 | DIY Tools & Supplies: $10-$75+ |
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 | Plumber, Clog in Toilet Only: $65-$250+ |
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 | Plumber, Clog in Main Line: $100-$800+ |
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| Typical costs: | - Plumbers may charge a flat fee per project or an hourly rate ($45 -$150 an hour). While some might offer a rough estimate over the phone, many will want to see the project before giving a firm quote.
- If a toilet backs up but no other fixtures appear to be involved, the blockage is probably just in or near the toilet, and may be either a soft clog (paper or similar items) or a hard clog (like a child's toy). Having a plumber clear a toilet-only clog can cost $65 -$250 or more, depending on whether the obstruction can be freed with a toilet auger (typically a short cable-like device inside a long pole) or if the toilet must be removed to clear the blockage and then put back in place with a new wax ring. CostHelper readers report paying $95 -$210 to have a toilet unclogged, at an average price of $164.
- In some cases clearing a toilet-only clog can cost $400 -$650 or more depending on location, company and if it's an emergency call (evenings, weekends, holidays or immediate response). A CostHelper reader in Georgia was billed $625 for emergency service to pull a toilet and flush out a stuck plastic bottle.
- If, in addition to the clogged toilet, backflow is coming out of a sink, shower, bathtub or other drain, chances are the clog is in the main household sewer line, which will need to be cleared of debris, roots or other blockages. Having a plumbing company "snake" the line with a long cable and cutting device can cost $100 -$800 or more, depending on the distance snaked, company rates and if emergency charges apply. A few companies advertise unclogging services for a flat fee of $50 -$60, but several consumers report feeling pressured to agree to expensive additional services. CostHelper readers report paying $148 -$900 to have a main household sewer line snaked, at an average cost of $410.
- Do-it-yourself efforts might cost $10 -$75 or more. A flange, ball or funnel-cup plunger costs $10 -$25; a toilet auger (also called a closet auger or a water closet auger) can cost $8 -$60 with an average price of $20 -$30; and a new wax toilet ring can cost $2 -$10. CostHelper readers report spending $10 -$30 to unclog an obstruction in just the toilet, at an average cost of $22; and $29 -$70 to rent an industrial-quality snake to clear the main line, for an average cost of $55.
- For tough clogs in a main sewer line, some companies offer sewer jetting, also called hydro jetting or hydro scrubbing, in which a special high-pressure hose cleans the pipes at a typical cost of $350 -$600 for an average household sewer, depending on company rates and the length of the line. For do-it-yourselfers, a sewer jet attachment for a pressure washer can cost $20 -$150.
What should be included: | - A flat-bottomed plunger does not create a good seal in a toilet; use a flange, ball or funnel-cup plunger. For deeper clogs, use a closet (toilet) auger rather a standard sewer snake. A video by This Old House explains how to use a plunger and toilet auger and a California plumber provides a more detailed video demonstration of a toilet auger.
- To clear a main sewer line, a plumber will typically locate the clean out (usually a y-shaped fitting near where the pipe leaves the house) and snake a cable with a cutting head through the line. A Wisconsin plumber illustrates how a plumber snakes a sewer line.
- A video by a Florida plumber compares snaking and jetting.
Additional costs: | - Some companies include a video camera inspection of the pipes when the line is snaked, or this could be an additional cost ($100 -$800, with an average price of $250 -$550).
- If the sewer pipe is permanently damaged, sewer line replacement can cost $1,000 -$25,000 or more, depending on the length and depth of the lines that need replacing, the type of replacement pipe and local rates. CostHelper readers with a clogged toilet that led to replacing a short section of pipe report paying $1,000 -$2,200, at an average cost of $1,533.
