Storm Drain Cleaning Before the First Big Rain
Storm drain cleaning clears the leaves, dirt, sand, and roots that pile up in catch basins and outdoor drain lines all through the dry months. We jet the lines with 4,000 PSI water, clear the sediment out of the basins, and give you the price before any work starts.
Commercial storm drain job
4,000 PSI jetter
Who needs storm drain cleaning
Any property that sends rainwater into a grate, a catch basin, or an underground pipe has a storm drain to keep clear. It is one of our drain and sewer services, and we do it for three kinds of properties. Each one clogs for its own reasons.
HOAs and apartment communities
Private streets, parking courts, and common areas drain to catch basins the association owns. Landscaping drops leaves and mulch into them all year, and one blocked basin can push water against a whole row of garages.
Commercial lots and industrial sites
Parking lots, loading docks, and yards collect sand, dirt, and trash that wash into the inlets. When the line slows, the lot floods at its low spot, often right where customers walk or trucks back in. Our trucks set up behind cones so the rest of the lot stays in use.
Homes with yard drains
Many homes have yard drains, downspout lines, or a channel drain at the bottom of the driveway. Roots and silt fill these smaller pipes, and the water ends up against the foundation or under the garage door. A jetting run flushes them out end to end.
Basin cleared, jetter in the line
A storm drain has two parts that clog: the catch basin, where sediment settles, and the pipe that carries the water away. We clean both, in this order.
Clearing the grate by hand
Worth doing after every windy day. It keeps leaves out of the basin, but it does nothing for sediment already in the basin or the pipe.
Snaking the line
A cable can punch a hole through one clog. Silt, mud, and roots along the rest of the pipe stay put, so the drain slows again by the next storm.
Basin cleanout plus hydro jetting
Cleans the basin and the full length of the pipe. This is the right call for drains that flood every year or carry a lot of sediment.
Time it to the rain, not the flood
Here the rain comes in a short season, roughly November to March, and the rest of the year is dry. That timing decides everything. Debris builds up for months with nothing to move it, then the first big storm pushes it all into the drains at once.
Fall Santa Ana winds strip leaves and blow dust into the grates. Near the coast, wind-blown sand settles in the basins. In the hills and valleys, the first storm carries loose soil off slopes and bare ground. Properties with big trees deal with roots in the line on top of all that. Pick a month to see what to do.
Santa Ana winds are dropping leaves and dust into every grate. This is the month to have the basins cleared and the lines jetted, so the drains start the rainy season empty.
Signs your storm drain needs cleaning
You do not have to wait for a flood to find the problem. These show up first, and any one of them is worth a call.
Storm drain cleaning questions
Straight answers to what property managers and homeowners ask us on the phone.
Call and a real person answers. Monday to Friday, open 24 hours. Saturday and Sunday, 7 AM to 11 PM.
Call (805) 232-8380For most properties, storm drain cleaning once a year before the rainy season is a good baseline. Sites with a lot of trees, bare soil, or heavy parking lot traffic may need it twice a year, once in the fall and once after the last spring rain. How much sediment built up since the last visit tells you which schedule fits.
Early fall, in September or October, before the first big storm. In Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties most of the rain falls from about November to March, so a fall cleaning clears out a full dry season of debris right before the drains have to work. A spring cleaning after the last rain removes what the winter washed in.
Jetting is safe for storm lines in sound condition. If a line is cracked, collapsed, or badly damaged by roots, a camera shows it before we jet, and we tell you, because a broken pipe needs repair, not more pressure.
You can and should keep grates clear of leaves by hand, especially after a windy day. Cleaning the basin and the pipe below it takes a jetter and the right tools to get the sediment out. A garden hose usually just pushes the sediment farther down the line, where it is harder to reach.
Yes. We clean storm drains for HOAs, apartment communities, commercial parking lots, and industrial sites, along with homes that have yard drains. Call and tell us how many grates and basins you have, and you get the price before any work starts.
Get your storm drains cleared before the rain
Call and tell us how many grates and basins you have and where the water stands. We will tell you what it needs and give you the price before any work starts. Prefer to send photos first? Use the form and we will call you back.