What happens when you have a clogged drain?
You do your best with some do it yourself solutions, but if those don’t work, you call a Philadelphia professional plumbing contractor.
Here At Mount Airy Plumbing, we have the know how to find out what’s causing your drain clog, and get your plumbing running smoothly once again.
However, first we have to figure out what’s causing the problem in your residential plumbing or commercial plumbing system.
There are many different possible causes for a clogged drain, and each one of them has its own solution. So before we get to work, we need to find out what we need to do in the first place.
That’s where a video camera drain inspection comes into play.
What Is A Video Camera Drain Inspection?
A video camera drain inspection is a service we offer here at Mount Airy Plumbing.
Our plumbing technician will arrive at your house with a cable that has a waterproof high resolution video camera attached to the end. From there, your plumber will send the cable down the drain that’s causing you issues. because the cable is flexible, it can travel through the twists and turns in your pipes.
The camera sends what it sees back to a screen attached to it, so both you and your plumber can see in real-time what’s causing your drain clog.
From there, your plumber can let you know whether you need a main sewer line backup cleaning or a simple drain cleaning service.
Video Camera Drain Inspection FAQ
Are you curious about how video camera drain inspection works? If so, don’t worry, you’ll find your answer below. If you don’t, feel free to give us a call, we’ll be happy to help.
Yes, of course. In fact many of our clients, and especially their kids, find it interesting, since it’s not the sort of thing most people see everyday. We’ve seen it a thousand times, so it’s lost a bit of its magic, but you’re welcome to watch along if you like.
Yes, because it has a camera attached and the information is sent back in real time, a video camera drain inspection will reveal just about every possible source of a clogged drain.
No, not always. We often use a video camera drain inspection when you have a particularly stubborn drain that doesn’t want to be unclogged.
Yes you can, but these tend to be less effective than the ones professional plumbers use
The ones you get from a hardware store are usually not long enough to explore the full length of your pipe and get to the clog. As well, the scopes are usually not capable of auto focusing, making it difficult to see what you’re looking at. The lights are usually weak on them as well, making it even more difficult to see.
You can rent professional video camera drain inspection equipment, but because this create more hassle on your part and doesn’t really save you much money, most people just opt for calling a professional.
That’s an interesting point, sometimes the source of your drain clog can be dozens of feet down your drain. How do we pinpoint exactly where the clog actually is?
The video camera has a transmitter attached to it as well. Once your plumber has discovered the blockage, they will use a receiver to pick up where it’s located. From there, they’ll be able to figure out exactly where the blockage is, and what you’ll need to do to clear it.
Sometimes, but not usually. Your plumber may attempt to push it through the clog, depending on what it seems to be made of. If it’s mostly food particles or hair, this might work, but if it’s something tougher, like a tree roots or one of your child’s action figures that they decided to send on an exploratory mission, it might be more challenging.