How we find the cause.
We work out where the blockage sits before we touch it: in a fixture trap, in a branch line, or in the main drain running to the sewer. Which fixtures are affected tells us most of that before anyone lifts a grate. From there it is a drain machine, high-pressure jetting or a camera, depending on the pipe and the access, and we tell you which one we are using and why.
Clearing a blockage and fixing the reason for it are two different jobs, and you should know which one you are paying for. Grease responds to jetting. Roots come back unless the joint they entered through is repaired. A cracked or sagging pipe keeps catching everything that passes. If a drain has blocked twice, a camera inspection costs less than clearing it a third time.
What this means in Newtown
The drains under most Newtown homes are earthenware clay, laid long before PVC, with cement or rubber-ring joints. Roots find those joints, and ground movement leaves a lip at them that catches paper and grease until the line closes over. That is why the same drain blocks again six months after it was cleared: the clearing worked, but nothing was done about the joint letting the roots in.
Newtown was built while drainage materials were changing over, so a single property can run clay at the front and PVC at the back. Blockages usually trace to one specific junction or one ageing section rather than the whole drain, which is good news — it means a targeted repair rather than a full replacement. Tell us whether one fixture or several are affected, and whether it started after garden work, a renovation or heavy rain.
Old earthenware drains and multiple generations of plumbing work under the same house. 93% of occupied homes in Newtown are separate houses, so the drainage and stormwater on your block are almost certainly yours to maintain up to the connection point.
What to send us
Note which fixtures are affected and when it started. Stop using anything that is backing up, and keep children and pets away from an overflow. Tell us if the drain has been cleared before, and whether anyone left you a report or footage. It saves you paying twice for the same information.
What actually moves the price
Four things move the price: how we get into the drain, where the blockage sits, the condition of the pipe, and whether a camera is needed to see the cause. We set out what the work covers before we start, so you know whether you are paying to clear a drain or to find out why it blocked.
Sources: ABS 2021 Census QuickStats: Newtown. Distances are straight-line from Redbank Plains. Housing descriptions are general observations, not a survey of any individual property.