Drainage & Blockage Removal

To prevent blockages, it's important that the pipework is correctly sloped and properly connected. Of course, blockages cannot be entirely avoided; for instance, in the kitchen, grease gradually forms a layer inside the pipes, significantly reducing flow, eventually leading to a complete grease blockage.

In such cases, you cannot clear the blockage yourself, and it's sensible to call a specialist who will professionally remove the blockage with a 16mm coiled cable. Pipes with larger diameters (from 110mm) are cleaned with a 22mm coiled cable, and major blockages are cleared with high-pressure jetting.

WC blockages often occur because unsuitable waste is flushed down the toilet, such as spoiled food, hair, wet wipes, etc.

The following items should not be flushed down the toilet:

• Paper towels
• Sanitary pads
• Tampons
• Nappies
• Make-up remover pads, cotton buds, cotton wool
• Hair
• Packaging
• Foil, plastic
• Food waste (coffee grounds, bones, grease, chewing gum, etc.)
• Medicines
• Chemicals

Locating and removing sewer blockages often consumes considerable time and resources, but all of this can be avoided and prevented by not contaminating sewer pipes with unsuitable waste and objects.

Also, be careful with drain cleaning chemicals. Using unknown chemical cleaning agents is not safe; therefore, for every chemical, the instructions for use must be known, as incorrect use can damage the pipework, leading to additional costs for pipe replacement. Thus, it is more effective and correct to seek professional help.

If a blockage has already occurred, call in the professionals.

We always start with diagnostics: we determine whether it's a local blockage in one appliance or a problem with a shared riser affecting the entire stairwell. This dictates both the method and who orders the work – the apartment owner or the apartment association.

• Mechanical cabling with 16mm and 22mm coiled cables
• Hot and cold water high-pressure jetting for sewer pipes and manholes
• Cleaning of vertical sewer risers in multi-storey buildings
• CCTV drain surveys to identify the cause of the blockage
• Cleaning of grease traps and settlement tanks

The primary area where we resolve blockages is Tallinn and its neighbouring municipalities. In Tallinn city centre, Lasnamäe, Mustamäe, Õismäe, Kristiine, Põhja-Tallinn, and Nõmme, a crew typically arrives within 30-60 minutes; in Harjumaa – Viimsi, Harku, Saue, Rae, Jõelähtme, Kiili, and Maardu – allow 1-2 hours.

In older panel and brick buildings, sewer blockages are usually related to the roughening and grease build-up on the inner surface of cast-iron pipes. In new developments, they are more often due to incorrectly installed slopes or construction debris. In private homes and terraced houses, external drainage systems and manholes are added, where the pipe may be blocked by roots, sand, or a collapsed section.

The sooner a pipe blockage is addressed, the cheaper the removal will be. A blocked sewer usually gives signs days before it completely clogs.

• Water drains slowly from the sink or bath
• Gurgling sounds or an unpleasant smell comes from the drain
• The WC flushes erratically or overflows
• Water rises from the floor drain or an adjacent appliance
• The blockage recurs in the same spot every few weeks

The scope of blockage removal depends on three things: the pipe diameter, the distance of the blockage from the access point, and the nature of the blockage. A grease blockage in a kitchen pipe is usually resolved with a cable, while solidified sediment or roots in a 110mm pipe require high-pressure jetting.

We will quote the hourly rate and estimated scope before arrival, and if during the work a different method is required, we will agree upon it separately with the client. For apartment associations and commercial properties, we issue a proper invoice with a detailed description of the work.

For the client, a sewer blockage is always an unexpected and inconvenient situation, which is why we have designed our workflow to be as understandable and predictable as possible. You will know before the technician arrives what order the work will be done in, how long it is expected to take, and from what moment the hourly rate starts. A transparent process is why a large part of our orders come from repeat clients and apartment associations with whom we have cooperated for years.

