Problems This Service Solves
- Kitchen or main line that clogs again a few months after being snaked
- Grease-packed restaurant or commercial kitchen drain lines
- Heavy scale and sludge in older cast iron drains
- Root intrusion that a cable machine only trims
- Slow drains throughout the house with no single clog to find
- Preparing a sewer line for camera inspection or pipe lining
If your drain has been snaked more than once and still backs up, the clog isn’t the problem — the buildup on the pipe walls is. Hydro jetting uses high-pressure water through a rotating or rear-facing nozzle to strip grease, soap scale, mineral deposits, sludge, and roots off the entire inside of the pipe and flush them out to the sewer. It’s the most complete way to clean a drain line, and it’s what we recommend when standard drain cleaning keeps buying you only a few months.
When Jetting Is the Right Tool
- Recurring kitchen and main line clogs from years of grease and soap.
- Cast iron drains in pre-1975 Houston homes that have narrowed with rust scale.
- Root intrusion — jetting cuts roots back to the pipe wall instead of trimming the middle.
- Commercial kitchens, restaurants, and multi-family buildings where grease volume overwhelms a cable machine.
- Before pipe lining or a camera inspection so the pipe wall is visible and the liner bonds.
How We Do It
- Camera first. We inspect the line to confirm it’s structurally sound and identify what’s fouling it. Jetting a collapsed pipe wastes your money, so we check before we start — see sewer camera inspection.
- Right pressure and nozzle for the pipe material, diameter, and buildup — grease, scale, and roots each call for different heads.
- Jet from the cleanout working upstream and downstream, flushing debris toward the main sewer.
- Camera again so you can see the clean pipe wall and we can confirm nothing structural was hiding under the buildup.
Jetting vs. Snaking vs. Chemicals
Chemical drain cleaners don’t clear main lines and damage pipe over time. Snaking is fast and right for a one-off clog. Jetting is the reset button — it restores the line to close to original capacity and, paired with the camera, tells you whether the pipe itself needs attention. If it does, our sewer line repair team, including trenchless options, picks up from there.
Hydro jetting is priced on site after a free look, and like every Hugo Plumbing job the price is in writing before we start.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between hydro jetting and snaking a drain?
A cable machine (snake) bores a hole through a clog so water can pass, but leaves most of the grease, scale, and root mass on the pipe wall, which is why the same line often clogs again in months. Hydro jetting uses water at several thousand PSI through a specialized nozzle to scour the full inside diameter of the pipe and flush the debris out, restoring the line to nearly its original capacity. Snaking is the right call for a simple one-time clog; jetting is for lines that keep coming back or are packed with grease or scale.
Is hydro jetting safe for old pipes?
Yes when it is done correctly. We camera the line first to confirm the pipe is intact and choose the pressure and nozzle for the material and condition. Jetting will not damage sound cast iron, PVC, or clay. What it can do is reveal a crack or collapse that was already there and had been hidden by the blockage, which is exactly what you want to know before spending more money on cleaning.
How much does hydro jetting cost in Houston?
It depends on which line, its length and access, and how heavily it is fouled. A residential main line is a different job from a commercial kitchen line packed with years of grease. We quote it on site after a free look, and pair it with a camera inspection so you can see the result and confirm the pipe is in good shape.
How often should a restaurant have its drain lines jetted?
Most restaurants and commercial kitchens in Houston benefit from jetting every 3 to 12 months depending on volume and how well the grease trap is maintained. A schedule is far cheaper than an emergency backup during dinner service, and we can set one up alongside grease trap service.
Need hydro jetting in Houston?
Schedule online or call (713) 409-7176. Serving Houston, Texas and surrounding communities including Humble, Kingwood, Spring, The Woodlands, Cypress, Katy, Sugar Land, Pearland, Pasadena.