When a drain backs up, you will hear two words from any plumber: snaking and hydro-jetting. They are not interchangeable, and the right call depends on what is actually in the pipe — which is why we run a camera before we recommend the expensive option.
A snake (a cable auger) is mechanical: a rotating steel cable bores a hole through whatever is blocking the line. It is fast, it is cheap ($100–$300), and for the everyday clog — hair in a shower trap, a kid’s toy, a grease plug near the kitchen — it is all you need. The limitation is just as simple: it makes a hole. The buildup coating the pipe walls stays right where it was, and the clog has a return ticket.
What jetting does differently
Hydro-jetting sends water at up to 4,000 PSI through a nozzle that sprays backward and forward at once, scouring the full circumference of the pipe back to bare wall. Grease, scale, soap rock, and — critically for Chicago — fine root intrusion all wash downstream. It costs more ($350–$900), and it is the only method that actually resets a neglected line instead of poking it.
When is jetting worth it? Three cases we see weekly: kitchen lines that re-clog every few months (layered grease), main sewer lines with root fuzz at the clay tile joints, and any line a camera shows at more than half-blocked with buildup. In those pipes, snaking is a subscription; jetting is a cure.
The Chicago wrinkle: clay tile
A huge share of homes here from the 1900s–1950s drain through vitrified clay tile in 2-to-6-foot sections. The joints between sections are exactly where tree roots find their way in. Jetting clears the roots cleanly — but if the camera shows a cracked or offset tile, no amount of cleaning fixes geometry, and we will show you the footage and talk about spot repair instead of selling you a jetting you would need again in a year.
That is the rule worth remembering: never authorize a jetting on a main line without seeing camera footage first. Any honest outfit will show you exactly what your money is removing.