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How to find your sewer cleanout
A cleanout is a capped access fitting on your building sewer. It lets a plumber clear the main line without pulling a toilet, which is usually faster and cheaper, and it's where camera inspections normally start.
Where to look
- Garage or basement: in many San Francisco homes with a ground-floor garage, look along the wall facing the street, near the floor, for a pipe stub with a threaded or rubber cap.
- Front of the house: in or near the front setback, sometimes in a small round or square box at grade.
- At the property line or sidewalk: some properties have a cleanout near the sidewalk where the side sewer heads to the street.
- Crawl space, on the main horizontal line as it leaves the building.
Safety
Never open a cleanout during a backup if you're unsure. A line full of sewage can spill out of the cap under pressure. Let the plumber open it.
No cleanout?
Older homes sometimes lack an accessible one. Adding a cleanout is common during sewer repairs and makes every future clearing simpler. Ask for it to be quoted with any sewer repair.