One slow or stopped drain
Drain cleaning for clogged sinks, tubs and laundry lines in Houston
The kitchen sink holds gray water after dinner, or the shower floor turns into a puddle halfway through. When only one fixture is slow, the clog is usually in that branch, and it clears without digging.
- We answer 24/7, nights and weekends included
- Out of South Belt, close to Beltway 8 and the Gulf Freeway
- Cable head matched to the pipe size before it goes in
Updated October 2026
Short answer
Drain cleaning in Houston for a single clogged fixture usually means running a small cable through the trap arm or the overflow, not opening a wall. A 1-1/2 inch kitchen line and a 2 inch laundry line take different cutters. If two or more fixtures back up together, the problem is downstream in the main line, which is a different job.
What to watch for
Clues that tell you where the clog is sitting
Only one sink or tub is slow
The clog is in that fixture's trap or branch line.
Gurgling from the sink when the dishwasher drains
Air is fighting past a partial blockage in the kitchen line.
Water in the shower pan that drains in minutes
Hair is building up close to the drain opening.
Washer standpipe overflows on the spin cycle
Lint is narrowing the laundry drain.
Toilet bubbles when a nearby tub drains
The blockage is further down and may be in the main line.
The job
Why one slow drain is a branch problem, not a sewer problem
Every fixture in your house drains through its own small branch before it joins the main. A clog that only affects the kitchen sink lives somewhere between that sink and the point where its branch meets the rest of the system. That's good news, because the fix is local. We pull the trap, check the trap arm, and run a cable sized for that pipe so the cutter scrapes the wall instead of punching a small hole through the blockage.
The test we always run first: does anything else gurgle or rise when this fixture drains? If the tub bubbles when the washer pumps out, the blockage is further down and you need main line clearing at the cleanout instead. If the clog comes back every few months in a kitchen line packed with grease, cabling only punches a hole, and jetting the line is the longer lasting answer.
The versions we see most
Kitchen sink drain clogs
Kitchen clogs build slowly. Grease goes down warm, cools in the trap arm and the horizontal run behind the cabinet, and catches rice, coffee grounds and eggshell until the sink drains in a slow swirl. A double sink that fills on one side when the other drains, or a dishwasher that leaves standing water, points the same way. We remove the trap, cable the arm and the line behind the wall, then run hot water at full flow to confirm it carries. If food scraps are part of the story, we check the disposal too, because a worn grinder sends larger pieces into the line.
Shower and tub drains
Bathroom clogs are mostly hair bound together with soap scum, and they sit close to the drain opening. You notice water around your ankles in the shower or a tub that takes twenty minutes to empty. Chemical openers rarely reach the mat of hair and tend to sit in the trap, which makes the pipe harder to work on. We pull the stopper or strainer, use a short hand cable or a drum machine through the overflow, and pull the hair out instead of pushing it further. Then we fill and drain the tub to check the flow.
Laundry and floor drains
A washer standpipe that overflows during the spin cycle is a common call. Lint, fabric softener residue and the occasional sock build up in the 2 inch line, and the washer pumps water faster than a partly blocked pipe can take it. Garage and utility floor drains clog with sand, leaves and dirt washed in from outside. We cable these lines with a larger head and, on a laundry line, check that the standpipe height and trap are right, since a short standpipe can siphon or overflow even when the pipe is clear.
Step by step
How a drain cleaning visit runs from start to finish
Find out which fixtures are affected
We run water at nearby fixtures to rule out a main line backup before anything else.
Open the access point
Trap, overflow plate or cleanout, whichever gives the cable the straightest path.
Cable with the right head
A cutter sized to the pipe goes in and works through the blockage.
Flush and test
We run full flow, fill the tub or sink, and watch it drain completely.
Explain what came out
You see what the cable pulled and hear whether it is likely to come back.
Local to southeast Houston
What older Houston drain pipe does to a simple clog
Plenty of houses around Houston still drain through cast iron branch lines under the slab and inside the walls. Cast iron dropped out of new home construction by the mid-1980s, and it can start to deteriorate about 40 years into use. As the inside wall roughens and scales, grease and hair grab onto it faster, so the same kitchen sink clogs more often than it did twenty years ago. When we cable an older iron line, we feel for that roughness and tell you what we found.
Talk to a plumber now
Any hour, any day. Tell us what you see.
Before you call
What you can try on a clogged drain before you call
| Situation | What you can safely do | When to call us |
|---|---|---|
| Bathroom sink draining slowly | Pull the pop-up stopper and clean the hair off it | If it is still slow after the stopper is clean |
| Tub or shower holding water | Remove the strainer and pull out hair with a plastic drain tool | If the water stands after the hair is out |
| Kitchen sink backing up | Plunge with the other basin plugged and the dishwasher hose clamped | If it fills again within a day |
| Washer drain overflowing | Stop the washer and clean any lint trap on the discharge hose | If the standpipe overflows on the next load |
| Several fixtures backing up at once | Stop running water and do not use chemical openers | Right away, since this is a main line clog |
Pricing
What sets the price of clearing a household drain
Most single-drain calls are short jobs. The price moves with how hard the clog is to reach and what we find once the cable is in.
Access to the line
An open trap under a sink is quick. A tub with no access panel or a drain with no cleanout takes more time.
What the clog is made of
Hair and soap clear fast. Packed grease or scale needs more passes or a different tool.
Length of the run
A kitchen sink far from the main has more pipe for the cable to travel.
Time of the call
Night and weekend calls are answered, and the timing can affect the visit charge.
Parts that need replacing
A cracked trap, worn slip nuts or a bad tub stopper are replaced as separate items.
Typical planning range: $100 - $800 for drain cleaning, per HomeGuide (Dece). That is a published range, not a quote. Your price comes after we look.
Common questions
Drain Cleaning questions from Houston homeowners
They can soften a light hair clog, but they often sit in the trap without clearing it. On old cast iron or a full clog they add risk, and they make the line harder to work on. We'd rather you skip them and call.
Usually grease that cooled in the trap arm and the line behind the wall. Cabling opens a path but leaves grease on the pipe wall. If it clogs every few months, jetting cleans the line back to the pipe.
Usually not. A camera makes sense when the same drain clogs repeatedly after cabling, or when we suspect a broken or sagging section under the slab.
Yes. A washer pumps water fast, and a narrowed standpipe overflows onto the floor during the spin cycle. Stop using the washer until the line is cleared.
If a toilet bubbles when you run the tub, or water comes up in a shower when the washer drains, more than one branch is affected and the clog is in the main.
Same system, different job
Related plumbing services
- Main Sewer Line CleaningBackups in more than one fixture cleared at the cleanout, roots included.
- Hydro JettingHigh-pressure water scours grease, scale and roots off the pipe wall.
- Sewer Camera InspectionA recorded camera run that shows breaks, bellies and roots before anyone digs.
- Garbage Disposal Repair & InstallationJammed, humming or leaking disposals freed, repaired or replaced.
Water still running?
Close the main shut-off if you can reach it, then call. We stay on the line while you do.