Roto-Rooter | Trusted and Recommended since 1935

Thanksgiving creates more drain clogs than any other day

November 23rd, 2011 by

The day after Thanksgiving is the single busiest of the year for Roto-Rooter, nationwide and for our plumbers here in Atlanta. Why? Big holiday meal preparation and cleanup can lead to clogged kitchen sinks and garbage disposals. Extra guests mean more toilet flushes, extra laundry loads,

Never pour cooking oil or grease down the drain

more showers, etc. But oddly enough, Thanksgiving itself is not such a busy day for Roto-Rooter. It’s the next day, Black Friday, that gets absolutely crazy! The day after Thanksgiving is the single busiest day of the year for Roto-Rooter plumbers. Incoming calls will jump 50% above an average Friday. We’ll be slammed but thanks to good planning, we’ve staffed up here at Roto-Rooter Plumbers of Atlanta (and nationwide). We know what’s coming and we’ll be fully staffed to deal with all the extra calls so we can still get to your problem FAST!

If you want to avoid having the Roto-Rooter man over for Thanksgiving Dinner (or turkey sandwiches the next day), pay attention to these important tips:

  • Never pour fats or cooking oils down drains. They solidify in pipes. Instead, wipe grease from pots with paper towels and throw them into the trash.
  • Avoid putting stringy, fibrous or starch waste in the garbage disposal.
  • Make sure disposal is running when you put food into it. Don’t wait until it’s full to turn it on.
  • For homes hosting weekend guests, wait 15 minutes between showers so slow drains have time to do their job.
  • Never flush cotton balls, swabs, hair or facial scrub pads down a toilet. They don’t dissolve and will cause clogs.

Finally, Roto-Rooter of Atlanta does not charge extra for nights, weekends or holidays. It’s true! So if you’re dealing with a big clog and are fearful of a plumber’s holiday bill, don’t worry! Call Roto-Rooter’s experienced Atlanta plumbers and you’ll pay the same rate on Thanksgiving that you would pay on any other day. And we are a 24-hour plumbing company. Give us a call at 404-209-0001 in Atlanta. Nationally, you can call Roto-Rooter at 1-800-ROTO-911.

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Roto-Rooter gives its customers choices

November 7th, 2011 by

Root-infested pipe

When it comes to solving customers’ plumbing problems, there are usually a few options. Sometimes, there’s the quick fix or band-aid that costs less but isn’t always the best long-term solution. But that decision is the customer’s to make, not necessarily the plumber’s. You know what you can afford, we don’t. We know that plumbing problems can be expensive and that’s why Roto-Rooter plumbers here in Atlanta and across the country try to provide our customers with as many options as possible so they can decide for themselves which option is right for them.

Take the case of our core business, sewer and drain cleaning. Our company was founded on the invention of a machine that cuts rootsand debris out of underground sewer pipes. We can do that for our customers year after year and

Video inspection of a sewer pipe

sometimes several times a year at hundreds of dollars per service call, without ever offering our customers a permanent solution that will fix the problem once and for all and will probably mean that the customer will never again need to call us to cut roots out of their sewer line. For many years, Roto-Rooter has been providing spot repairs and complete sewer line replacements that often cost thousands of dollars. We call this a permanent fix and wouldn’t we be remiss if we didn’t offer this choice to our customers who have problematic sewer pipes?

Would you want to take your car to a mechanic for the same problem several times a year withous his ever offering you a permanent fix? Probably not. In fact, you would probably be very angry with your mechanic for stringing you along with a problem that never goes away while he continues to profit. So why should it be any different with your plumber? The choice belongs with our customers but we feel it is important to give them that choice. If you want choices from your plumber, call your local Roto-Rooter.

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Tampa Sewer Backup Caused by Bad City Sewer Line

October 6th, 2011 by
Roto-Rooter, one of the top Tampa plumbing companies, recently investigated a residential sewer back up only to find out that the problem wasn't with the customer's sewer at all. The backup turned out to be caused by a broken city sewer line that affected the customer's sewer. Roto-Rooter alerted the city and made sure the problem was fixed quickly. But while completing the sewer line inspectionwith a fiber optic camera, we discovered that there was actually a bad section of pipe in the customer's sewer line that was allowing raw sewage to leach from the pipe and into surrounding soil. Additionally, the pipe was offset and was already catching toilet paper and debris to form a clog. It hadn't yet blocked the line but it was only a matter of time. The customer opted to fix the line now rather than wait for the problem to manifest itself into a full-blown sewer clog.  Our Tampa plumbers did a nice job replacing the bad section of pipe and added a cleanout port that will allow for easy access if future cleanings are required. Great work and the customer couldn't be more satisfied. If you have a sewer backup in the Tampa area, call the Tampa plumbingcompany that offers complete sewer solutions, Roto-Rooter. We can be reached at 813-980-6000.

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5 Ways your Holiday Guests Could Ruin your Thanksgiving

November 16th, 2010 by

Five ways your guests (or you) could ruin your Thanksgiving holiday. (click here to view video)

1. Pouring fats or cooking oils down kitchen drains. Those turkey juices are loaded with grease that cools and solidifies inside Never pour grease or oil down the drainyour pipes, coating the walls and building up to cause kitchen sink drain clogs. Use the garbage can to dispose of grease, not the drain.

2. Putting stringy, fibrous or starchy waste down the garbage disposal. Almost every dish in a traditional Thanksgiving meal is a potential drain clogger, especially in quantity: Celery for the stuffing, potato peels, fruit peels, sweet potatoes, turkey skin, rice and pasta. And remember, this stuff finds its way into the drains during meal preparation and while rinsing or washing the dishes.

