Salem plumbers, answering 24/7
Slow drains, a toilet that backs up, roots in the sewer line? We clear it, show you what caused it and fix the plumbing behind it, day or night.
Plumbing in Salem
We clear clogged sinks, toilets and main sewer lines, cut out tree roots, jet grease out of kitchen lines and run sewer cameras. We also repair and replace water heaters, leaking pipes, gas lines and fixtures. Calls are answered 24/7 from our office on State Street in downtown Salem.
Salem is hard on drains. Many older neighborhoods still run on clay or concrete sewer laterals laid generations ago, and the maples, oaks and firs that shade those streets send roots into every loose joint. Add long, soaking winters that push groundwater up under crawlspaces, and you get the calls we answer every week: a floor drain bubbling up, a toilet that gurgles when the washer drains, a kitchen sink that will not empty after a big dinner.
First Choice Rooter was set up to handle that work properly. The plumber who comes out carries a cable machine, a jetter and a camera, so a main line can be cleared and checked on the same visit instead of guessed at. If the camera finds a root mass, a sag or a broken section, you see it on the screen and get a straight answer on what it will take.
We handle the rest of the house too: water heaters, leaks in crawlspace lines, hose bibs that split in a cold snap, toilets, faucets and fixtures, gas lines and backflow assemblies. One phone number and one crew, from the first call to the last test run.
Clog locator
Pick what you are seeing at home. The pattern usually tells a plumber where the blockage sits before anyone opens a cleanout.
Services
44 services across drains, sewer lines, water heaters, pipes and fixtures. Each page explains what the work involves, the warning signs and typical Salem prices.
Salem conditions
Older clay and concrete sewer pipe has a joint every few feet. Roots find the gaps, fill the pipe with hair-fine growth and catch everything that flows past. Cutting them out and checking the line with a camera is where the fix starts.
From fall into spring the ground stays wet and groundwater climbs. Crawlspaces take on water, sump pumps run hard, and storm lines that silted up over the summer back up at the downspouts.
Salem does not freeze every winter, but when a cold snap hits, hose bibs, crawlspace pipes and lines on north walls split first. Shut the water off at the main and call before the thaw floods the floor.
How a rooter call goes
Day or night you reach a real person at our Salem office, who asks what the drains are doing and which fixtures are affected.
We tell you who is coming and roughly when. The truck carries a cable machine, a jetter and a sewer camera.
The plumber checks which drains are backing up, opens the right cleanout and works out whether it is a branch line or the main.
You hear the price for clearing the line, and for any repair the camera shows, before anything starts.
We run water through every affected drain, show you the result and clean up the work area before we leave.
Service area
Our plumbers work from downtown Salem out across Marion and Polk counties and into Yamhill and Linn. Each area page covers the homes and pipes we see there.
Pricing
These are the ranges most Salem jobs land in. Your plumber gives you the exact price after seeing the job and before any work starts.
| Service | What it covers | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Drain Cleaning | Single drain cleared with a cable machine | $149 to $289 |
| Main Sewer Line Rooter Service | Main line cleared through an existing cleanout | $289 to $549 |
| Hydro Jetting | Hydro jetting of a residential line | $389 to $795 |
| Sewer Camera Inspection | Sewer camera inspection with recording | $219 to $389 |
| Water Heater Installation | 40 to 50 gallon tank installed | $1,790 to $3,480 |
| Leak Detection | Leak detection visit with meter test and pinpointing | $229 to $489 |
Questions
Short answers to what Salem homeowners ask us most on the phone.
Yes. First Choice Rooter answers 24/7, including holidays. Tell the person who picks up which drains or fixtures are affected and whether water is still running, and they will get a plumber headed your way and tell you roughly when to expect them.
Yes. The plumber at your door works for First Choice Rooter and drives one of our trucks, stocked for drain and sewer work as well as general repairs. You deal with the same company from the first call to the final test run.
The plumber looks at the job first, explains what is wrong and gives you a price before any work starts. Our price list shows the typical Salem range for each service so you know what to expect before you call.
All of Salem, including West Salem and the south hills, plus Keizer, Woodburn, Silverton, Stayton, Independence, Monmouth, Dallas, Albany, McMinnville and the towns in between across Marion, Polk, Yamhill and Linn counties.
Stop using the drains that are backing up and avoid flushing toilets. If water is leaking from a pipe, shut it off at the main valve, usually in the crawlspace, garage or the meter box near the street. Skip chemical drain cleaners; they rarely clear a main line and they make the work harder.
Plumbing Notes
Most Salem winters are wet, not frozen, so homes here are not built with deep cold in mind. When a hard cold snap arrives, the same few pipes fail in house after house. A little prep in October prevents most of it.
Read the note
Long soaking rains raise the groundwater under Salem homes every winter, and crawlspaces are where it shows up first. A working sump pump and a clear discharge path keep that water from sitting under the floor for months.
Read the note
Roots do not break into a sound pipe. They follow moisture to a tired joint and move in. Here is how that happens under Salem yards, what it looks like from inside the house, and what actually fixes it.
Read the noteA real person answers 24/7. Tell us what the drains are doing and we will send a First Choice Rooter plumber with the right equipment on the truck.