What a blocked drain costs in the Adelaide Hills
Updated October 2026
Prices below are typical 2026 ranges for the Adelaide Hills and greater Adelaide. Every job is different, so treat these as a guide and get a fixed price before work starts. A licensed plumber should always quote before clearing.
Quick price guide
- Standard blocked drain clear (plunger, auger or small jet): $150 to $400, with most jobs landing around $280
- CCTV drain camera inspection: $249 to $600
- CCTV inspection plus jet blasting: $350 to $900
- Tree root clearing: $250 to $600
- Pipe relining after root damage or collapse: $3,000 to $8,000 and up, depending on length
What moves the price
The three things that change a drain bill are access, cause and damage. A blocked toilet with an obvious cause at the S-bend is the cheap end. A sewer line blocked by tree roots 20 metres from the house, under a driveway, is the expensive end. In the Hills, travel time matters too: a job at Mount Pleasant, Kersbrook or Cherryville is a longer run than one in Stirling or Mount Barker, and steep blocks, long pipe runs and rock near the surface all add time. After-hours and emergency call-outs cost more than a booked weekday visit, so if the drain is slow but still draining, booking ahead saves money.
Sewer, CWMS and septic: what changes
The clearing job itself costs much the same whichever system you are on. What changes is what happens next.
On mains sewer, around Mount Barker, Littlehampton, Nairne and the connected parts of the Stirling area, a blockage is either in your private drain or past your connection point in SA Water's main. If it is past the connection, it is not your bill.
On a council CWMS, as in townships like Woodside, Lobethal, Birdwood, Gumeracha, Charleston and Mount Torrens, you still have a septic tank on the property, and settled effluent leaves it through a council line. Blockages between the house and the tank, or in the tank outlet, are yours. A problem in the council line is the council's. A plumber with a camera can usually show you which it is.
On a full septic system, common on rural blocks and older properties around Mylor, Basket Range, Cherryville, Forest Range and much of the Torrens Valley, the whole lot is yours: the drains, the tank and the soakage or irrigation area. The important cost to know is that a plumber clearing a drain is not the same service as a tanker pumping out a tank.
Septic tank pumping is a separate cost
If the tank is full rather than the pipe blocked, the job is a pump out by a licensed liquid waste contractor, not a drain clear. That is a different trade, quoted separately, and prices depend on tank size and how far the truck has to travel. We do not quote it here because the plumbers referred through this site do not do it.
The useful part is the diagnosis. A drain plumber can tell you fairly quickly whether you have a blocked pipe, a full tank or a failing soakage area, and that saves you paying the wrong trade to come out.
Why plumbers quote after a camera
If a drain keeps blocking, clearing it again without finding the cause wastes your money. A CCTV camera run through the line shows exactly what is happening: roots at a joint, a bellied section holding water, or a cracked pipe. That is why many plumbers bundle the camera and the jet blast together. You pay a little more once, instead of paying for the same clear every six months.
When relining is worth it
Relining makes sense when the camera shows a broken or root-infested pipe but the line is otherwise sound. It costs thousands, not hundreds, but it is still usually cheaper than digging up a long Hills driveway, a stone paved courtyard or an established garden to replace the pipe. On blocks where the pipe runs through rock or down a steep slope, the saving is larger again. A good plumber will show you the camera footage and let the pipe make the argument.
Frequently asked questions
Is a free quote really free?
The quote itself is free. Some plumbers charge a call-out fee for a site visit, and in the outer Hills that fee can reflect the travel, so ask when they call.
Does insurance cover a blocked drain?
Usually not for the blockage itself. Home insurance sometimes covers damage the blockage caused, such as water damage inside the house. Check your policy before claiming.
Who pays if the blockage is in the main?
SA Water owns the sewer mains in the sewered parts of the Hills. If the blockage turns out to be in their infrastructure rather than your private drainage, report it to SA Water. On a council CWMS the shared line belongs to the council, so a fault past your connection is theirs. Your plumber can tell you which side of the connection the problem sits.
I am on septic. Is the whole thing my cost?
Yes. On a full septic system the drains, the tank and the soakage area are all the property owner's responsibility, which is why a camera inspection that pins down the fault is worth the money before anyone starts digging.