Drain Cleaning St. Louis Homeowners Trust
If your drain is slow, smelly, or backed up, we can clear it. Maplewood Plumbing has been clearing drains for St. Louis homeowners for over 40 years, taking care of kitchen sinks, bathtubs, showers, toilets, basements, and anywhere else a drain has stopped working the way it should. We’re a family-owned local team, fully licensed and insured, and every job we do is backed by a one-year warranty on parts and labor.
Call (314) 645-6350 or schedule an appointment online and we’ll come take care of it!
Drain Cleaning Services We Provide
A bathroom sink clog is a different job than a kitchen line with ten years of grease buildup. The right fix depends on what’s actually going on inside the pipe, which is why we don’t reach for the same tool every time. Most clogs come out with a snake. But the stubborn ones (recurring, grease-heavy, or root-related) usually need hydro jetting, which uses high-pressure water to scour the inside of the pipe completely. When the cause isn’t obvious, we send a drain camera down the line first so we know what we’re dealing with before we recommend anything. And if it turns out the issue is in your main sewer line, not an individual drain, we handle that work too.
How Our Drain Cleaning Process Works
When you call us about a clogged drain, here’s exactly what happens.
- We come out and diagnose the problem. For straightforward clogs, that’s a quick check at the affected drain. For recurring or hard-to-locate clogs, we’ll send a camera down the line so we can see what’s actually causing it.
- You get a written estimate before any work begins. No hourly billing that creeps up while we’re standing in your kitchen. No surprise charges added at the end. You see the price first.
- We clear the drain using the right method for the job. Snaking for most clogs, hydro jetting for buildup or recurring problems.
- We test the line before we leave to confirm water is flowing the way it should. If something isn’t right after we leave, we come back and make it right.
All work is backed by our one-year warranty on parts and labor (excluding washers.)
Why Homeowners Choose Maplewood Plumbing
We’re not the only St. Louis drain cleaning service, but we are the highest-rated. Here are a few reasons people keep calling us.
40+ years serving the metro area
We’ve been clearing drains in St. Louis since the 1980s. We know the neighborhoods, the older homes with cast iron drain lines, and the local quirks (clay soil, freeze-thaw cycles, century-old plumbing) that affect how drains behave around here.
Family-owned and locally operated
We’re not a franchise. When you call us, you get the same local team your neighbors call.
No subcontractors, no handoffs
The licensed plumber who diagnoses your drain is the one who clears it. Work doesn’t get passed off to another crew or another company.
Written estimates, always
You know what you’re paying before we pick up a tool.
One-year warranty on parts and labor
If something isn’t right after we leave, we come back and make it right.
Financing available
Drain cleaning isn’t usually a planned expense. If cost is the holdup, we can work with you.
Water You Waiting For?
Clogged drain? We can fix that. Call (314) 645-6350 or book online and we’ll get you on the schedule.
Signs You Need Drain Cleaning Services
Most drain problems show themselves before they back up completely. The early signs are easy to write off, but they almost always get worse.
Slow drains
A sink, tub, or shower taking noticeably longer to empty than it used to. If one fixture is doing it, the clog is usually local to that drain. If multiple fixtures are doing it at once, the issue is somewhere further down the line.
Gurgling sounds
A toilet that gurgles when you flush, or one drain that bubbles when you run water somewhere else. That’s air not moving through the line the way it should, which usually means a partial blockage is forming.
Bad smells
A persistent sewer-like odor from a drain, especially when nothing’s been used recently. That’s usually buildup trapping water and bacteria inside the pipe, and pouring something down the drain won’t fix it.
Water backing up
Water coming out of a drain instead of going down it. Once you’re seeing this, the clog has progressed past the early stage and needs handling now.
Multiple drains acting up at once
If more than one drain is slow or smelly at the same time, the issue is likely further down the line. That could be a main sewer line issue rather than an individual drain.
Recurring clogs
If you’ve cleared the same drain more than once or twice in the past year, something is going on beyond a typical clog. Usually it’s buildup along the pipe walls, a low spot in the line, or pipe damage catching debris.
What Causes Most Drain Clogs?
Most clogs build up slowly. The drain works fine for years, then starts moving a little slower, then a little slower, until one day it stops moving at all. Catching it before that last stage is the difference between a quick clearing and a real problem.
Grease
Grease is the biggest culprit in kitchen drains. It goes down the disposal looking liquid and harmless, then cools and sticks to the inside of the pipe. Once that layer starts forming, everything else has something to grab onto — food particles, coffee grounds, soap residue. Pouring hot water down after grease doesn’t help, by the way. It just moves the grease further down the line where it cools and sticks somewhere else. We’ve written more about why grease is such a problem and what to do with it instead.
Hair and soap
Hair and soap are the bathroom equivalents to grease. Hair catches on whatever it can find inside the pipe, and soap residue holds it in place. In homes with hard water, soap scum builds up faster.
Things that shouldn’t have gone down the drain
“Flushable” wipes that aren’t actually flushable. Cotton swabs, dental floss, feminine products, kids’ toys. Once those get past the trap, they catch everything coming behind them.
The pipe itself
Plenty of older St. Louis homes have cast iron drain lines that have been in service for decades. The inside roughens over time, which makes it catch debris that would pass through a smooth pipe without a problem.
Tree roots
Less common in interior branch lines, but possible where lines run under or near mature trees. Roots find their way toward small leaks and grow into the pipe.
How Much Does Drain Cleaning Usually Cost?
The final cost depends on the type of clog, how accessible the drain is, and which method we need to use. A simple snake on a single drain costs less than jetting a kitchen line with years of buildup.
There’s really no way to give you an exact number on a webpage. Anyone who does is either guessing or planning to revise it once they’re at your house. What we will commit to is a written estimate before any work starts, no surprise charges, and no upselling. And if cost is the holdup, we offer financing that lets you handle the work now and pay for it on terms that fit your budget.
Handle the Problem Now, Pay For It Later
A slow or clogged drain is the cheapest version of this problem you’re going to see. A backup costs more. And water damage from a backup costs more than that. If money is what’s keeping you on the fence, our financing options let you handle the work now and pay for it over time.
Two ways to reach us:
- Call (314) 645-6350 — we answer the phone during business hours and respond to emergencies after hours.
- Book Online — fill out the form and we’ll reach out to schedule an appointment.
