Loading…
21
DAE have a $60 tool that paid for itself in one weekend and still bugs you
I bought a $60 drain snake at a hardware store in Fresno two years ago after a plumber quoted me $340 to clear a slow kitchen sink, and that thing has saved me at least four calls since. It is loud, ugly, and my wife hates seeing it in the garage, but it cleared a clog in about 20 minutes that would have cost me another service fee. I keep wondering if I just got lucky with easy clogs or if plumbers are pricing in the drive time more than the work. Has anyone else had a cheap tool turn into a real money saver, or did yours just sit in a drawer?
1 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In1 Comment
zara_sanchez10h ago
But you are comparing apples to oranges here. A plumber has to cover truck costs, insurance, gas, tools, and the time driving to your house, so that $340 is not just for the 20 minutes of work. You got lucky if those clogs were all near the drain opening, because a real main line blockage or tree roots in the pipe will laugh at your $60 snake and you will be calling that plumber back anyway. I have seen cheap snakes just push the clog further down or kink up and break inside the pipe, which turns a $340 job into a $900 one.
3