Shopping for unclogging a toilet: | |
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Article updated October 2012 |
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What People Are Paying - Recent Comments |
Page 3 of 3 - << Previous 1 2 3
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| I Keep Wanting to Cancel the Home Warranty |
| Amount: $60.00 |
| Posted by: SavvyCat in DFW, TX. | Posted: October 6th, 2010 07:10AM |
| Firm or Company: Rescue Rooter | Difficulty of Access: |
I grumble every time I renew my home warranty... until something happens. I just had a clog, seem to get a good one at least once a year, and the service fee I pay with the warranty is $60.00. This time the little snake didn't do it. It got something, but it apparently wasn't THE thing. He had to pull out this monster auger with a scary gnashing metal thing on the end. After he finally conquered the clog after an hour, he told me this trip, without the warranty, would have been over $300. If that was the only thing that went wrong in the house this year I would be under the cost of the warranty, but sadly it's not. |
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| Roots in Main Drain. |
| Amount: $58.00 |
| Posted by: Rick M. in Haddonfield, NJ. | Posted: October 30th, 2010 10:10AM |
| Firm or Company: Home Depot Rental | Difficulty of Access: Easy |
My House is 86 years old and about every 3-4 years the main drain clogs up with roots. I rented the biggest sewer snake Home Depot has and cleaned it out myself. It was messy job, took about 1/2 hour. The hardest part was getting the thing down the basement. Wear Gloves! Ones you don't mind throwing out. |
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| Unclog Basement Line |
| Amount: $16.00 |
| Posted by: Roman Dell in Kelowna, Canada, DC. | Posted: November 8th, 2010 05:11AM |
| Firm or Company: DIY | Difficulty of Access: Easy |
| Other Work: None |
We had a renter in the basement suite. She had long haur & washed it every day. The line eventually clogged up. Roto Rooter estimated $250-$300. I went to Walmart & bought a hand crank $16 snake. At home I connected my electric drill to the end rather than than the hand crank. A half hour later & three passes the line was clear. Lot of black smelly goo. This is a cronic clogging problem so the $16 snake will come in handy. |
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| Grease clog kitchen line |
| Amount: $280.00 |
| Posted by: Mike V in Houston, TX. | Posted: November 24th, 2010 02:11AM |
| Firm or Company: Nicks Plumbing | Difficulty of Access: Easy |
I had a grease clog that seems to happen every 5 years or so on this line. I tried a 25ft 1/4 inch drill auger for two days with no success. Plumber took about 2 hours with his 75ft snake to clear it out. Plumbing prices have gone up quite a bit in the last few years. |
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| Clogged Tub Drain |
| Amount: $265.00 |
| Posted by: kevin_pdx in Portland, OR. | Posted: December 31st, 2010 03:12PM |
| Firm or Company: mr, rooter | Difficulty of Access: |
Tub drain completely stopped up...on New Years Eve no less. Called a local rooter company and the guy showed up in few hours. Gave us an estimate of $265, which seems on the high end of reasonable compared to what others are paying. Anyway, the only other option was not taking a shower to go out for New Years...so there you have it. |
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| Main Line |
| Amount: $645.00 |
| Posted by: ericforman66 in Cheshire, CT. | Posted: January 1st, 2011 11:01AM |
| Firm or Company: Advanced Rooter & Drain | Difficulty of Access: None |
| Other Work: None |
Nice enough guy to chat with, but absolutely ridiculous price for the easiest possible access to the main line, even if it is 200 feet long. No discount for needing my tools and help to repair his ancient snake machine, and he broke all three caps to our trap/clean-out manifold and had no qualms about leaving them that way, mentioning it would cost me more to fix if he even had any replacement caps with him. He kept repeating that RotoRooter would've charged $1800 for the same service, but based on costhelper.com reports, he's a crazy liar. I'm ashamed of myself for paying him, but with with my family and upstairs tenants needing facilities restored fast, I was desperate. |
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| Complaining |
| Amount: $15,000.00 |
| Posted by: High Priced Plumber ready for work in Seattle, WA. | Posted: January 5th, 2011 01:01PM |
| Firm or Company: ANY | Difficulty of Access: ANY |
| Other Work: ANY |
Im a Plumber, so I say this to all you nasty scank females that flush your used tampons and your toilet clogs up, why dont you stick your french manicured nails in that nasty toilet and clean it out? why your too good for that! so you call a plumber, he does it but charges for his time, fuel, materials, vehicle, experience and knowledge, but you complain when it cost more than 10 dollars! WTF do you cry babies think this is? charity? you think we should donate our time and materials? all this stuff cost money, how do you think we have to pay for this stuff? duh you never thought about this? i think that 200+ is reasonable for these services, i would have charged your welfare ass alot more! your the type that dont work and want everything for free or highly discounted, NOT ON MY WATCH! have you seen the fuel prices? tool prices? schooling prices? and if you never went to a trade school then you learned from on the job training in return have worked for minimum wage for 5yrs to become a Journeyman so you still complain, why |