The first step is a phone conversation with the dispatcher. During the call, we ask which appliance isn't draining, whether the problem affects one or multiple appliances simultaneously, whether it's an apartment, private house, or commercial building, and whether water has already risen to the floor. Based on these answers, we can prepare the correct equipment: for a minor domestic blockage, a 16mm coiled cable is sufficient; for a riser or external drain, we bring a 22mm cable and, if necessary, high-pressure jetting equipment. Bringing the correct equipment means most jobs are resolved in a single visit.

The second step is on-site diagnostics. The technician inspects the problematic appliance, drain, siphon, and the nearest cleanout, and checks if water is flowing in neighbouring appliances. This check determines whether the blockage is local or in a shared riser. A wrong diagnosis is the most expensive mistake in blockage removal: if only the internal pipework of an apartment is cleaned when the actual blockage is in the riser, the water will return in a few days, and the client will pay for the work a second time.

The third step is removing the blockage with the chosen method. For mechanical cabling, we feed the cable head to the blockage, break up or pull out the obstruction, and continue along the pipe section until we feel there is no longer any resistance. For high-pressure jetting, we direct high-pressure water into the pipe, which cleans the inner wall of the pipe along its entire length – this is the only method that truly removes the grease layer, rather than just creating a hole in it.

The fourth step is checking the result. We run a large amount of water through the pipework and observe how quickly it drains, whether there's any gurgling, and if water rises anywhere else. Only after this do we consider the job done. The fifth step is explanation and recommendation: we honestly tell the client what caused the blockage and whether it is a one-off incident or a systemic problem that will recur if the pipework is not cleaned properly or repaired.

• Phone consultation and initial assessment – free
• On-site arrival with prepared equipment, typically 30-60 minutes in Tallinn
• Diagnostics: local blockage or riser blockage
• Blockage removal with cable or high-pressure jetting
• Flow check and workspace tidying
• Explanation, recommendations, and invoice with work description

Each drain behaves slightly differently when blocked, and the solution also varies. Below are the most common cases our technicians in Tallinn and Harjumaa encounter daily.

Clients often ask why one blockage is resolved in half an hour while another requires special equipment. The answer lies in what the blockage consists of and where it is located. Mechanical cabling is a fast and affordable method, ideal for soft blockages, hair, paper, and food waste, and for short pipe sections within an apartment. The cable breaks up the blockage and restores flow but does not clean the inner pipe wall.

High-pressure jetting is a more thorough method. Water under pressure removes grease layers, calcified sediment, and fine roots from the entire cross-section of the pipe, restoring its original diameter. High-pressure jetting is the only correct choice when blockages recur, when dealing with long external drains or larger diameter collectors, and for grease pipework in restaurants, cafes, or production facilities. Our high-pressure jetting and sewage removal service is separately available for these situations.

A CCTV drain survey is not a cleaning method, but a diagnostic one. The camera shows the inside of the pipe in real-time and pinpoint the exact location of a defect with metre accuracy. Ordering a CCTV drain survey is sensible when the blockage recurs repeatedly, if you plan bathroom or kitchen renovations, when buying an older property, or if you need to verify the condition of the pipework to an apartment association or insurance company. We often combine all three: clean with a cable, jet with high-pressure water, and check the result with a camera.

Our principle is to choose the simplest method that genuinely solves the problem. We do not offer high-pressure jetting where cabling suffices, nor do we fail to recommend a CCTV drain survey when a client has already tried to resolve the same blockage for the third time – in the latter case, the cost of repeat visits has already exceeded the cost of proper diagnostics.

We serve four types of clients in Tallinn and Harjumaa, each with slightly different expectations regarding response time, documentation, and working hours.

The cheapest blockage is one that never occurs. Our technicians' experience shows that most recurring blockages stem from simple habits that can be changed. Below are recommendations we share with clients on site, even after the work is done.

