Blocked drains are a fairly common occurrence in the Toowoomba region for a multitude of reasons: 

• We have highly reactive volcanic soil
• We are known as the ‘Garden City’ and have lots of old sewers combined with big trees (and their roots)
• We have cold weather, which causes the coagulation of greases and oils trapped in pipes

Blocked drains can be inconvenient, costly and quite simply disgusting. In some instances, like a broken drain cause by soil movement, there is very little that you as the home or business owner can do to avoid it. But there are several things that you can do, to reduce the likelihood of suffering from blocked drains in your home or workplace:

• Never flush anything that isn’t human waste or toilet paper down the toilet
• Ensure that you remove as much grease and debris from plates & utensils by scraping it into the bin/wiping with paper towel prior to rinsing in your sink
• Ensure that you regularly clean the grates in your bathroom shower/bath to remove hair and lint - never try and wash hair/lint down the drain - instead remove from the shower/drain and place in bin
• Don’t plant near sewer lines, particularly plants that are known to have invasive roots, the worst culprits in SE QLD are;
• Camphor Laurel
• Fig trees
• Rubber plants
• Poplars
• Willows

In the event, that despite your best efforts you do suffer from a blocked drain, we recommend you read our blog post ‘How do you know when it is time to call a plumber about your blocked drain?’