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| clogged toilet and bath |
| Amount: $2,200.00 |
| Posted by: slv in akron, OH. | Posted: January 18th, 2011 07:01AM |
| Firm or Company: RotoRooter | Difficulty of Access: moderate |
| Other Work: none |
This estimate was to replace sewer line under bathroom floor, which would not have solved the problem. I had HJack's come and clear the clog for $356. RotoRooter could have made some big bucks on that one. What a scam! |
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| Clogged sewer out to street |
| Amount: $345.00 |
| Posted by: Happily Flushing in Warrington, PA. | Posted: January 26th, 2011 04:01AM |
| Firm or Company: Roto Rooter | Difficulty of Access: moderate |
Main sewer line was backed up. L. from Roto Rooter came out that day, around 7 PM. Not only was there snow on the ground, and temps in the 20s, he had to pry off the rusty frozen sewer cap, then power snake the 100 feet or so. When it still wasn't running well, he did the sewer camera, identified the problem, showed me a place where the cast iron pipe was starting to go bad, then re-snaked the entire pipe. Flow improved further. For no extra charge, he then checked and snaked the sewer trap out by the road where my line connects to the public sewer. He worked for 2 hours, dragging all sorts of heavy tools and equipment around. The problem was solved, I got his cell phone number in case of problems, and a 6 month warranty. Totally worth the $345. I gave him a nice tip, too. |
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| Unclogging kitchen sink, snaked to main line |
| Amount: $414.00 |
| Posted by: rooter-o-rama in West Valley City, UT. | Posted: February 3rd, 2011 08:02PM |
| Firm or Company: Rescue Rooter | Difficulty of Access: easy |
| Other Work: Flushed water heater |
They said that they would come out 24/7 for the same price. They were here within an hour at 8pm. They had a Service plan where you would save money. I saved $50 on the sink drain and it included checking the whole house for problems plus flushing the water heater today and a year from today. The Service plan was $133, but with the $50 it saved me today, plus the other stuff I thought it was worth it. Not so sure about the other $300 though. My kitchen was flooding because the water was backing up into the dishwasher, so what ya gonna do? |
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| Clogged sewer main line |
| Amount: $331.00 |
| Posted by: Ross Craig in Edmonds, WA. | Posted: March 12th, 2011 03:03PM |
| Firm or Company: Roto Rooter | Difficulty of Access: moderate |
Two technicians showed up and worked for about an hour. They had to cut the clean-out cap off of the cast iron drain pipe to get to the clog. The $331 includes the cost of a replacement clean-out cap and snaking the drain to the street. Seems like a fair deal to me. |
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| Posted by: EllenR in Rochester, NY. | Posted: March 20th, 2011 03:03PM |
| Firm or Company: RotoRooter | Difficulty of Access: |
Seriously....I asked for a 'ballpark estimate' over the phone...which they refused to give...so at 11pm at night the plumber comes out, quotes my $319 to snake my toilet drain (the toilet was already off) and I tell him to get lost! could have saved us both time/effort. Rented an industrial snake from HOME DEPOT for $50 bucks...PROBLEM SOLVED....so there! |
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| Clogged Kitchen Line to Main - Kitchen tied into vent |
| Amount: $175.00 |
| Posted by: Dave in Elmhurst, IL in Elmhurst, IL. | Posted: March 21st, 2011 04:03PM |
| Firm or Company: Dhamer Plumbing, Elmhurst IL | Difficulty of Access: easy |
Our basement laundry tub filled almost to the top with sewer backup on Saturday morning. Bailed it and tried liquid plumber and bought a cheap snake to see where the plug was. Was about 5' under concrete. Plumber came next morning first thing, used motorized auger through an access vent and cleared it out no problem. Plumber and 1 assistant - $175 if completed in an hour. Fair deal - could probably have rented an auger but have 5 kids and work for a living so don't mind paying a fair price for plumber and assistant on a responsive call. BTW I did call RotoRooter and they refused to even provide minimum service call price, hourly rates or anything so I recognized poor and expensive business practices when I saw them and didn't bother with them. Sounds like others have also had a bad experience. Probably ok guys but i don't like a system that doesn't even disclose any basic information. |
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| Main drian in the basement |
| Amount: $425.00 |
| Posted by: JesseMN in minneapolis, MN. | Posted: March 24th, 2011 08:03AM |
| Firm or Company: company | Difficulty of Access: easy |
Had a company come and open the main drain in the basement. water was coming out from the drain and flooding the laundry room.
