Drain Cleaning in Collbran, CO

Collbran homes and their sewer lines

Collbran homes are mostly older frame and brick houses on the town grid, with ranch houses and manufactured homes around them and on the surrounding valley land.

The Town of Collbran runs water and sewer, funded by monthly user fees, and treats wastewater in two aerated lagoons northwest of town on the north side of Plateau Creek. Ranches outside town use septic.

Many Collbran houses have clay or cast iron drains that have been in the ground for generations.

Collbran drain problems

Collbran drain calls center on old pipe: roots in clay service lines under big shade trees, worn cast iron under kitchens, and frost in a mountain valley sitting at nearly 6,000 feet. Septic calls come from the ranches up and down Plateau Creek.

What drain work usually costs in Collbran

A ranch town under Grand Mesa

Collbran is the largest community in the Plateau Valley, a ranching valley strung along Plateau Creek between De Beque Canyon and the slopes of Grand Mesa. The post office opened in 1892 and the town incorporated in 1908; it built a water system with fire hydrants in 1911. The Bureau of Reclamation's Collbran Project later developed much of Plateau Creek's water for irrigation, and Vega Reservoir and Vega State Park sit up the valley. A Job Corps center has operated near town since 1965.

The town is small and spread along a few streets, with ranch land starting right at the edge of the grid.

Aerated lagoons and user fees

The Town of Collbran runs its own water and sewer, paid for entirely by monthly user fees rather than taxes. Wastewater flows to two aerated lagoons northwest of town on the north side of Plateau Creek, with a lift station serving Plateau Valley School. A small system like this has limited money for big projects, and news reports more than a decade ago described parts of it as worn. The town maintains the mains; the service line from each house to the main belongs to the owner, and that is where most Collbran backups start.

Old clay and big shade trees

Many Collbran houses sit on lots shaded by cottonwoods, elms and willows that are as old as the houses. Their roots find the joints in clay sewer laterals, especially in the warm months when irrigation keeps the ground wet. The first sign is usually a slow toilet or a gurgle in the tub; the next is a backup in the lowest drain. Root cutting clears the line, and a camera inspection shows how many joints are letting roots in and whether a section has cracked.

Cast iron inside older homes

Inside, older Collbran homes often have cast iron drains and stacks. Over decades, cast iron rusts and builds rough scale on the inside, which catches grease and food scraps until a kitchen line closes. Descaling with the right cutting head, or hydro jetting, can restore it if the pipe walls are still sound. If a camera shows the bottom of a pipe rusted through, replacing that section is the lasting fix.

Cold mornings at almost 6,000 feet

Collbran sits near 6,000 feet with Grand Mesa rising above it, and cold air settles into the valley on clear winter nights. Drains in north-facing walls, crawlspaces and unheated additions are the ones that freeze. Keep cabinet doors open on outside walls, keep a little heat in any room with plumbing, and if a drain stops on a cold morning, stop running water and call rather than forcing it.

When a Collbran drain backs up

1. 01

   Stop the water

   Shut off the washer and dishwasher until the line is clear.

2. 02

   Find the cleanout

   On most Collbran lots it is a capped pipe near the foundation or out toward the street.

3. 03

   Check for town work

   If neighbors are backing up too, the problem may be in the town main; call Town Hall.

4. 04

   Describe the house

   Tell the plumber its age and whether roots have been a problem before.

Collbran warning signs

• A toilet that needs two flushes
• Gurgling in the tub when the toilet flushes
• A slow line every summer
• Water in the lowest floor drain
• Sewer odor near the cleanout

Ranches up the valley

Ranch homes outside town use septic systems, often with long lines and tanks set well away from the house. Busy seasons with extra people in the house can fill a tank faster than usual. Pump it on schedule, keep livestock and vehicles off the field, and call when drains slow rather than waiting for a backup.

What a Collbran visit costs

Most Collbran jobs are line clearing and root cutting. Plumbers usually come from Palisade, Clifton or Grand Junction, so travel is part of the bill. Ask what a visit should cost before work starts.

Vega, Grand Mesa and seasonal crowds

Collbran's population is small, but summer and fall traffic heading to Vega State Park, Grand Mesa and the hunting units above the valley fills cabins, guest houses and RVs on ranch land. A guest cabin plumbed to the main house's septic tank, or a camper dumping into a cleanout, can overload a system built for one family. If your Collbran property hosts hunters or summer guests, pump the tank before the busy season and ask the plumber to check the line from any added cabin while they're there.

In town, the same seasonal rush brings more grease from cooking for a full house. Wiping pans before washing them keeps that grease out of an old cast iron line.