Anybody Have Roter-Rooter Service Lately - How Much Did They Charge

[otohara]

I'm looking at paying up the wazoo today - wondering if it's normal.

They charge $199.00 just to remove the toilet and put it back on.

[liberalmuse]

1. Did they even run a snake?

If not, you were screwn. Also, if you have a septic tank, they should have completely rooted that out. A local roto-rooter used to charge about $75 to root mine once a year.

[otohara]

4. Looks Like It' s Gonna Be A Nightmare

right after I typed this - the guy pulls me outside and shows me a pile of roots from pipes in the crawl space - can't get pasted one part due to trees - I've got huge 56 year old trees in my back yard. Now he's talking digging up a hole worst case scenario - in concrete.

I'm screwn fer sure.

[Lerkfish]

2. depends on your area

they usually charge a flat arrival fee, no matter what they do, and then an hourly fee after that.
Last time I needed them, it was 70 dollars to show up, and by the time they were done, it was about 160 or thereabouts . although, to be fair, we did have quite a few problems that they found.

[notadmblnd]

3. Why does your toilet need to be removed?

[otohara]

5. Snake

It's not looking good - right after I typed this - the guy pulls me outside and shows me a pile of roots from pipes in the crawl space - can't get pasted one part due to trees - I've got huge 56 year old trees in my back yard. Now he's talking digging up a hole worst case scenario - in concrete.

This is our christmas budget plus a whole lot more if that's the case.

[notadmblnd]

7. I've had root problems too.

And we called a plumber. He gave us a deal cause my sister flirted with him. Hey, when you're single women and have a limited amount of disposable income, you gotta do what ya gotta do. Anyway, What he did for us was to hook up a balloon type object to our garden hose and put it down the main drain going out of the house. The roots are probably not inside your house in the plumbing. He then filled the balloon with water and the pressure cleared the roots. This was after he snaked it. You can go and rent a snake, but make sure you snake the main drain. I've always known it to be outside of the house. It has what looks like a big nut on it. Snake it. Ask the rental place about the balloon too because that will flush all the debris out after the snake chews it up. We paid about 120 dollars and he left us an extra balloon in case it happens again.

On edit. You said you snaked it through the toilet? I'm fairly certain if you snake the main drain, your problem will clear up.

[LouisianaLiberal]

6. Please get a second opinion

I know of a house in New Orleans where Roto Rooter was not only mistaken in determining the cause of the damage, but wanted $20,000 to reroute the drain line. A second company, with experienced plumbers, estimated less than $5,000 for tunneling and repair. Also, if there is damage to you home, your homeowners insurance should pay for gaining access to the repairs, which is usually much higher than the cost of the actual repair.

[golddigger]

8. Was going to once, but the guy drove up in a Toyota Van so I sent him on his way!

:evilgrin:

[msongs]

9. we found a local family plumber who's great - Mr. X & Son - we recommend them to neighbors nt