cost was $425. it took about an hour work with a mechanical Auger ( snake). clog was was like 20 feet deep. |
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| Sewer backup and overflow |
| Amount: $12,000.00 |
| Posted by: In Shock in Claremont, NH. | Posted: March 28th, 2011 01:03PM |
| Firm or Company: ServPro | Difficulty of Access: easy |
Had a sewer backup in toilet and bathtub which overflowed (on a Sunday) and went down into my finished basement. Did not have a backflow preventor but this price still seems awfully high. Were there for 8 hours tops and came back a couple days later to remove the fans and dehumidifiers. Does this seem reasonable to others? |
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| Snake main line and a bathtub drain through a vent on the roof |
| Amount: $195.00 |
| Posted by: Alex J in Pacheco, CA. | Posted: April 9th, 2011 10:04PM |
| Firm or Company: Family owed firm | Difficulty of Access: Medium |
| Other Work: None |
Our kitchen garbage disposal must have clogged up a drain line further down the pipe, because food, grease, and water started bubbling up in our guest bathroom tub. I tried plunging and a 25-ft snake ($14 at Home Depot) to no avail.
I called a local plumber and ran a snake through our cleanout toward the street connection (about 70 ft away). He pulled out a big mass of roots, meaning our lateral had failed and tree roots were clogging it up. But the tub was still full of water.
Next step, he brought out a smaller snake and snaked through the tub...couldn't get it. He took apart the trap in our kitchen sink and snaked through there...couldn't get it. Next he borrowed a ladder and went onto the roof above the bathroom and snaked through the vent there Bingo! Tub and sink ran clear. Bad news was, we probably need a new sewer line ($4000-$6000).
Charge for all the work was $250, which seemed reasonable since he stayed about 1.5 hours. After telling him I had used their company twice before, he gave me a discount. Total as $195. |
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| snake out drain and repair leak |
| Amount: $520.68 |
| Posted by: Flushed of $ in Seattle, WA. | Posted: April 14th, 2011 11:04PM |
| Firm or Company: Butterfield PLumbing LLC | Difficulty of Access: ? my son set appt. |
We had 2 upstairs toilets, a shower, a washing machine, and 3 upstairs sinks that, when used, backed up into our downstairs toilet and then into our downstairs bathtub! We couldn't wash, shower, flush etc! + odd spot on bedroom wall next to bath.
My son called Butterfield. (They had 5 stars.) They charged 520.68 and left! He booked a 2nd Co. |
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| unclogging a pipe |
| Amount: $349.30 |
| Posted by: Flushed of $ in Seattle, WA. | Posted: April 14th, 2011 11:04PM |
| Firm or Company: Roto-Rooter | Difficulty of Access: easy |
Called Roto-Rooter to clean up the mess left by Butterfield Plumbing the day before. The 1st guy
wrote some indecipherable notes on an inspection paper and said more people would come to "fix" the terrible job done the day before. I needed to pay him $349.30 now. I did. Meanwhile another Roto-Rooter fellow arrived. |
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| unclogging a pipe |
| Amount: $10,156.13 |
| Posted by: Flushed of $ in Seattle, WA. | Posted: April 14th, 2011 11:04PM |
| Firm or Company: Roto-Rooter | Difficulty of Access: |
The second Roto-Rooter guy said he would give a free re-camera towards main to see condition of line under street. (Remember we could not wash, shower, flush, run any water that would not go into
the downstairs toilet and then into the downstairs tub.) The cause he said was root infiltration. |
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| unclog drain and permaline pipe to main |
| Amount: $9,855.00 |
| Posted by: Flushed of $ in Seattle, WA. | Posted: April 15th, 2011 12:04AM |
| Firm or Company: Roto-Rooter | Difficulty of Access: |
In addition to previous repair of drain will install 30' of permaliner from 1st excavation to city main, all parts, labor, and permits incl. to complete this job.
