Drain Cleaning in Manitou Springs, CO

Manitou Springs homes and their sewer lines

Much of town was built between the 1880s and the 1920s, when Manitou drew visitors to its mineral springs. Cottages, boarding houses and stone homes climb the hillsides off Manitou Avenue, Ruxton Avenue and the side canyons, and many still drain through original clay or cast iron pipe.

Lots here are narrow and often terraced, so a house may sit well above or below the street. Laterals run down retaining walls, under stairs and sometimes beneath a neighbor's yard, which makes finding the cleanout the first job on many calls.

Because so many Manitou homes were converted into apartments or short-term rentals over the years, a single old lateral can be carrying far more water than it was laid for. Several kitchens and bathrooms on one aging line is a common reason a backup shows up in the lowest unit first.

What clogs drains in Manitou Springs

Roots from the cottonwoods and box elders along Fountain Creek and the canyon streets are the leading cause of main line backups. Silt and gravel washed in during summer storms can also settle in older laterals, and long cold nights in the shaded canyon freeze exposed drain lines in crawlspaces and on north-facing walls.

What drain work usually costs in Manitou Springs

Laterals that were laid a long time ago

A Manitou cottage built around 1900 may have had its sewer connection added later, rebuilt after a flood, and patched again when a new owner remodeled the kitchen. It's normal for a camera run here to show three or four materials in one line: original clay near the house, a cast iron section under a porch, and a stretch of PVC where someone dug up a failed joint. Each change of material is a joint, and joints are where roots and offsets show up.

That patchwork is why it pays to see the line before deciding anything. A plumber who simply runs a cable through can restore flow, but without video you won't know whether the next backup is a year away or a week away.

Creeks, storms and silt

Fountain Creek runs right through town, and the side canyons above it can send fast runoff down the streets in a summer thunderstorm. After the Waldo Canyon fire in 2012, the burn scar above Manitou made those flash floods worse for several years. Older laterals with open joints or cracked sections can take in sand and grit during heavy runoff, which then settles in low spots and catches paper. If a line started clogging after a big storm, tell the plumber, because jetting clears sediment far better than a cable does.

Homes near the creek also tend to have big cottonwoods nearby, and those trees send roots a long way toward any pipe that leaks a little moisture.

Steep lots and hidden cleanouts

Terraced yards, stone retaining walls and outdoor stairs are part of Manitou's charm, and they also hide sewer cleanouts. On many calls the first twenty minutes go to finding a way into the line. If you know where the cleanout is, clear the area before the plumber arrives. If you don't, it's worth having one located or added during the visit, so the next call is faster and cheaper.

For homes set well above the street, the lateral may drop steeply and then flatten out near the main, and that flat stretch is where solids collect.

A sensible plan for an older Manitou line

1. 01

   Restore flow first

   Clear the backup so the house is usable again, starting from the most accessible cleanout.

2. 02

   Scope the whole run

   Record the video and note the distance to each joint, root mass and change in material.

3. 03

   Decide on the worst section

   One bad section can often be repaired on its own. Many failures along the line point toward lining or replacement.

4. 04

   Plan around the trees

   If roots return each year, book cutting in late winter before they wake up.

Signs your Manitou line needs attention

• The lowest apartment or bathroom backs up first
• Toilets gurgle after a heavy afternoon storm
• A sewer smell near a retaining wall or stairway
• A soft or sunken spot in the yard over the line
• Slow drains that come back within months of a cleaning

Rentals and short-term stays

Many Manitou homes host guests through the summer, and guests flush things owners wouldn't. Wipes, paper towels and cooking grease are the most common culprits. A clear note in the bathroom and kitchen helps, and so does a scheduled cleaning before the busy season. If a rental lateral is old, a camera check in spring is cheap insurance against a backup with a full house.

Mineral water and old cast iron

Manitou's famous springs carry dissolved minerals, and the town's tap water is a separate supply, but the area's water in general is moderately hard. Over many decades, scale builds up inside old cast iron drain stacks and horizontal lines in basements, narrowing them from the inside until a modest amount of grease or paper is enough to stop them. If your Manitou home still has its original cast iron, a plumber can descale it with a chain cutter or jetter rather than replacing it, as long as the walls of the pipe are still sound. The camera tells you which.

Cast iron that has rusted through along the bottom, a condition plumbers call channeling, is a different story. It leaks into the soil or the crawlspace and usually needs that section replaced.

Before you call about a Manitou drain

Say roughly when the house was built, whether it's been divided into units, which fixtures are affected and whether there's a known cleanout. If you're on a steep lot, mention it, along with any stairs or tight access to the side of the house. Those details let a plumber bring the right equipment the first time, which matters on Manitou's narrow streets where parking a work van close to the house isn't always possible.