Dealing With Outdoor Plumbing Blockages

AM PM Plumbing • Apr 22, 2022

Beware of Outdoor Plumbing Clogs

Most homeowners are acutely aware of the common plumbing problems in the home. Clogged sinks and backed-up toilets can be a constant battle in most homes. However, outside the home, trouble can be brewing. Outdoor plumbing fixtures are thought about less, but they can cause trouble more frequently in many cases.

Outdoor plumbing clogs are a common problem in the spring. With more frequent rainfall and changes in the weather, problems forming last season have had several months to get worse. Here is a quick guide from local plumbers to help homeowners keep an eye out for problems in their outdoor plumbing.

Common Sites for Outdoor Clogs

Plumbing located outside has to deal with a much harsher environment than the plumbing inside a home. While a kitchen sink has to deal with food scraps, outdoor plumbing deals with changing weather conditions and neglect. Here are a few common sites for outdoor plumbing problems:

Irrigation Systems: Most watering systems have sat idle for a season. This can cause clogs or breakages in irrigation lines.
Pool Pumps and Drains: Pools that have been winterized can fall victim to debris that clogs pumps or rust forming in pumps and drains.
Fountains and Water Features: Debris from the wintertime can accumulate in decorative outdoor landscaping, making it impossible to get them started up during spring cleaning.
Landscape Drains: Drains that move water away from a home tend to get clogged with debris.

What Causes Outdoor Pipe Clogs?

The environment that outdoor plumbing is in makes it more susceptible to problems. It may not seem like that, but that is mostly because outdoor plumbing isn’t used as much as indoor plumbing, so it isn’t as noticeable when it fails. But, outdoor plumbing mostly clogs from a lack of management due to its location outside.

Some features are designed to make well-designed outdoor plumbing systems more reliable. For example, landscape drains always have strainer baskets to keep debris out, but they are rarely emptied, which allows debris to build up in the pipes. Additionally, irrigation systems clog because of a lack of good winterization practices.

How are Underground Pipe Clogs Cleared?

One may not use outdoor plumbing fixtures as much as a bathroom’s plumbing indoors, but it needs to be fixed immediately when it fails. Clearing a clogged pipe in outdoor plumbing seems like a daunting process since the pipes may not be easily accessible, but plumbers have the right tools. For most outdoor pipe clogs, hydro-jetting is the right solution.

Hydro-jetting is a process that uses a powerful tool to clear clogs from the inside of the piping. A hose with a powerful water jet is fed into the affected pipe. Then high pressure from the hydro-jetting head blasts away every clog and leaves the insides of the pipes clean, allowing water to flow through them again. Hydro-jetting can also be done on a schedule to prevent clogs from ever forming in the first place. It is the perfect addition to any spring cleaning checklist.

About AM PM Plumbing

AM PM Plumbing is the local one-stop shop for all plumbing and drain needs. They have over a decade of experience in leak detection and clog removal. Call today for professional and experienced plumbing service in Murrieta, CA.

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