Got suspicious when guy kept pushing the contracts at me, saying he had another emergency. He followed me to the bank to cash out a CD, demanding I sign his contract 1st. I said not until I see if I have enough money. I walked with a walker. I called my credit card
company tonight for help. Help comes at 5:00 this AM. Will stay up all night, if I have to, to get some of my $ back and learn how to stop the work they are to do today. Now there is an excavating machine, a huge covered pile of dirt, yellow tape around a pear tree, orange cones, a metal plate over the 10' hole. Payment was always demanded 1st because the job was so big. The 4 day job would be done in 2. I was to receive discounts on everything. Yet at the end, I paid $880.01 more than quoted! Let him do the last calculation without checking it--guess that's when he charged me $880.71 more! Our clogged up drain cost me $20,479.30! That's not counting the $520.00 charged by Butterfield Plumbing! Don't use Roto-Rooters! I was royally flushed of $.
P.S. So far everything works. Hope I don't find all that H2O in the downstairs bathtub! |
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| snake out drain and repair leak |
| Amount: $0.00 |
| Posted by: Flushed of $ in Seattle, WA. | Posted: April 27th, 2011 05:04PM |
| Firm or Company: Butterfield PLumbing LLC | Difficulty of Access: easy |
| Other Work: April 14, 2011 |
On April 14, 2011, I wrote a scathing report here on Butterfield Plumbing. Today I sit corrected and give them their 5 stars back.
After the patched sewer pipe continued to leak (or so we thought), we called them back. 2nd plumber said there was a leak higher up. After removing drywall up to the ceiling, he found a cracked pipe.
He worked 4 1/2 hours, cleaned up, and charged us zero $. Butterfield plumbing wishes to please the customer. I restore the 5 stars they had on yelp.com and wrote them a rave review of my own. |
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| plumbing prices |
| Amount: $0.00 |
| Posted by: denise...proud wife of plumber in nj, NJ. | Posted: May 29th, 2011 02:05AM |
| Firm or Company: n/a | Difficulty of Access: |
| Other Work: n/a |
I loooove the comment from the "high priced" plumber on this page!! Although he may have been a bit intense....i completely understand why! I am a 30 yr old mom of 3 boys and the proud wife of an HONEST plumber!!! i dont think people consider the cost to the plumber...like the man said above...tools, GAS, schooling, insurance, trucks, employees...etc. it adds up!! U should see the amount of $ that goes out every month to keep a healthy business going! Now, yes, some of you seem to have been legitamitely ripped off! I feel for you...i would be in the same situation if i wasnt married to a plumber! Im proud to say that my husbands prices are fair..just this past memorial day wknd he left my moms party at 8pm to snake a toilet for an elderly woman...thirty mins away...and i charged her $190! For a holiday wknd emergency call half hour away!!! I guess i felt badly for her..but we dont charge that for every snake job! $300 is normal. We try to help when we can. Good luck to all!! |
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| Snake out drain from kitchen clear out |
| Amount: $148.00 |
| Posted by: Unhappy Bill in Ormond Beach, FL. | Posted: July 8th, 2011 05:07AM |
| Firm or Company: Roto Rooter | Difficulty of Access: Simple |
| Other Work: None |
I was very upset with the high bill from Roto Rooter today so I looked on the Internet to see if anyone else had a similar experience. I was surprised to see how many people have had similar experiences with Roto Rooter. Why should we have to pay so much for someone to do what anyone can do, that is turn on the motor and feed the auger snake into the line?
