Main drain clog
There are exceptions, but when your drains are all backing up with water it usually means your main sewer pipe is
clogged and water is still entering but not able to go in the intended direction.
In my experience 90% of the time your mainline will back due to a nonworking clean out next to the curb.
To properly clean out the main sewer drain you need to have a 3" to 4" cleanout that is readily available. If you don't know where
it is, it's probably because it is buried underground like the one pictured above. The best way to deal with it is to have the
Plumber locate it with a camera and a location device. Use one of the referrals from this site (Contact a Plumber) and be sure they
have all of the proper equipment. After the location is made it's a matter of digging it up and replacing it.
Short of that you will most likely come up short. I have heard night mares about Plumbers taking
days to find the sewer pipe after digging up 90% of the front and back yards. A sewer camera will reveal what you need to see, and
a locating device will pinpoint where it is and how deep it is. Is it a big job? Yes. Is it the best way to go? Bar none. Can you
get by without doing it that way? Not unless you want the drains to backup again. Is it guaranteed that once the corrections have
been made I will never have a problem again? Pretty much. But it is guaranteed that cleaning roots out of the drain lines only trims them
back so they can grow back even thicker the next time.
