A sink, toilet or outside drain in Dundee can block for many reasons. Where the water backs up tells you a lot. One slow sink points to a local fault, but several fixtures at once point to the main drain.
If your flat shares a drain with neighbours, the fault may not be yours alone. Citizens Advice Scotland says the owners of a shared pipe are jointly responsible, and the title deeds usually say who pays. Check yours before you agree a price, since a shared pipe that leaves your boundary is a public sewer.
Our guide to how drains get blocked and cleared explains the usual causes and fixes. Our guide to drain unblocking on the Fife coast covers the causes, the fixes and who owns each pipe.
These are guide ranges for the whole UK, not Scottish quotes. They give a starting point for Dundee. Rodding and jetting each have their own range, although the guides overlap.
Some quotes include the call-out and some add it on top. Ask which applies before you agree, because the totals can differ by £50 or more. Keep the quote to check the final bill.
A drain unblocking job in Dundee tends to follow one path. The price should come before the work, since it is hard to compare quotes afterwards. Each step below shows what to say and what to ask.
Name the fixtures that back up and where water pools. This helps the engineer bring the right tools. Add your postcode and mark the request urgent if it is.
Ask for a written quote before work starts. Ask whether there is a call-out charge on top, since some firms add one. Check what the quote covers.
The engineer picks a method to suit the pipe and the blockage. Rods and jetting both clear many home drains, while a camera helps with stubborn ones. Ask why they chose that method, because it affects the price.
Once the blockage clears, run the taps and flush to test it. Ask what to change so the drain stays clear. Keep the quote in case it blocks again.
Note when the problem started. A sudden block often points to an object, while a slow one points to build-up. The list below shows what usually blocks a home drain.
A short list of questions keeps quotes easy to compare, since call-out charges and methods vary. Ask them before you agree to work, and note the answers. Clear answers are a good sign, however vague ones are a reason to ask again.
Wear gloves and clear leaves and silt from the gully by hand. Wash well afterwards. If water still backs up, the blockage sits deeper, so send a request for an engineer.
MyJobQuote gives £80 to £150 for an outside drain, and Book A Builder gives £80 to £150 for basic unblocking. These are UK guides, not Scottish quotes, so a written price is still the figure that counts. Ask whether a call-out charge applies.
Citizens Advice Scotland says the owners of a shared pipe are jointly responsible, and the title deeds usually say who pays. Scottish Water's guidance says a pipe that leaves your boundary, or joins pipes from another property, is a public sewer. Ask the engineer where the blockage sits before you agree who pays.
If rods do not clear the pipe, the blockage may be deep or hard. For example, drain jetting in Dundee can reach where rods stop, and CCTV drain surveys in Dundee shows what sits inside the pipe. Ask the engineer which one suits your drain.
This page covers the whole service, while a narrower page may fit your job better. Read about external drain unblocking or internal drain unblocking.
Nearby towns have their own pages for this service, although council details differ from place to place. See drain unblocking in Newport-on-Tay or drain unblocking in Wormit. Pick the page for the town where the property sits.
Read the Drain Unblocking overview for causes, costs and questions to ask, since it covers every town on this site. You can also browse all drainage services in Dundee, which lists every service for this town. Then use the form at the top of this page to send your request.