• Wipe pans and dishes clean of grease with paper before washing
• Do not pour melted fat or oil down the sink – it solidifies in the pipe
• Use a hair catcher or sieve in the sink and shower drain
• Clean siphons and floor drain grates a couple of times a year
• Always dispose of wet wipes and sanitary items in the bin, not the WC
• Once a week, flush hot water with washing-up liquid through the kitchen pipe
• In apartment buildings, arrange regular high-pressure jetting of risers with the apartment association
• In private homes, check the manhole and external drainage before cold weather arrives

ToruFix OÜ is a plumbing company whose daily work focuses on emergency and blockage services in Tallinn and Harjumaa. Our team comprises experienced plumbers who have resolved blockages in Soviet-era cast-iron pipework in panel buildings, old stone buildings in the city centre, and plastic pipework in new developments. Each building type behaves differently, and it is this wealth of experience that allows us to correctly diagnose the problem on the first visit.

We perform work with professional equipment: coiled cables of various thicknesses, high-pressure jetting units with appropriate nozzles, drain cameras, and auxiliary tools that allow us to work even in cramped bathrooms without dismantling structures. We also carry the most common spare parts and seals, so replacing a siphon or connection does not require a separate visit.

We provide a guarantee for both the work performed and the materials we install, and we issue a proper invoice suitable for submission to both apartment associations and insurance companies. We are always honest if a problem cannot be permanently solved without pipe section repair or replacement – we do not sell work that does not improve the client's situation. The dispatcher is available 24/7 and answers the phone even at night, on weekends, and public holidays.

Transparency starts with the price: the hourly rate and estimated scope are quoted before arrival, and if during the work a different method or additional equipment is required, we agree upon it with the client before proceeding. There are no unexpected line items on the invoice.

Our technicians see situations every week where blockage removal would have been twice as fast and cheaper if the problem hadn't been 'solved' by the client before calling us. The most common mistake is the repeated use of chemicals. If the first bottle didn't help, neither will the second or third – but corrosive liquid will accumulate in the pipe, damaging older connections and seals and making the technician's work dangerous.

Another typical mistake is applying too much force. Vigorous use of a rubber plunger or air-pressure device can simply push the blockage further down in old cast-iron or ceramic pipework, or even disconnect a joint inside the pipe, leading to sewage leaking between floors. Such damage is often discovered only when a stain appears on the ceiling of the apartment below.

A third mistake is tolerating a blockage for too long. If water has been draining slowly for a month and there's been an odour from the drain, the blockage will have solidified and grown during that time – what would have initially been resolved with a short cabling session now requires high-pressure jetting. The fourth mistake is excavating in the wrong place in a private house without a prior CCTV drain survey: excavation work is the most expensive step in resolving a blockage and should only be done when the defect's location is precisely known from the camera.

The fifth mistake is forgetting prevention after the work is done. If a grease blockage occurred once, it will recur with the same habits. That's why we always explain what caused the specific blockage and what can be done to prevent the same situation from recurring – this is part of the service, not separate paid advice.

If water isn't draining, don't wait until morning or try new chemicals repeatedly – every hour increases the risk of water reaching the floor or your neighbour's ceiling. Call our dispatcher and describe the situation in a few sentences: which appliance isn't draining, how long the problem has lasted, and whether it's an apartment, private house, or commercial building. We will immediately give an initial assessment over the phone and tell you when the crew will arrive.

If the situation is not urgent, you can also send an inquiry via the order form – we will respond and arrange a suitable time. In Tallinn, we usually reach emergency call-outs within 30-60 minutes; in Harjumaa, within 1-2 hours. Blockage removal, high-pressure jetting, and CCTV drain surveys are available from the same crew, meaning the problem will be resolved without coordinating between different companies.

• Call the dispatcher – we answer 24/7
• Describe the problem and get an initial assessment over the phone
• Confirm the time – typically 30-60 minutes in Tallinn
• Work is performed, results checked, and you receive a proper invoice