Fast & Affordable Drain Cleaning in the Ottawa Area
Drains Frank Clears
Orleans Plumbing handles blocked drains across Ottawa and the surrounding communities. Francois “Frank” Hetherington is a licensed Ontario plumber with 30 years in the trade, and he does the work himself rather than passing it to a subcontractor.
- Kitchen sinks — cooking fat that cooled and set partway along the horizontal run
- Bathroom sinks, tubs and showers — hair bound together with soap scum at the trap
- Toilets — blockages past the trap that a plunger cannot reach
- Laundry standpipes — lint and detergent residue that only overflow on a spin cycle
- Basement floor drains — usually a symptom of a main line problem, not a local one
- Main drains and sewer laterals — the line running from the house out to the street
How a Drain Cleaning Visit Works
Frank starts by working out which drain is actually blocked, because the fixture that overflows is not always the one at fault. A basement floor drain backing up when the washing machine empties points at the main line rather than the laundry.
From there the line is cleared mechanically with an auger sized to the pipe. What comes back on the cable head matters as much as the clearing itself: grease reads differently from root material, and root material means the blockage will return. Once flow is restored, Frank loads the line properly and checks it under a full run, because a partly opened drain will pass a running tap and still back up on a full bathtub.
Blocked Main Drains and Sewer Lines
A main line blockage shows itself differently from a single slow fixture. Several drains slow at once, a floor drain gurgles when an upstairs toilet flushes, or waste appears at the lowest fixture in the house. That is the main line telling you it cannot keep up.
Older Ottawa neighbourhoods carry older laterals, and mature trees find the joints in them. Clearing restores flow, but on a line that has broken down or sagged the blockage comes back on a schedule. Frank will tell you plainly which situation you are in rather than booking the same visit every spring.
Emergency Drain Cleaning
Sewage backing up into a basement is not a next-available-appointment problem. Orleans Plumbing runs a 24/7 emergency line separate from the office number, and it is answered by the plumber who will do the work.
Before he arrives, stop putting water into the system: no taps, no toilets, no washing machine, no dishwasher. Every litre that goes down has to come back up somewhere, and in a backed-up main it comes up at the lowest fixture in the house.
Booking Drain Cleaning in Ottawa
Office bookings run Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 5:00pm on (613) 424-6737, with the emergency line covering nights, weekends and holidays. Orleans Plumbing works out of 2946 Diamond Way in Navan-Vars and covers Ottawa, Orléans, Gloucester, Nepean, Kanata, Barrhaven and Rockland.
It helps to know which fixtures are affected, whether the problem is getting worse, and whether anything has been poured down the drain already. If you want the background on why a professional clear beats a bottle of chemical cleaner, that is covered in our guide to professional drain cleaning. To book, use the contact page or call.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I tell whether one fixture is blocked or the whole main line?
Run water at a fixture on another part of the house. If only one sink or tub is slow, the blockage sits in that branch. If several drains slow together, a floor drain gurgles, or waste appears at the lowest fixture when you flush upstairs, the main line is the problem and it needs clearing before anything else.
What should I do before the plumber arrives?
Stop running water anywhere in the house, including the dishwasher and washing machine. In a blocked main, everything you send down comes back up at the lowest point. Clear access to the affected fixture and to the basement cleanout if you have one, and note what has already been poured down the drain.
Do you clear outdoor drains and basement floor drains?
Yes. Outdoor drains, window well drains and basement floor drains are all part of the job. A floor drain that backs up is usually reporting a main line problem rather than a fault of its own, so Frank checks the main before treating the floor drain as an isolated blockage.
How long does a drain cleaning visit take?
A single blocked fixture is often cleared within an hour. A main line takes longer, because more cable has to go out and the line needs testing under a full flow afterwards. Frank gives you a realistic picture once he has seen which drain is affected and where the cleanout sits.
Do you handle commercial drains as well as residential?
Yes, for service and repair work. Blocked floor drains, washroom fixtures and kitchen lines in shops, offices and small commercial units are regular calls. Orleans Plumbing is a one-man business, so it suits service work rather than large construction contracts.