3. Not running the disposal each time waste is put inside. You should turn on the disposal each time something goes inside then let the water run long enough to push it through the drainpipe. Roto-Rooter plumbers regularly find garbage disposals completely clogged with peelings and other waste. By the time the user thinks about turning it on, it’s often too full and can’t sufficiently grind up the huge amount of waste, leaving a sink full of dirKeep peelings out of the garbage disposalty water that won’t drain.

4. Not allowing a few minutes between showers and baths can cause the drains to back up. Encourage your guests to wait at least 10 minutes between showers and baths to give slow drains a chance to drain out completely. Too many showers or baths in a short space of time could spell disaster and cause a main sewer clog and backup or septic system failure.

5. Flushing cotton balls, cotton swabs, facial scrub pads, makeup remover pads, baby wipes and tampons will cause a major toilet clog. These items do not dissolve in water and should never be flushed. They can create major clogs.

Thanksgiving is hard on your plumbing. All those extra guests can mean more showers, more laundry loads, more toilet flushes and more stuff down the garbage disposal.  You may already follow these rules but will your guests? The day after Thanksgiving is the busiest day of the year for Roto-Rooter Plumbing & Drain Service, North America’s largest provider of plumbing repair and sewer and drain services. Most of the time, the homes Roto-Rooter plumbers visit over Thanksgiving weekend already had partially clogged drains that went almost unnoticed until the guests arrived. The kitchen sink and garbage disposal get a lot of use during big meal preparation. And there are lots of extra toilet flushes, laundry loads and showers causing drains to become overwhelmed and blocked. Thanksgiving is the perfect storm for residential plumbing.

The good news is that Roto-Rooter is your 24 hour plumbing company, seven days a week, 365 days a year! Our local offices will be fully staffed to handle all calls quickly so you won’t have to wait long. And many Roto-Rooter locations do not charge extra for nights, weekends or holidays. Just call 1-800-ROTO-911 (1-800-768-6911) or click here to schedule service on-line.


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To Roto-Rooter’s Cincinnati Plumbers- A picture is worth a 1,000 words, make that $$$$!

June 29th, 2010 by
OK, first let me say I know that spending money on plumbing and drain cleaning is rarely ever fun, however, doing it SMARTLY can SAVE YOU BIG MONEY when it applies to your main sewer line. Most of us assume the main sewer line connecting our home or business to the city sewer is in good working order until the dreaded day comes when it backs up, leaving disgusting sewage damage. Make no mistake that sewer pipe beneath your property is YOUR responsibility, not the city's. By taking a proactive approach and calling Roto-Rooter, your Cincinnati plumbing experts, to schedule an inexpensive sewer line camera inspection, a Roto-Rooter of  Cincinnati Plumber / video inspection expert will feed a small video camera through your sewer pipe to look for cracks, offset pipes, signs of collapse or any sign of trouble at all. Then he will provide you with a DVD of the inspection for your records. In the event there are any problems, he will give you several options to treat or remedy the situation. By taking this SMART approach you CAN:
  • Identify potential problems early, often saving thousands in costly damage repairs and avoid the nasty possibility of a sewer clog and backup.
  • Schedule any necessary repairs at your convenience instead of requiring an emergency service.
  • PLAN for and BUDGET any required repairs.
  • If you are considering BUYING a home in Cincinnati or Northern Kentucky, this service is a MUST!
  • If you are considering SELLING a home in Cincinnati or Northern Kentucky, the DVD with a dated time stamp proving your house has a healthy, reliable main sewer line is a great selling point!
  • If you are considering REMODELING or FINISHING your BASEMENT in Cincinnati or Northern Kentucky it is an absolute MUST to protect your INVESTMENT!
Remember Roto-Rooter the next time you need a trustworthy Cincinnati plumber. Call us at 513-631-2525 or visit our web page for more information.

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Municipal Scale Plumbing & Sewer Service in Pittsburgh

June 29th, 2010 by

Area municipalities, engineering firms, commercial development, and industrial relations professionals should be aware that the Pittsburgh plumbers at Roto-Rooter Pittsburgh have unrivaled experience with excavation, pipe relining, pipe bursting and CCTV service (Closed Caption Television Video) for inspection of sewer lines of any pipe size/diameter.

A common misunderstanding is that Roto-Rooter Plumbing & Drain Services only handles minor residential sewer clogs with cable machines. While that was true for the first few decades the company was in business, Roto-Rooter branched out and began offering more advanced plumbing services in 1980 when we began installing sewers and performing all manner of plumbing work.

Roto-Rooter Pittsburgh has grown considerably and will continue to grow into a giant municipal services provider. We're acquiring new CCTV equipment, even larger excavation equipment and we are currently doing large municipal excavation jobs for Forest Hills Borough and continual CCTV work for Penn Hills Borough of Pennsylvania.

I was recently on the Forest Hills job talking to a borough representative whose exact words were, "I am so impressed with Roto-Rooter and what they have done so far. Honestly I was so skeptical about the hiring process for the bid during the qualification process. But you guys are blowing me away with the scope of work you're doing for us."

While Roto-Rooter Pittsburgh is still the Pittsburgh plumbing company of choice for drain clogs and residential plumbing and repair, our business and community leaders should not overlook us when they require expertise for advanced engineering services. Roto-Rooter is the Pittsburgh plumber to trust at home or at the office.  Call us at 412-793-9200 or visit our home page to learn more.

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