It’s a capped pipe that plumbers use to remove clogs.
Mostbut not allhomes have a sewer cleanout.
Some cleanouts are outside the front door, but others can be near a septic tank or indoors.
The Spruce / Adelyn Duchala
The cleanout is sometimes called the main house trap when it’s located inside the house.
Until the clog is removed, no drains in yourplumbing fixturescan be safely used.
It is an unpleasant and potentially costly problem.
What Is a Sewer Cleanout?
Clearing a main sewer line stoppage is best approached from this fitting.
If an older home has a cleanout, it will likely have a brass or cast iron drain cleanout.
What Does a Sewer Cleanout Look Like?
A drain cleanout pipe is 3, 4, or 6 inches in diameter and typically white or black.
Those homes may also have brass or copper drainage lines, though they are becoming much rarer.
However, this plug is sometimes covered with a plastic cap or a metal lid.
It may also have a plastic cap covering this nut.
How Do I Find My Main Cleanout?
Finding the cleanout depends on the house style and your geographic climate.
Plumbing companies may also charge less if the plumber doesn’t need to worry about locating the drain cleanout.
Here are some tips for finding your cleanout.
Look behind bushes or a metal or plastic box recessed into the ground.
The main cleanout fitting is usually a large-diameter pipe with one or two threaded plugsin the top.
Move lawn decorations obscuring the yard outside bathrooms, expanding the search area as you go.
It can usually be opened with a large pipe wrench.
To locate the cleanout, follow the drainage pipes inside the house.
It can typically be found on themain sewage line,just before it meets the home’s foundation.
It may also have a plastic cap covering this nut.
However, the drain cleanout isn’t always installed on the main line.
Inspect each bathroom in the home, looking for a capped black or white ABS plastic drain line.
In some cases, current or previous owners may have completed renovations that hid the main drain cleanout.
This universal plug has a lead ring hammered on to make a seal.
A threaded plug will fit into a short length of large-diameter pipe that extends up from the floor.
The main cleanout will likely be located along this line.
When opening a cleanout, have a bucket handy if backed-up sewage starts flowing out of the cleanout.
It can help you avoid a mess in your home or yard.
The drain cleanout plug should also be tested to ensure it can be removed if necessary.
Use a pipe wrench or a set of large channel locks to unscrew the nut from the pipe slowly.
Gradually turn the nut with the wrench, loosening it off thoroughly.
Clean away any accumulated grime from the threads, then replace the plug.
Even more rarely, the cleanout fitting may be covered by a rubber bonnet and secured with pipe clamps.
This means the stoppage in the line has filled up the piping that travels outside the house.
Tree roots can easily penetrate sewer lines.
Routine sewer drain line cleaning may prevent a disastrous blockage.
Generally, it is not recommended for non-professionals to attempt cleaning the line.
Even experienced DIYers can cause significant damage to the home sewage system.
This can lead to sewage backing up into the septic system, the yard, or the home.
Older homes may not have a cleanout; they became standard in building codes during the 1940s.