We called Roto Rooter to snake our line from outside the kitchen toward the street. To my utter amazement, the bill was $148 for a 10 minute job. I would have been disgusted with a bill half that amount for that job. After reading the complaints of others, I guess I was lucky that it wasn't higher than that. The service technician asked if I wanted a bottle of the drain cleaner liquid. I said no, it would be cheaper to get it at Lowes. I didn't realize that if I had gotten it, the bill would have been $180 instead of $148. The technician showed me the standard list of prices when I expressed displeasure at the high price he was charging. I have rarely been so disappointed at the price for what was done.
Next time I have a clogged line, I will go and rent the same piece of equipment that Roto Rooter uses and it will only cost $20 for 4 hours or $30 per day. That is the rental price I just found on the Internet. Fortunately, snaking a drain line can be done by almost anyone, it is not technical like working on your TV or computer. |
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| whole house clean out through roof vents |
| Amount: $350.00 |
| Posted by: Exorbitant prices in el paso, TX. | Posted: September 5th, 2011 09:09PM |
| Firm or Company: local co. | Difficulty of Access: easy |
| Other Work: double sink clog |
Should have SIGNED A CONTRACT BEFORE any work was done.Too expensive for work done running a snake down six vent pipes took less than an hour. I had to loan him a bucket and rags(inside the house), and provide the electricity while running the snake. Will go rent one and have honey-do next time. Thinking about it roofers climb on the roof tops just to give estimates and don't charge for it, don't know why it is such a big deal. The prices being charged for this non-technical easy work are not a good value. Sure there was a risk involved of going up on the roof, but he sat down to use the machine and my roof is not that steep. Besides I know how much it costs to run a business including advertising,insurance, employees, fuel,truck maintenance, regulatory fees. It was just not a good value. The plumber industry should rethink their rates, Maybe an hourly rate & charge for parts. They are charging more than some SPECIALTY doctors!...it's just ridiculous. |
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| How much is toooo much? Main cleanout |
| Amount: $175.00 |
| Posted by: Candy Copeland in Bellflower, CA, . | Posted: September 18th, 2011 01:09PM |
| Firm or Company: Jan | Difficulty of Access: |
Our main is clogged. Called first plumbing company and that guy said he'd have to dig up our main to the street, knock a hole in it , suck out the sewage when they broke into it, then put in a cleanout and replace the main pipe. Est. was $900.00.
Second guy/company said the same thing. Est. was $2800.00. We did have that companies crew with the snake camera come and look into the main with cameras. Cost, $175.00.
Is $2,800.00 to much? |
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| Unclogging the Main Line |
| Amount: $290.00 |
| Posted by: a user in Sarasota, . | Posted: September 25th, 2011 09:09AM |
| Firm or Company: Plumbing Today | Difficulty of Access: |
Excellent work, and found this site helpful in determining price fairness. |
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| Unclogging toilet and removing toilet |
| Amount: $335.00 |
| Posted by: Llo in Baton Rouge, LA. | Posted: October 28th, 2011 06:10PM |
| Firm or Company: Homecare 360° | Difficulty of Access: No |
| Other Work: No |
1st visit, applied 6' roto rooter $109, flushing was minimally improved but not all the way. Plumber explained the next step would be to remove entire toilet to see if there is an object causing the poor flushing pressure or if a new toilet is needed.
2nd visit, removed toilet and found child's toy lodged in toilet. Charge was $225 |
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| Unclogging shower and kitchen sink |
| Amount: $176.00 |
| Posted by: barlow in Neptune Beach, FL. | Posted: January 18th, 2012 07:01AM |
| Firm or Company: Bill Fenwick | Difficulty of Access: Difficult |
I helped get some gear up to the roof and hold the ladder. Shower drain was clogged and kithen sink required vent access on the roof to clear drain.
