Hydro jetting clears a blocked drain with water at high pressure. A jetting hose goes down the pipe, and the jets cut through tree roots, fat and grease, wipes and silt and wash the pipe walls clean as the hose works along the line. Craig uses a hydro jetter on sewer and stormwater lines around Tanunda, Nuriootpa and the rest of the Barossa, and puts the drain camera down if the same line keeps blocking.
What hydro jetting clears
- Tree roots that have grown into older sewer lines, especially clay pipes with a joint every metre or so.
- Fat and grease in the kitchen sink line.
- Wipes and sanitary items in toilets and the main sewer line.
- Leaves and silt in downpipes, stormwater lines and pits.
- Built-up waste that narrows the pipe a little more every year.
Because the water scours the inside of the pipe, jetting tends to leave the line cleaner than just poking a hole through the blockage.
How a jetting job runs
- Find the line. Craig works out which drain is blocked and where to get in: an inspection opening, a yard gully or a stormwater pit.
- Jet it clear. The hose goes down the line and the water cuts through the blockage, then washes the pipe walls on the way back.
- Camera if it keeps coming back. If the line has blocked before, the CCTV drain camera goes down to show why.
- Talk it through. You’ll hear what caused it, whether the pipe is in good shape, and what any repair would cost before it goes ahead.
Jetting or a repair?
Jetting clears a pipe. It doesn’t fix one. If roots got in through a cracked or broken joint, they will grow back, and a pipe that has sagged will keep collecting waste in the low spot. When that happens, the camera shows exactly where the damage is, and only that section needs digging up and replacing. Our post on blocked drains and tree roots goes into why roots keep coming back.
Drain blocked right now? Ring Craig on 0499 319 297.
Drains around Tanunda
A lot of Tanunda houses are old, and plenty still have clay sewer pipe under them. Those joints are where roots get in, so slow drains and gurgling toilets in the older streets off Murray Street are often a root problem. In autumn, leaves fill gutters, downpipes and stormwater pits, and getting them jetted before the first big rain stops water banking up against the house.
Out at Bethany, Rowland Flat and Vine Vale, many properties are on septic rather than sewer. More on our plumber in Tanunda page.
Drains around Nuriootpa
In town, it tends to be kitchen grease, wipes and tree roots in the sewer line, for homes and for the shops and cafés on Murray Street. If you run a business, mention your trading hours when you book. On the blocks out at Light Pass, Penrice and Stockwell, stormwater and septic lines are the regular jobs. More on our plumber in Nuriootpa page.
Septic and CWMS lines
Jetting can clear a blocked line between the house and a septic tank, and the camera can check it. A full tank is a different job: we’re plumbers, so we don’t run a pump-out truck, and a tank that needs emptying needs a pump-out contractor. On the Barossa Council’s CWMS, the council says to check your boundary inspection point first: if it’s full of water, the blockage is likely in the council’s drain. Our septic and wastewater page covers the repairs and new systems Craig does.
Before you ring
- Stop using the blocked drain so water or waste can’t back up.
- Note which fixtures are playing up. When the toilet, shower and sinks all go slow together, the blockage is usually in the main sewer line.
- If you know where the inspection openings or the yard gully are, that helps.
- Sewage coming up inside is a 24/7 emergency call.
Our blocked drains page has more on the signs, the causes and how Craig clears them.
We’re based in Williamstown and work right across the Barossa Valley, Gawler and surrounds, including Tanunda, Nuriootpa and Lyndoch. Ring Craig on 0499 319 297, call Hayley in the office on (08) 8472 9507, or send us the details.
Sources
- The Barossa Council: CWMS connections (sewerage overflows or blockages)
- SA Water: Sewer blockages and overflows
Rules and schemes change. These sources were last checked on 19 October 2026. Licence: LIC PGE341299.
More from the blog
- Blocked drains and tree roots: signs, causes and fixes
- CCTV drain inspections: what the camera shows and when you need one
- Stormwater drainage problems: pooling water, overflowing pits and blocked downpipes
- How often should a septic tank be pumped out in the Barossa?
- Gas leak or burst pipe: what to do before the plumber arrives
- No hot water? What to check first, and when to call a plumber
- Heat pump, gas or solar hot water: which suits a Barossa home?
- Plumbing a rainwater tank into your house in SA
- Bathroom renovations in the Barossa: how the plumbing side works
