What are all the methods that can be used to clear a black corrugated yard drain?

[enochian]

What are all the methods that can be used to clear a black corrugated yard drain?

 

[Terry]

What are all the methods that can be used to clear a black corrugated yard drain?

I have no idea other than digging them up. I can't imagine putting a power snake through one when what you're looking at is an out of round pipe with grooves and ridges, filled with dirt, needles, leaves, sand, rocks and whatever else fills those things up.

The other thing to consider is that often the tees and 90's are at right angles. Nothing is getting past those.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Reach4]

You could try a large Brasscraft drain bladder. Maybe from the bottom first.

Push as far as you can. If you start getting water coming up in the yard, dig there.

 

[enochian]

What about a large accessible drain like this?

 

[LLigetfa]

Do you have a pressure washer? If so, you can convert it into a sewer jetter. Granted, it is not as good as a professional jetter that pulses but it does pretty well if there are no sharp bends to go around. The company I work for has a large truck mounted hydrojetter and vac trucks.

In the following video, you can see how snaking could easily cut through the wall of the corrugated pipe. The second half of the video shows hydrojetting but I lost the audio on it.

 

[enochian]

Yeah I already did that.

Pressure washer with a hyrdojet kit.

So I'm assuming that is the best method then?

 

[WorthFlorida]

A jetter is the only way to go without digging it up. It looks like a 6" pipe and you may need a pressure washer at least 2700 PSI @3 gallons/min or 3000 PSI @ 2.7 gallons per minute minimum. If not rent a 4000 PSI machine.

As long as you keep leaves and pine needles out as much as possible with a even slope and no dips, only the bottom portion of the corrugation will fill up with sand and silt. After a while the bottom may be smooth out all filled with silt.

 

[LLigetfa]

There are different styles of nozzles. Try the kind that spins.

Also as mentioned, you need a gas pressure washer with both enough PSI and GPM to match the nozzle orifice size. The one we have at work uses a 4 cylinder diesel and can do hot or cold.

 

[enochian]

This is the kit I bought:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07YXSCZ1Q


The spinning nozzle worked the best.

 

[LLigetfa]

The spinning nozzle worked the best.

There are different designs of spinners. Some won't cut away anything in front of it, only on the sides. Others have a simple 0° forward spray angle. The real fancy ones have a turbo nozzle that rotates a forward stream with additional rear facing nozzles to push the head / pull the pipe along. The real fancy ones have an adjustable three legged sled to keep the nozzle in the middle. The sled might have three ports; one for the hose and two facing opposite directions for nozzles.

The side/rear facing angle also affects how it can work to scour/cut debris. The spinner linked to looks like it has no forward nozzle and the 3 rear jets have a 33° spray angle so probably would not cut through roots, assuming the drain pipe is slotted allowing water (and roots) to enter.

 

[Tuttles Revenge]

You could try a large Brasscraft drain bladder. Maybe from the bottom first.

Push as far as you can. If you start getting water coming up in the yard, dig there.

I did that through a PVC tight line that hadn't been glued in.. the pipe the plug was in rocketed out of the ground!!

What about a large accessible drain like this?

The size of that drain pictured probably doesn't have ridges on the interior does it? looks more like culvert pipe.

 

[Matticus]

Best method to clear black corrugated pipe is with an excavator and some smooth interior drain pipe

 

[Reach4]

I had some friends who used the large drain bladder on a clogged yard pipe that carried gutter water, and waited for water to come out the other end. None came. The youngster, thought he heard something. Indeed, the pipe was broken or cut apart there. They only had to dig out a smaller area.