Electric eels

Electric eel is a tool used by plumbers to clear pipes of debris. Electric snakes are used to buy time until a longer-lasting technique can be used to clear the pipe. So if your problem is roots growing into pipes, snaking is a very temporary solution.

These nifty machines are made of over 60 metres of wire cable that spins at over 500 revolutions a minute. A powerful electric eel is enough to clear regular debris and small, thin root blockages. You’re going to need something stronger for dense root blockages.

Plumbers may still use an electric snake on a dense blockage, with the hopes that it will clear enough of the pipe to make it usable in the short-term. On top of their provisionality, electric snakes pose many other problems.

The cables are long and cumbersome, so your plumber and the equipment can be covered in grease and grime. They can make a huge mess in your home if you happen to get careless plumbers. Even the most courteous plumbing experts can still unwittingly leave some muck for you to clean up.

Experts warn against renting or buying electric snakes and using them to routinely clear pipes. The tube spins so fast that it can be dangerous if you’re not trained in the proper use. Like most complicated devices, the use of electric snakes is best left to the pros.

Remove Tree Roots with Vaporooter

In order to ensure the free flow of fluids throughout the sewer system, it is important to remove tree roots from sewer pipes. Unfortunately, sewer pipes are a draw for tree roots as they tend to grow toward moisture through a continuous process that occurs at the end of the root.

Roots in sewer pipes are the result of roots growing one cell at a time at the end of the root. This process allows the root to penetrate extremely small openings in the pursuit of nourishment, leading to roots in drains. Once a tree root problem occurs, it can divide hundreds of times to form an enormous mass of tender root ends.

Vaporooter emerged onto the scene more than 40 years ago as municipalities needed to address clogged drain issues and to develop a process to remove tree roots. Vaporooter is a chemical compound protected by the EPA, therefore it must be applied with the use of a Mini Foamer machine by a licensed applicator to ensure that it safely and truly penetrates the roots in sewer pipes.

The machine generates the foam and pumps it to deliver optimal sewer root control to remove roots in pipes. The applicator is trained to ensure this process to remove the roots delivers foam throughout the clogged drain to ensure proper contact with all tree roots. This helps to deliver safe and effective control of roots in sewer pipes without tree root damage.

Vaporooter should be used within six to eight weeks of a new sewer system installations to avoid a clogged drain later on.  If you want to avoid roots in sewer pipes, learn how Vaporooter can be used to remove tree roots. If this process is done annually, it can prevent the cracking of pipes caused by live tree roots in sewer lines.

When the herbicides present in the Vaporooter penetrate the tree roots in drains, it bursts the root, causing it to die and decay. The herbicide combination enables grease and slime to be stripped away from tree roots in the sewer pipes to allow for deep penetration in the root mass to inhibit root cell division and growth for up to three years.

The Vaporooter is truly the most effective method to remove tree roots from sewer pipes. To avoid tree root damage, you must first remove the roots from a clogged drain with an auger to clean out the root mass. Sewer root control is inhibited if Vaporooter is immediately applied unless your Vaporooter applicator can overcome the obstacle of “bleeding sap”.

When a tree root is cut during the initial treatment to remove roots in pipes, the tree roots respond very quickly by “bleeding” a sap that assists healing and regrowth. Think of it as the tree’s survival method. The bleeding sap can block the absorption of the Vaporooter foam for a number of days. If application is done six to eight weeks after the roots are cut, the Vaporooter foam is efficiently maximized in the application.

Vaporooter should be applied to tree roots in sewer lines every year to to address your tree root problem. This process to remove tree roots in sewer lines should be ongoing maintenance as once tree roots have found a nutrient source, they will continue to seek that source and continue to grow. You cannot control the habits of the tree, but you can prevent tree roots in pipes with Vaporooter.

Sanafoam Vaporooter II versus traditional methods of dealing with tree root blockages.

Tree root infiltration in sewage pipes can lead to blockage of and overflow in the draining system, the destruction of the system itself and even the replacing and relining of the pipes. The traditional methods of dealing with this problem involve short-term fixing, not long-term solutions and prevention.

The most widespread traditional method of dealing with a live root invasion problem is the cutting of the root. Although this may seem like a good immediate response, the long term result is disastrous. The cutting leads to rejuvenation and strengthening of the root, which becomes an even more forceful enemy of the pipes. Plus, some types of roots, like the ones that grow along the length of the pipe, are very difficult to cut due to their shape and position.

