Clearing a blockage feels like a fix, but if the same drain keeps backing up, you’re treating the symptom. Here’s what’s really going on underground.
The usual culprits
Most repeat blockages come down to a handful of causes:
- Grease and fat — the number-one cause in kitchens, hardening inside the pipe over time.
- Tree roots — fine roots find joints and cracks, then grow into a mesh that traps everything.
- Debris and foreign objects — wipes, sanitary items, sand and silt that never fully clear.
- Bad falls — a pipe laid too flat (or sagging) so waste sits instead of flowing.
- Collapsed or cracked pipe — a damaged section that keeps catching solids no matter how often you clear it.
Why clearing it isn’t always enough
A plunger or a quick rod gets things flowing for a day or a week, but if the underlying cause is a root intrusion, a bad fall or a collapse, the blockage simply returns. Each "clear" is buying time, not solving the problem.
When jetting fixes it
For grease, sludge, scale and root build-up, high-pressure water jetting is usually the right answer. It cuts through the build-up and flushes the line so it’s genuinely clear end-to-end — not just poked open at one point. For grease-heavy lines, jetting on a schedule keeps them from blocking again.
When you need to look inside
If a line keeps blocking after jetting, the cause is structural and you need to see it. A CCTV sewer & pipe inspection sends a camera down the line to find exactly what’s wrong — a collapse, a bad joint, a sag — and pinpoints where, so any repair is precise rather than guesswork.
One blockage? Clear it. The same blockage again and again? Jet it properly, and if it still returns, get a CCTV inspection to find the real cause before you spend more on temporary clears.
Prevention
Keep fats and wipes out of the drains, fit and clean grease traps where there’s a kitchen, and put problem lines on a scheduled jetting programme. Catching a bad fall or a cracked pipe early — before it collapses — is always cheaper than an emergency dig.