Tile Grout Dust & Clogged Drains

We have a newly-built house in Nashville that's only 4 years old and the garage drains are slow to drain. We suspect it's from winter debris and possible tile dust from sawing tiles. We requested information from our local home improvement store's rental department, but they were fearful it would break their cable knowing what I mentioned above. We would like advice on this clogged drain do we need to seek assistance from a Nashville plumber?

This happens a lot with newer homes because the tile guys rinse their buckets in the floor drain without realizing their causing potential plumbing problems.

Your local home improvement store was afraid to rent their equipment because tile dust will often solidify inside the pipe and turn into concrete. Given this, when someone tries to clear the line they will sometimes punch a hole through the plastic floor drain because the plastic is softer than the concrete.

Nashville plumbing professionals are often taxed with fixing the problem. I found one drain so full of grout (concrete), no water could pass at all. I ended up breaking up the floor and cutting open the floor drain so the homeowner could see the problem. Too bad this wasn't taken care of the first year as the contractor could have back charged the tile layer.

Once in a while, an experienced drain cleaner can get through the buildup, but there are no guarantees there will not be any damage.

For more Nashville plumbing tips visit our Web site or call 1-800-GET-ROTO to schedule service.