When Snaking Isn't Enough
Some clogs come back no matter how many times you cable them. If any of these sound familiar, jetting likely solves the problem for good instead of every few months.
We'll ask about the history of the clog: how often it happens, whether snaking has helped before, and which line is affected. If it makes sense, we may run a camera first to confirm jetting is the right call. You'll get a confirmed arrival window.
We access the line through an existing cleanout wherever possible and run the jetting hose the full length of the pipe. We control the pressure based on the pipe's condition and material, and we can follow up with a camera pass to confirm the wall is actually clean.
We test drainage across the affected fixtures, clean up around the cleanout access point, and explain what the jetting removed so you understand what was building up in the line.
High-Pressure Drain Specialists
Hydro jetting sends water at high pressure through the full width of the pipe, scouring the wall clean instead of punching through the middle of a blockage. PlumbSmart uses it on kitchen lines, main drains, and any pipe that keeps clogging despite regular cleaning.
We can follow a jetting job with a camera pass so you actually see the clean pipe wall, not just take our word for it. If a jetted line clogs again shortly after, call us and we'll come back and make it right.
You'll get a clear price before we start based on the line length and what we're clearing, and we keep you posted if anything changes once we're in the pipe.
A cable does one job well: it breaks through whatever is currently blocking the pipe and restores flow. What it doesn't do is clean the rest of the pipe wall, where grease, scale, and root hairs keep building up out of sight. That's why some drains clog again within weeks of being cabled, even though the cleaning worked at the time.
Hydro jetting solves that by cleaning the entire circumference of the pipe, not just carving a channel through the middle. For a kitchen line that's seen years of grease, or a main drain with root growth at several joints, it's often the difference between fixing the problem and just delaying it.
Jetting works on the buildup that regular cabling tends to leave behind. We size the pressure and nozzle to the pipe, since older or more fragile pipe needs a gentler pass than newer PVC.
A jetting service typically removes:
Did you know that approximately 9-13% of our service calls are to come out to fix other companies' mistakes?
From Downtown to the Suburbs
Mature trees in older San Antonio neighborhoods mean more root intrusion, while newer suburbs tend to see more grease-related buildup in kitchen lines. PlumbSmart brings jetting equipment sized for both, across the metro area.
Diane Mcelroy
Recent Google review
I am having a weird issue with intermittent dampness in my garage. Roger spent about 1.5 hours trying to locate the problem. He assured me it was not a plumbing problem and told me not to worry about the service call.
Andrew Schaffrinna
Recent Google review
Joey was extremely knowledgeable and friendly. Excellent service, excellent advice, went above and beyond by providing me with recommendations on how to prevent future issues. Highly recommend.
Kristi Lopez
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So happy with our new system! The team was absolutely fantastic! Thank you!
Svetla McPhie
Recent Google review
PlumbSmart was the only plumbing company that responded the same day to fix a leak. Excellent work and coordination. All over great team.
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Hydro jetting uses a hose that shoots water at high pressure, up to around 4,000 PSI, through the full width of a drain or sewer pipe. Unlike a cable, which pokes a hole through a clog, jetting scours the entire pipe wall clean, removing grease, scale, and root growth in one pass.
A cable clears a path through whatever is blocking the pipe, which works fine for a simple clog but leaves buildup along the walls. Jetting cleans the full diameter of the pipe, so buildup that would catch debris again in a few weeks gets removed instead of just pushed aside.
We check the pipe's age, material, and condition with a camera before jetting. Modern PVC and cast iron in reasonable shape handle it well. If a line is severely deteriorated, we may recommend a gentler cleaning method or a repair first, and we'll tell you plainly if that's the case.
If a drain or main line keeps clogging every couple of months despite regular cleaning, or a camera inspection shows grease coating or root growth along the pipe wall, jetting usually solves it where cabling only offers a temporary fix.
Yes, jetting is one of the most effective ways to clear root intrusion from a pipe. It won't repair a crack the roots grew through, though. If the camera shows the root caused actual pipe damage, we'll talk about a repair alongside the jetting.
Did you know that approximately 9-13% of our service calls are to come out to fix other companies' mistakes?
From the Blog
Practical tips and local insights from the PlumbSmart team.
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We reach for a jetting hose instead of a cable when a customer tells us the same drain has been cleared three or four times in the last year. That pattern almost always means the pipe wall itself is coated with grease or scale that a cable never touches, since a cable only opens a channel through the center of whatever is blocking the line.
Root intrusion behaves the same way. A cable can chew through roots that have grown into the pipe, but the stubs left behind catch debris again within a few months and regrow. Jetting strips the roots back to the pipe wall, which buys considerably more time before the line needs attention again.
We size the pressure to the pipe every time. A newer PVC main can handle a strong pass without issue, while an older, more brittle line gets a lighter touch, sometimes paired with a camera check first to confirm it can take the jetting safely. PlumbSmart has run this equipment on lines across San Antonio for years, from grease-heavy kitchen drains to sewer mains dealing with decades of root growth.