipe or a section that has dropped and holds water. A camera inspection shows which.
If you have already poured drain cleaner down it, say so. It makes the job harder and less safe for whoever has to open the drain.
What decides the price
| Blocked drains | Whether it clears with rods or a drain machine, or whether it needs a camera down the line and something dug up. Those are different jobs at different prices, and a good plumber will tell you which one he is on before he starts the second. |
|---|---|
| Which drain | A blocked toilet or sink inside is a different job from the main sewer line outside. Say which drain, and whether more than one is backing up, when you message. |
| How often | A first blockage is a clearing. One that keeps coming back usually needs a camera down the line first, and then possibly a repair to the pipe. |
Ask before they start
- Will you clear it with rods, a drain machine or a jetter?
- If that does not clear it, what happens next and what does that cost?
- If it keeps blocking, will you put a camera down it, and can I have the recording?
- If it blocks again soon, do I pay again?
- Is the call-out charged separately, and does it come off the bill if I go ahead?
- Is that including VAT?
- Is this a fixed quote or an estimate that can move once you open it up? If it can move, by how much?
- Are you supplying the parts, and what is the guarantee on them?
- Will I get a Certificate of Compliance, and is it in the price?
Questions people ask
How much does it usually cost to unblock a drain?
It depends on where the blockage is and what clears it. Rods or a drain machine on a drain they can get at is a short job; a camera inspection or digging up a section is a bigger one. Ask which it is before they start, and what happens to the price if the first method does not clear it.
Is a camera inspection worth paying for?
When the same drain has been cleared more than once, usually yes. It shows whether roots, a cracked pipe or a sagging section is the cause, so you stop paying for the same clearing. Ask for the recording.
The job, and other price questions
Tell us what is wrong
Takes under a minute. A plumber near your area phones you back and quotes before any work starts. There is nothing to pay to be put in touch.