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An All Purpose Plumbers technician clearing and reseating the P-trap under a kitchen sink beside the garbage disposal
BONDED & INSURED · SINCE 2020
5.0 on Google · 4 reviews

Drain cleaning in MD, DC and Northern VA

All Purpose Plumbers clears the sink, tub, toilet or floor drain that's backing up across MD, DC and Northern VA, then tells you why it blocked. The look and the written price are free. If the line needs a repair, we say so. We won't keep clearing it.

Call (240) 695-4415Request a Free Estimate

Signs a drain needs clearing

One slow drain is usually that fixture. Several at once usually means the line they share.

  • Slow draining sink or tub
  • Standing water in the shower
  • Gurgling from another fixture
  • Repeat blockages in the same line
  • Smell coming from the drain
  • More than one fixture affected

What changes the price

  • Which fixture it is and how far down the clog sits
  • Whether there's a cleanout we can use or we have to make access
  • What's causing it, because grease, roots and a dropped toy each take a different tool

Clear it once, and find out why

Clearing a drain takes minutes. Finding out why it blocked is what keeps you from calling us again next month.

One drain or the main
A single slow sink is local. Several slow drains at once, or a toilet that gurgles when the tub empties, points at the main line, and that is a different job.
Cleared to suit the pipe
We pick the tool to suit the pipe. Old cast iron and thin drain lines get a lighter hand than a modern PVC line.
Run until it flows
Afterwards we run water down the line until it flows at full bore. A small channel punched through the clog doesn’t count.

How every job runs →

When a drain keeps blocking

If the camera shows a sagging section, a broken joint or roots that grow back every season, we'll tell you and price the repair. We won't keep charging you to clear a line that's going to block again.

Picking the right machine matters just as much. A cable punches through a single clog, roots at one joint or something that went down by mistake. A jetter scrubs years of grease off the inside of a kitchen line. Jetting costs more per visit, and it's often the last visit you pay for.

We tell you which one your line needs before we start. Running the cheaper machine through a greasy line only books the next call a few months out.

Before you book drain cleaning

It clears today and blocks again next month.

We run the line until it flows full again, then tell you why it blocked and whether it’s likely to happen again. We won’t sell you a fourth clearing on a line the camera says needs a repair.

Being talked into a camera you do not need.

One clog in a fixture drain does not need a camera. A camera is priced separately, in writing, for a line that keeps blocking. What drain cleaning costs.

Forcing it damages old pipe.

We pick a cable or a jetter to suit the pipe. While you wait, skip the chemical cleaners. They often don’t work and they eat at older pipe. A drain bladder on a garden hose can blow out an old joint too.

Not knowing when the plumber is coming.

A slow drain can wait a day or two. One backing up into the house is scheduled within 48 hours, and the booking text tells you when.

When drains clog around DC

January is a peak month for drain cleaning, because holiday grease hardens in cold lines. Wipe the roasting pan out with a paper towel before it goes in the sink. Read why drains keep clogging.

Estimates booked seven days a week

Get a free drain cleaning quote

  • A camera only when the line keeps blocking
  • Drain work carries our 60 to 90 day warranty

Or call us

(240) 695-4415

Request Drain Cleaning

We take insurance jobs. Financing may also be available for qualifying projects. Ask when you call.

How the job runs

  1. 1We figure out whether it's that one fixture or the line it drains into. More than one slow drain makes it a different job.
  2. 2We clear it with a cable or a jetter sized for that pipe.
  3. 3We run water through until the line flows at full bore again.
  4. 4You hear why it blocked and whether it's likely to happen again.

Questions we get about drain cleaning

Should I use a chemical drain cleaner first?

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We'd rather you didn't. They often don't shift a real blockage, they eat at older pipe, and whoever opens the trap afterwards gets a face full of chemicals.

It cleared, then blocked again a month later. Why?

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Because whatever caused it is still in there. It's usually grease coating the pipe, roots at a joint, or a low section holding water. A camera tells us which in a few minutes.

What is a drain camera inspection and when do I need one?

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A camera inspection feeds a small waterproof camera down the drain so you can see what is in the pipe, such as roots at a joint, a grease build-up, a crack or a sag holding water. You need one when the same drain keeps blocking, when several drains back up together, or before anyone quotes a repair to the line. For one sink that clogged once, you usually don't.

How long does a drain cleaning appointment take?

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We don't publish a set time. One clogged fixture drain is a short job. A main line cleared from a cleanout takes longer, a camera run after it adds more, and a buried or hard to reach cleanout adds more again. The arrival window comes by text, and the plumber can tell you which kind of job it is once the line has been checked.

Will drain cleaning damage older pipes?

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It can, if the wrong tool goes into the wrong pipe. A cable sized for the line is gentle on old cast iron and clay. High pressure jetting can open a crack or break through a weak spot in a line that is already damaged. That is why an older line gets checked, often with the camera, before we pick the tool. Chemical drain cleaners do more harm to old pipe than either one.

What is the difference between drain cleaning and drain repair?

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Drain cleaning clears what is inside the pipe, like hair, grease or roots. Drain repair fixes the pipe itself when it is cracked, sagging, pulled apart at a joint or collapsed. If a drain keeps blocking after it has been cleared, the pipe is usually the problem, and another cleaning won't fix it. We say so and price the repair.

How do I know the clog is really cleared and not just pushed down?

⌄
Watch it take a full flow of water. We run water through until the line drains at full bore again, because a blockage that was only shoved further along slows the flow again once real volume reaches it. Ask the plumber what caused the clog. A clog that was cleared has an explanation. On a drain that keeps coming back, the camera settles it, since you can see a clean pipe wall for yourself.

How do I check reviews for a drain cleaning company near me?

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Read the Google reviews that mention drains, and read the bad ones too. Look for the same complaint more than once, such as a clog that returned in a week or a price that grew on the day, and check whether the owner answers. Ours are few. All Purpose Anytime Services, the company behind this brand, holds a 5.0 rating from 4 Google reviews, and some of them are for drywall and remodeling jobs. All of them are on our reviews page.

Which drain is it?

Tell us which drain is slow and whether anything else in the house is gurgling or backing up. A drain backing up into the house goes ahead of routine work and is scheduled within 48 hours.

Call (240) 695-4415Request a Free Estimate

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