Hydro Jetting vs Traditional Drain Cleaning: Which Is Right for Commercial Drains?
Commercial drains handle a lot every day. In busy restaurant kitchens, grease and food waste can build up in pipework, while shopping centres, factories and industrial facilities deal with everything from heavy foot traffic to sediment and debris.
Keeping these systems clear is essential for avoiding disruptions, preventing blockages and maintaining efficient drainage.
Two common methods are traditional mechanical drain cleaning and hydro jetting. Both have their advantages, but the right choice depends on the condition of your pipes, the type of blockage and your site’s drainage requirements. Here’s how they compare.
How Traditional Drain Clearing Works
Traditional cleaning uses a mechanical drain cleaner, often called an electric eel. A flexible steel cable with a cutting or auger head is fed into the pipe and spun to break through a blockage and open up a path for water.
It’s a reliable, well-established method, and it shines in a few situations:
- Clearing a single, localised blockage close to an access point
- Smaller-diameter pipes, such as basins and floor wastes
- Quick call-outs where you simply need water moving again
- Pipe sections with tight bends where a cable can work its way through
How Hydro Jetting Works
Hydro jetting is a form of high pressure drain cleaning. A hose with a specially designed nozzle is fed into the drain, and water is pumped through at high pressure. Rear-facing jets pull the hose along the pipe while scouring the walls, and forward jets cut through whatever is in the way. Everything loosened is flushed downstream.
Because the water reaches right around the pipe wall, it’s great for:
- Grease, fat and soap build-up in commercial kitchen lines
- Silt, sand and sediment in stormwater and factory drains
- Tree roots that have made their way into joints
- Longer runs and larger-diameter pipes
- Leaving the pipe clean enough for a clear camera inspection
Hydro Jetting vs Traditional Cleaning: How They Compare
Both methods can be effective for clearing commercial drains, but they work differently and offer different benefits. Understanding how they compare can help you choose the right approach for your drainage system.
| Traditional Drain Cleaning | Hydro Jetting | |
| Thoroughness | Breaks through localised blockages to restore water flow. | Cleans the full circumference of the pipe, removing built-up grease, sediment and other debris. |
| Speed | Often quicker for isolated blockages close to an access point. | Can be more efficient for longer pipe runs or widespread build-up. |
| Pipe Condition | Suitable for many pipes in good condition, although damaged or fragile pipes require extra care. | Pressure can be adjusted to suit different pipe materials, but damaged or deteriorating pipes may not be suitable. |
| Ongoing Maintenance | Useful for occasional blockages that need immediate attention. | Well suited to scheduled maintenance, particularly for commercial kitchens and industrial sites prone to recurring build-up. |
Ultimately, neither method is better for every situation. A professional assessment can help determine which approach will provide the safest and most effective results for your drainage system.
Which One Suits Your Site?
Restaurants, cafés and commercial kitchens
Hydro jetting is often a practical choice for commercial kitchens, because it scours away the fats and oils that settle along kitchen lines. It works hand in hand with your grease trap.
Yarra Valley Water explains that grease traps are pumped out periodically by an EPA licensed waste transporter, so pairing those pump-outs with regular high pressure drain cleaning keeps the whole system in great shape.
Shopping centres, schools and offices
With lots of amenities in use, a mix of both methods often works best. A quick mechanical clear handles one-off blockages, and planned jetting keeps the main lines clear.
Factories, warehouses and industrial sites
Larger pipes, wash-down water and sediment make jetting a natural fit. Our industrial plumbing team regularly looks after drains on manufacturing and processing sites.
Older buildings and established trees
Where roots have found their way into older pipe joints, Hydro jetting with a suitable root-cutting nozzle can help clear root intrusions. A camera inspection afterwards shows exactly how the pipe is looking.
Start with a Camera Inspection for The Clearest Picture
Not every blockage is caused by a simple build-up of debris. Tree root intrusion, damaged pipes and collapsed sections can all affect drainage performance, and cleaning alone won’t always resolve the underlying problem.
A CCTV drain inspection can help identify what’s causing the issue and determine whether mechanical cleaning, hydro jetting or pipe repairs are the most appropriate solution. If the inspection reveals damaged pipework that needs replacing, our drainage contractors can assist with excavation and new pipe installations.
Choosing a High Pressure Drain Cleaning Operator
High pressure water is a powerful tool, so it’s well worth choosing a team that follows the relevant Australian safety standards for safe operation of high pressure water jetting systems (AS/NZS 4233.1).
There’s also a national training unit for operating a drain cleaning system that covers jetting stormwater, sewer and trade waste drains. A good operator will happily walk you through their safety procedures before they start.
Book Commercial Drain Cleaning
Whether you’d like a one-off clean, regular hydro jetting or a camera inspection to see what’s going on, our friendly team is ready to help. Visit our commercial drain cleaning page, call us on 03 9012 5111 or email estimating@vicplumbing.com.au to book commercial drain cleaning for your site.
