Blocked drains in Cape Town can quickly become a health, safety and property problem. The right response depends on where the blockage is located and whether it affects private plumbing or a municipal sewer line. What to do when a drain is blocked Stop using affected sinks, toilets and showers where possible. Check for visible overflow, avoid chemical drain cleaners if a pipe may be damaged, and arrange a professional inspection when the blockage returns or cannot be cleared

The old way. Putting the garden back is often the biggest line on an excavation quote. When a drain fails, the traditional answer is a trench. Find the pipe, dig it up, replace the broken section, fill it in, and put back whatever was on top, which is often the expensive part. Relining is the alternative: repair the pipe from the inside, without opening the ground. Here is how it works, and where it is and isn't the better choice. How cured-in-place lining works The method is

Survey kit set up on site. The camera goes in through an existing access point, so nothing has to be opened up. "Get a camera down there" is advice people hear a lot without ever being told what the camera is looking for. Here is what a survey actually finds, and when it earns its cost. What the camera is looking for A drain camera is a small waterproof head on a flexible rod, pushed along the inside of the pipe with the picture coming back live. A counter on the reel records

Inside a main line. Where the blockage sits decides whether it is your bill or the City's. Sewage is coming up somewhere it shouldn't. Before you call anyone, it is worth knowing who you should be calling, because getting this wrong costs you either a wasted day or a plumber's call-out fee. The short version The City of Cape Town's guidance draws the line at your property. Blockages on private property are the owner's responsibility, and the City's advice is to call a qualifi

The same pipe before and after relining. A pipe in the condition on the left blocks again and again, whatever you pour down it. Everyone has a drain remedy. Half of them work. A few of them will cost you a pipe. We line and repair pipes for a living, so we see the aftermath of the popular ones. Here is an honest ranking, from the ones worth trying to the ones we wish people would stop pouring down the hole. Worth trying: a kettle of boiling water For a slow kitchen sink, in t