Drain Cleaning in Arboles, CO

Arboles homes and their sewer lines

Arboles homes are spread out: ranch houses, manufactured homes, cabins and lake houses on lots and acreages along Highway 151 and the county roads toward Navajo State Park. Many are weekend or seasonal places owned by people from Durango, Pagosa Springs, Farmington and farther away.

There is no town sewer in Arboles. Homes use their own septic systems, and most draw water from a private well or a water tap from a small supplier. Septic permits and repairs go through Archuleta County's public health office.

Because almost every house here is on septic, the drain line from the house to the tank is the one that matters most. Most were laid in plastic, but older places can have clay or cast iron that has been patched over the years.

Arboles drain problems

Most Arboles drain calls trace back to septic systems and to houses that sit empty. A tank that hasn't been pumped, a building sewer that freezes while nobody is home, or a crowd of lake guests using far more water than the system expects can all back up a house over a holiday weekend.

Arboles drain cleaning price ranges

Arboles and Navajo Lake

Arboles sits where the Piedra River and the San Juan River arms of Navajo Lake reach into Colorado. The lake is held back by Navajo Dam, downstream in New Mexico, finished in the early 1960s, and Navajo State Park wraps around the Colorado shore at Arboles. The lake made Arboles a place for boaters, anglers and second homes, which shapes how its drains are used: busy summer weekends, quiet winters and houses that sit empty for weeks.

On the Southern Ute Reservation

Arboles lies inside the boundaries of the Southern Ute Indian Reservation, set up in 1878, and its post office dates from December 1882. Highway 151 links it to Ignacio to the west and to US 160 near Chimney Rock to the north. The nearest towns with full services are Ignacio, Bayfield and Pagosa Springs, and supplies or parts for a plumbing repair can be an hour's round trip.

Septic systems, not a sewer

There is no public sewer in Arboles. Every home has its own septic tank and leach field, and how well that system works depends on its age, its size and how it is used. A tank sized for a couple year-round can be overwhelmed by a lake house full of guests running showers, dishwashers and laundry for a long weekend. When the tank fills with solids, they move into the leach field and clog the soil, and fixing a field costs far more than pumping a tank.

Septic permits, repairs and new systems in Arboles go through the county's public health office. If you are buying a home here, have the septic system inspected and the tank pumped before closing.

Wells, water taps and hard water

Most Arboles homes draw from a private well or a water tap from a small supplier. Well water around the lake can be hard, and hard water leaves scale in drain lines, on fixtures and inside water heaters. Scale narrows drains over time and gives grease and soap something to cling to. If your water leaves white crust on faucets, the inside of your drains looks much the same.

Empty houses and frozen lines

Winter at Arboles is cold and dry, with clear nights that drop well below zero. A lake house left at a low thermostat, or one where the furnace quits while the owner is away, can freeze the drain line where it leaves the foundation or runs under a manufactured home. Before leaving for the season, drain water lines, pour RV antifreeze in traps, keep heat on if the house stays plumbed, and ask a neighbor to check in after a cold snap. A plumber can thaw a frozen drain and check for cracks.

Fish, grease and cabin kitchens

Kitchen drains in Arboles take a beating in summer. Fish cleaning scraps, cooking grease and food from big meals all go into one small line feeding a septic tank. Grease cools and hardens in the pipe, and in the tank it forms a thick scum layer that shortens the time between pumpings. Bag fish waste for the trash, wipe pans before washing and skip the garbage disposal if you have one.

Helping a plumber find you in Arboles

Addresses around Arboles can be hard to find at night, and phone signal near the lake is patchy. When you call, give the county road and a landmark, such as the turn off Highway 151 onto County Road 982 toward the state park, and mention any gate code or locked driveway. Say whether the home is on septic, where the tank lid and the outside cleanout are, and whether the house has been empty. A plumber who arrives knowing all that spends less billed time searching and gets your drains running sooner.

When an Arboles drain backs up

1. 01

   Stop using water

   In an Arboles house on septic, extra water can push more into a full tank.

2. 02

   Check the tank

   If every drain is slow, the septic tank may need pumping.

3. 03

   Look at the leach field

   Wet, smelly ground over the field means a bigger septic problem.

4. 04

   Find the cleanout

   Most Arboles homes have one outside where the line leaves the house.

Arboles warning signs

• Gurgling toilets after a busy weekend at an Arboles lake house
• Slow drains throughout the house all at once
• Sewage odor near the Arboles septic tank lid
• Soggy ground or bright green grass over the leach field
• A drain that won't flow after the house sat empty in winter