Hydro Jetting in Gainesville, VA

Gainesville homes and sewer service

Gainesville grew from a railroad and farm crossroads into a fast-growing suburb starting in the mid-1990s. The housing reflects that: only about 4% of homes in ZIP 20155 were built before 1980, and the 2000s were by far the biggest building decade. In practice that means plastic drain lines nearly everywhere, which don't corrode or build iron scale. What clogs them is everyday use: cooking grease that cools and sticks, soap and hair, food scraps from the disposal and wipes that never break down.

Prince William Water provides sewer service, and wastewater from western Prince William County is treated at the Upper Occoquan Service Authority plant. Prince William Water makes property owners responsible for the lines and connections on their own property, so a blockage between your house and the public sewer is yours to clear. If the trouble looks like it's in the street, Prince William Water's emergency dispatch line is 703-335-7990.

Snaking compared with jetting

Signs to watch for

• The basement or lowest bathroom drain backs up first
• Toilets gurgle when the washer drains
• The kitchen sink keeps needing a plunger
• A sewer smell near the outdoor cleanout

Timing notes

Many households see main-line trouble after holiday cooking, when extra grease goes down the kitchen sink. Getting a slow line jetted before that stretch saves a backup on a busy day. Winter cold doesn't usually affect buried sewer lines, but an exposed cleanout cap can crack, so check it in the fall. If the camera shows damage, Prince William County Development Services' Building Development Division handles plumbing permits.

When you call, mention the subdivision and whether the house has a finished basement with its own bathroom. A basement bath in a newer Gainesville home sometimes drains through an ejector pump, and that changes where the plumber starts. It also helps to know whether anyone has cleared the line before and what they found.