Wasn't sure what charges would be, this price was after a 25 dollar off coupon. |
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| Clearing Main Sewer Line with 100' power auger. |
| Amount: $150.00 |
| Posted by: William Thomas Schlosser in Lakewood, CO. | Posted: February 9th, 2012 09:02PM |
| Firm or Company: Afford -A-Rooter | Difficulty of Access: Easy |
Our main line was very clogged. We called a drain-cleaning company, and hired them to use a 100' line, to attempt to clear the line. We knew before hand that this may not completely clear the line, which is 200'. And in fact it didnt. But we were satisfied that he did his best; he recommended a sewer-jetting, to clear the built-up grease-like material lining the pipe. Problem solved. Total cost: $150+$485=$635.00 |
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| Cleaned uncleanable drain |
| Amount: $195.00 |
| Posted by: James Newton in jasper, IN. | Posted: June 20th, 2012 06:06PM |
| Firm or Company: Merkley's veriety service | Difficulty of Access: BAD |
after having three other plumbers try to clean my floor drain they all told me it couldn't be cleaned. after I told them all, I couldn't afford to replace it, all three told me I could try Merkley's. The last one knew there phone number so I called and they came out right away. They had no problem getting it open. I told the man who came out about what the other three had said and he seemed surprised and told me it wasn't that hard but all he works on is cleaning drains, so he has more tool's for that kind of work. They saved me $ 6.500.00 in replacement cost. |
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| Clogged Lateral |
| Amount: $98.00 |
| Posted by: Jmich in Milwaukee, WI. | Posted: June 22nd, 2012 01:06PM |
| Firm or Company: JME Electric | Difficulty of Access: Depends on tools |
Problem: City increased water pressure. New water volume was great for shower and sinks, however, the new volume also meant more water to drain. Apparently the house was doing fine with the lower water volume, but now, running a shower longer than 5 minutes was causing the basement floor drain to back up. House has two drain stacks in the basement that go from copper to cast iron. Cast iron is from 1965, both with access caps with a pentagon bolt. Problem: Caps seem welded on. Tried blow torch heat and breaker bar to loosen, no luck. Cut copper drain leading into stack w/ sawzall. Made sure to leave 5" of copper on top and bottom so I could slide the pipe I cut out back in and recouple with rubber couplers (fernco Model # P1056-33 from Home Cheapo)when the job is over. Use power auger down stack as planned before. Toughest part was getting it out. Used ladder as pulley and had son activate reverse switch. Problem alleviated. $26 for couplings, $62 for auger rental. 3 Hrs |
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| Clooged main drain |
| Amount: $585.00 |
| Posted by: Binder in Springfield, NJ. | Posted: December 11th, 2012 01:12PM |
| Firm or Company: AAA Able Plumming | Difficulty of Access: Easy |
Main drain clogged in basement, I had to open a finished wall to give the plummer access to the main drain, which I did before they arrived. I advise them that I didn't know how much water had backed up and that maybe it would be better to start to clear the drain from the bathroom directly above the main drain. They agreed, but also said the job would be be between $450 and $600 depending on if they go directly for the main drain or if they first start in the bathroom above. I didn't want to risk getting a flood in my basement since I had a finisher wood floor, so I opted to have them clear from the bathroom above first. They did this and then went to basement to open the main drain. There was no overflow, but it did take them some time to snake the drain ~25 feet. They also had to replace the drain cap since the original one had to be chisled off. they said that is typical on an old drain that has not been opened in years. The clog was caused by 4 pairs of boys underwear that was fished out by the snake. My 10 year old caught some flack for that. At least now he knows not to flush anything down the toilet (I hope). The plummers (two people), one guy and his wife(?) were here about 3 1/2 hours total. I was satisfed with their work, and I closed up the wall in the basement after they left. I was initially stunned by the $585 price, but after reading some of the stories in this forum, I decided that it was probably not too far out of line. |
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| Clogged toiled cleared in minutes |
| Amount: $110.00 |
| Posted by: Nancy Heifferon in Sacramento, CA. | Posted: March 4th, 2013 06:03AM |
| Firm or Company: Armstrong Plumbing | Difficulty of Access: Easy |
Plungers didn't work to clear the toilet so I called a local plumber that was highly rated in Angie's List. I was quoted the standard price for unclogging toilet on the phone. The plumber arrived within 2 hours of my call. He cleared the problem in under 30 minutes so I was charged the minimum price, which was $110. I had a coupon for 20% off for new customers, so the final bill actually came to $90. Judging from other reports on this site, the price was pretty reasonable and the service good. |
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