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Drain Cleaning in South Florida
Same-day clog clearing for sinks, showers, toilets, and main sewer lines.
Total’s licensed plumbers clear drains for South Florida homes and businesses
Total Repair Pros has cleared drains across Miami-Dade, Broward, and South Palm Beach since 1970. Kitchen sink slow? Shower backing up? Main sewer line pushing water back into the house? We diagnose the cause first, clear it with the right tool for the job, and run a camera inspection when the cause is unclear or the clog keeps coming back. No chemical pour-downs. No upsells. Written, flat-rate quote before any work starts.
When You Need a Drain Cleaned
Most drain clogs start with a small, ignorable symptom and end with water on the floor. Catching them early saves the floor, the cabinet, and a few hundred dollars. Here’s what to look for, what causes it, and what NOT to do while you wait for us.
Signs Your Drain Needs Service
Any one of these is a call. Two or more in the same house often means the main line, not the individual fixture.
Most common early sign. A partial clog catching small particles. Easy fix now, expensive fix later.
Full or near-full clog. Water can’t get past. Same-day call.
Air trying to escape past a partial blockage. Often a vent or main-line warning sign.
Organic buildup or a dried-out P-trap. Either way, time to inspect.
Almost always a main sewer line issue, not the individual fixture. Stop running water and call us.
Classic main-line indicator. Air is being displaced through the toilet’s water seal because the line below it is blocked.
Drain at one fixture pushes water out at another. Main-line clog forcing water back the only path it can find.
Backflow or a slow leak below the slab. Camera-and-locate visit recommended.
Common Causes of Drain Clogs
Where the clog lives tells us what caused it. Different fixtures, different culprits.
Cooking grease, food scraps, coffee grounds, fibrous foods (celery, potato peels, rice). Grease coats the inside of the pipe and traps everything else.
Hair, soap scum, toothpaste residue. P-trap is usually where it collects.
Hair, soap, and South Florida hard-water scale. Often resolved at the strainer or drain branch.
Too much paper, “flushable” wipes (they aren’t), feminine products, kids’ toys. Most clear with an auger.
Tree roots growing through joints, broken or collapsed pipe sections, decades of grease and paper buildup. Common in older South Florida homes.
The vertical drain line collecting washing-machine standpipes from stacked units. Lint accumulates on the pipe wall over years and eventually restricts flow, backing up laundry rooms unit-by-unit up the line. Usually cleared with a heavy cable or hydro jet through a roof cleanout.
Vertical drain line for stacked kitchen sinks. Cooking grease is the main culprit. It coats the interior over time and eventually blocks it. Hydro jetting on a scheduled program keeps kitchen stacks flowing.
The primary vertical waste line serving toilets, showers, and bathroom sinks up the tower. Blockages typically require hydro jetting from the roof. When the soil stack backs up, multiple units feel it at once.
Leaves, sand, sediment, debris. South Florida storms move a lot of material into drains. Annual clearing is reasonable.
Lint and detergent residue at the standpipe branch. Different from a full laundry stack. This is the single-fixture branch drain that connects your washer to the stack.
Grease that bypassed the trap, food solids, scale. Requires regular hydro jetting on a maintenance schedule.
What NOT to Do About a Clogged Drain
Skip the chemical drain cleaner
Pour-down chemical cleaners (Drano, Liquid-Plumr, and similar) are tempting because they’re cheap and at the store. They also cause more problems than they solve.
- They can damage older galvanized, copper, and PVC pipes with repeated use
- They burn the inside of porcelain fixtures and rubber seals
- They rarely clear a real clog. Most clogs are physical (hair, grease, roots), not chemical
- If we have to snake a drain that has standing chemical cleaner in it, the diagnostic visit costs more because we have to neutralize it first
If a drain is backing up: stop running water through it, stop pouring anything down it, and call us. If multiple fixtures are backing up at once, also stop using the toilet. That’s a main-line issue and adding more water makes the backup worse.
How We Clear Drains
Different clogs need different tools. The wrong tool either doesn’t fix the problem or damages the pipe. Below are the four methods we use, in the order we typically reach for them, with what each one is actually good at.
Cable (Drain Snake)
Best for: most kitchen, bathroom, and single-fixture clogs.
A motorized cable with a cutting head spins through the pipe and bores through the clog. Fast, effective, and minimally invasive. We size the cable to the pipe (a 1/4-inch cable for a bathroom sink, a 3/4-inch for a main line) so we clear the clog without scoring the pipe wall.
Hydro Jetting
Best for: main sewer lines, recurring clogs, restaurant grease lines, root-clogged lines.
A high-pressure water stream (3,000-4,000 PSI) blasts through the clog AND scrubs the inside of the pipe clean. Removes the entire layer of buildup. The right tool when the clog keeps coming back or the line has decades of grease, scale, or roots.
Sewer Camera Inspection
Best for: recurring clogs, real estate due diligence, locating broken pipe or root intrusion.
A waterproof camera on a flexible push-rod travels through the drain or sewer line, recording what we see. We locate the exact spot of a clog, break, root intrusion, or pipe collapse. Camera shows the “why” so we fix the cause, not just the symptom.
P-Trap & Manual Drain Clearing
Best for: P-trap clogs, jewelry or small-object recovery, sink-side fixes.
