Floor Drain Cleaning in Denver, CO
The basement floor drain is the lowest opening in most Denver homes, which makes it both the most-ignored drain in the building and the most important early warning device you own. When wastewater appears there, the system is telling you something significant.
Two very different problems
The floor drain itself is blocked
Debris, sediment, laundry lint and rust scale collect in the drain and its trap, especially in a drain used only for the occasional water heater flush. Water pools around it but the rest of the house drains normally.
The main line is blocked and this is the relief point
Far more serious. If water — particularly wastewater — rises out of the floor drain while other fixtures are in use, the main sewer is obstructed downstream and the lowest opening is acting as the overflow. Stop all water use and call.
Treat backed-up water as contaminated
Wastewater from a main line carries bacteria. Keep children and pets away, wear gloves and boots, ventilate, and disinfect thoroughly after the line is cleared. Porous materials that were soaked generally need to be discarded.
Maintenance
- Pour a gallon of water into each unused floor drain monthly so the trap does not dry out and admit sewer gas
- Keep the strainer in place and free of debris
- Note whether your drain has a backwater valve — many older Denver basements do not, and adding one is worthwhile in backup-prone properties
- If the drain has an accessible cleanout plug, keep it accessible rather than under storage
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Talk to a drain specialist, not a call center
Describe what the drain is doing and we will tell you what it likely is, what it takes to fix it, and what it costs — before a truck is dispatched.