cleaning perimeter drain with pressure washer

[Zeppelin]

My local rental company suggested I use their 3000 psi pressure washer to clean out my ceramic perimeter drains. They thought an auger would be too hard on the interior of these forty year old drains but that the pressure washer would do the trick and might even cut off some of the roots that have grown into the drains over the years. The washer comes with a 25 foot hose that should pretty well reach right through the drain from one corner to the next on the side of the house. What do you think?

[Local16 Omaha]

Don't know about the roots, but high pressure hose drain cleaners are the way to go as far I am concerned. I have seen them make pipes look brand new inside.

[Dennis/Ohio]

Zeppelin,
I'm assuming Jetter not pressure washer. A jetter will cut roots. Me being an old guy I can do most anything with cable also. Spinning cable with running water is what we had before jetters. Jetter is a pressure washer with a self-propelling nozzle. Multiple rear spray holes & usually one hole forward. The hose is usually more flexible and easier to be pulled through the pipe by water pressure.
Dennis.......
Restored 1961 Case 530 Hoe.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/big-hoov/sets/72157615220025494/show/

[Zeppelin]

Dennis,
When he showed the nozzle to me the spray holes were pointing backward at about a forty-five degree angle. I don't think there were any forward pointing spray holes. He mentioned in passing that it might cut some of the roots given the strength of the water spray. No guarantee on that.

The hose is fifty feet long, by the way, not twenty-five, so it is certainly sufficient for my house dimensions. I am just waiting for a mild, cloudy day without rain.

Bob

Originally Posted by Dennis/Ohio

Zeppelin,
I'm assuming Jetter not pressure washer. A jetter will cut roots. Me being an old guy I can do most anything with cable also. Spinning cable with running water is what we had before jetters. Jetter is a pressure washer with a self-propelling nozzle. Multiple rear spray holes & usually one hole forward. The hose is usually more flexible and easier to be pulled through the pipe by water pressure.
Dennis.......
Restored 1961 Case 530 Hoe.
Case Backhoe 530

[Kilroy]

Originally Posted by Zeppelin

Dennis,
When he showed the nozzle to me the spray holes were pointing backward at about a forty-five degree angle. I don't think there were any forward pointing spray holes. He mentioned in passing that it might cut some of the roots given the strength of the water spray. No guarantee on that.

The hose is fifty feet long, by the way, not twenty-five, so it is certainly sufficient for my house dimensions. I am just waiting for a mild, cloudy day without rain.

Bob

Not all Jetter heads have a foward spray. The foward spray helps clear the way so the rear spray can propell the hose and head foward.

[Zeppelin]

Well, I finally dug out all of the perimeter drains along the side of the house, about 27 feet of them in all. They are the old concrete two foot lengths of pipe laid side by side around the house. One corner had been stove in by the installation of a fence post on top of it. Thus, this corner [not the corner where the seepage entered the crawl space, by the way] was completely plugged with earth and roots. The others did not have any roots inside them as it turned out.

I am still planning to clean the front and back drains [all concrete] using the Jetter. First I want to get the new plastic drain tiles in place, however.

Thank you for your advice and input. Much appreciated.

Bob

[devdally]

Originally Posted by Zeppelin

My local rental company suggested I use their 3000 psi pressure washer to clean out my ceramic perimeter drains. They thought an auger would be too hard on the interior of these forty year old drains but that the pressure washer would do the trick and might even cut off some of the roots that have grown into the drains over the years. The washer comes with a 25 foot hose that should pretty well reach right through the drain from one corner to the next on the side of the house. What do you think?

Haven't seen roots or any of the sort being washed off by a pressure washer. Now that got me thinking.

[PeterTeamer]

We deal with this situation all day long. We own a state-of-the-art jetter and it works wonders on drains we service. Customers are always skeptical of using the jetter instead of cabling because it costs a good bit more. We made this video to show the difference to anyone who was questioning the effectiveness. Click on The Tampa Bay Virtual Plumber and search for drain jetting in the box to find the first entry.