The modern efficient alternative is the Sanafoam Vaporooter, a combination of herbicides that leads to the weakening and later killing of the unwanted roots. The effect of the herbicides can be as long as three years, if proper retreatment is applied. Unlike the cutting of the root, which offers immediate response, the clearing of the pipes with the Vaporooter can take up to six months, as the natural decay of the killed roots cannot happen overnight. If the treatment is reapplied after six months, efficacy can be as high as 99 percentage.

While cutting of the tree roots solves the blockage problem, it does not prolong the life the pipes. Vaporooter can destroy even the small root cells which intrude into small cracks in the pipe. By removing these elements, the pipe cracks can close up under the ground weight.

Because cutting the tree only momentarily solves the problem and does not prevent further problems from forming, root invasions are dealt with only when they become an emergency. Urgent interventions, which may even involve the replacing of the pipes, are very costly and time-consuming. Vaporooter, however, is much more efficient cost and time-wise, because it solves and prevents root invasion problems, controlling them at all times and preventing them from getting out of hand.

Vaporooter is environment-friendly, as it only affects the roots inside the pipe, in the pipe wall and very close to the pipe. As it is biodegradable and non-acidic, it does not bother the trees and plants above the pipe. Cutting the roots, however, as they lead to even stronger roots, may create severe blockages which require pipe replacing, a possibly invasive method for the surrounding vegetation.

Tree root infiltration in sewer drainpipes

The search of warmth and humidity is part of the natural growth process of tree roots and the sewer pipelines seem to be a plentiful, accessible source that can aide the root development. The maturing process involves the splitting and growth of one cell at a time, which gives them access to microscopic fissures of the draining pipes.

After finding a small opening, the root can keep growing and enlarging the fissure, which may eventually lead to the pipe breaking open or to its blockage. The pipes made of clay or cement are more vulnerable to tree root infiltration as they are usually made up of many short pieces joined together and the linking areas are most likely to have small cracks.

Tree roots can either grow above the pipe and enter it from the top and sides or they can grow along the length of the pipe and fill the diameter of the pipe. Either way, once the root has invaded the pipe, the latter’s decay starts.

The traditional method of dealing with a sewage blockage and overflow is cutting the tree roots. This, however, is only a short-term efficient solution. In the long run, the cutting of the root produces its revitalization and it makes it an even stronger enemy to the drain pipes.

Years of research have led to a different, more efficient solution. A combination of herbicides and growth inhibitors has the desired long-term result. Sanafoam Vaporooter II softens and then kills the invasive roots, while inhibiting the future growth of new ones. The clearing of the pipes is not immediate, as the roots need time to naturally decay, but a retreatment can lead to a 99 per cent efficacy.

In addition, Vaporooter technology helps maintain the good functioning of the sewage systems through the restoration of the pipes. As the Vaporooter destroys the roots that invaded the pipe, the small opening cracks close under the ground weight. The treatment is valid for up to three years, thus having a long-lasting effect that can be reinforced with a retreatment.

Another Satisfied Vaporooter Customer

After several trials with various chemical products, Grampians Wimmera Mallee Water (GWMW) chose Vaporooter as its aid in combating drain pipe blockages and overflows and has successfully used it since 1989.

Vaporooter, a product of the RSP Environmental Services, is a mixture of herbicides, root growth inhibitor and foaming agent which softens and then destroys the live roots which intrude into the drain pipes and causes a blockage. The product also prevents other roots from growing by slowing down their development for almost three years.

GWMW has initially used the Vaporooter in its problematic areas, where drain blockages were frequent due to shallow sewers and close vicinity of the trees and sewage systems. After solving its immediate problems, GWMW has moved on to preventing blockages and maintaining the high-quality functionality of the draining system.

A great advantage of the Vaporooter is that its efficacy causes no negative side effects on the environment. The foaming process only affects the tree roots that intrude into the pipe and those very close to the pipe. But the rest of the trees and plants in the vicinity are not touched by this non-acidic biodegradable treatment.

RSP Environmental Services do not only provide the product and the technology, but they also assist their clients throughout the different stages of the foaming process. RSP offers its assistance to identify and solve the problems whenever they occur, although this implies higher costs and efforts for them. Just as Vaporooter involves an ongoing long-term process, the RSP honours its provider and aide roles to the client.