Sometimes the clog is right at the trap under the sink. A hair clump, soap mass, or a ring someone dropped. We disconnect the trap, clear it manually, reseal, and test. Quick and inexpensive when this is the right call.
Drains We Clear
If it carries water down and out, we clear it. Single-family, condo, multi-family, and commercial.
Including double-bowl and disposal-connected drains
Single and double vanity
Drain branches and overflow lines
Auger-clear and full reset when needed
House-to-street lateral. Cable or hydro jet from cleanout.
Vertical washer-drain riser through stacked units. Cable or hydro jet from the roof.
Vertical kitchen-sink riser through stacked units. Hydro jetting for grease buildup.
Single-fixture branch drain connecting your washer to the stack.
Garage, laundry room, mechanical room, common areas.
Patio, pool deck, driveway French drains.
Maintenance-schedule hydro jetting available.
Scheduled stack jetting programs, COI & W-9 on file, unit-access coordination.
Drain cleaning is covered under a Total Home Service Warranty
Florida’s only local, in-house home service plan. Plumbing repairs (including drain cleaning) covered under one flat annual price. No trip charges, no co-pays, unlimited service calls, and the same in-house Total plumbers you’d see on every other call.
Starting at $375/yr for the AC + Plumbing plan · monthly plans also available
See Home Service Warranty pricing →Family-owned South Florida since 1970. Full home coverage (plus electrical + appliances) available on the higher tier.
Drain Cleaning FAQ
How fast can you get out to clear my drain?
For most drain calls in Miami-Dade, Broward, and South Palm Beach, we dispatch same-day. For active backups, we work to be there within hours. Call (954) 900-6767 and we’ll give you an honest window.
Should I try chemical drain cleaner first?
No. Pour-down chemical cleaners are cheap and at the store, but they rarely clear a real clog (most clogs are physical, not chemical), and repeated use damages pipes, fixtures, and seals. If we have to clear a drain with standing chemical in it, the diagnostic costs more because we have to neutralize first. Skip the chemical, call us.
What’s the difference between a drain snake and hydro jetting?
A drain snake (cable) bores a hole through a clog. Hydro jetting blasts the clog AND scrubs the entire inside of the pipe clean. Snake is faster and cheaper for most single-fixture clogs. Hydro jet is the right call for main lines, recurring clogs, restaurant grease lines, and any line where buildup is the real cause.
Why does my drain keep clogging?
Three common reasons. One: the original cause was never removed. A snake bored a hole but the buildup is still on the pipe wall. Two: something physical is wrong with the pipe. A sag, a break, a root intrusion, or a collapsed section. Three: usage patterns (grease down the kitchen, hair without a strainer, kids and wipes). Camera inspection sorts it out so we fix the cause, not just the symptom.
Do you do main sewer line cleaning?
Yes. Main line clearing is one of our most common calls. We snake first when appropriate. For recurring main-line clogs, root intrusion, or commercial grease lines, hydro jetting is usually the better tool. We can run a camera before or after to confirm.
When do I need a camera inspection?
Three scenarios. One: the same drain has clogged twice in a year. Two: you’re about to spend money on main-line work and want to confirm what’s actually wrong. Three: you’re buying or selling a home and want documented condition of the sewer line. Real estate buyers often catch $5,000-$15,000 repairs this way before closing.
Can you clear a clogged toilet?
Yes. Most toilet clogs clear with a closet auger, including paper, wipes, and small foreign objects. If the clog is past the toilet (in the branch drain or main line), we may pull and reset the toilet to access from below. We bring a new wax ring on the truck.
Do you clear restaurant or commercial grease lines?
Yes. Commercial grease line maintenance is best handled on a scheduled hydro jetting program. Usually quarterly or monthly depending on volume. We provide COI and W-9 for commercial accounts and can build a maintenance contract.
How much does drain cleaning cost?
Every drain call is different, so pricing is quoted on site rather than published up front. The cost depends on the fixture (single sink vs main sewer line), the method (cable, hydro jet, camera, manual), how accessible the drain is, and whether the clog has caused any recurring damage. Call (954) 900-6767 for an honest range for your situation, or schedule a diagnostic visit and we’ll give you a written, flat-rate quote before any work starts.
Do you offer warranties on drain cleaning?
Every Total drain clearing carries a written workmanship warranty. If the same drain backs up at the same spot within the warranty window because of the same cause we cleared, we come back. (We can’t warrant against new clogs from new debris. Like a hair clump that builds up over six months. But we can extend the visit window with a maintenance plan.)
Areas We Service
Same-day drain cleaning across Miami-Dade, Broward, and South Palm Beach County. Click any city page to learn more about our services within the area.
Miami-Dade County
- Aventura
- Bal Harbour
- Coral Gables
- Cutler Bay
- Doral
- Hialeah
- Homestead
- Kendall
- Miami
- Miami Beach
- Miami Gardens
- Miami Lakes
- North Miami
- North Miami Beach
- Pinecrest
- Sunny Isles Beach
- Surfside
Broward County
- Coconut Creek
- Cooper City
- Coral Springs
- Davie
- Deerfield Beach
- Fort Lauderdale
- Hallandale Beach
- Hollywood
- Margate
- Miramar
- Pembroke Pines
- Plantation
- Pompano Beach
- Sunrise
- Tamarac
- Weston