Roaches Coming Up Through the Drain?
It's a Tempe question more than most. The city treats over 9,100 manholes and 1,100 clean-outs with an insecticide paint to control sewer roaches, alternating the halves of the city north and south of I-60 each year.
What the city doesn't treat is the private sewer line on your property. That stretch between your house and the street is where roaches get in, usually through a drain that rarely gets used.
Tempe's own tips: run water in every drain at least once a week so the P-trap (the U-shaped pipe under each fixture) keeps its water seal, cover drains you don't use for a long time, and pour a cup of household bleach down each drain. If a drain still smells or lets pests through, the trap or the line may be the problem, and that's ours to check.
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Homes Served across Mesa & East Valley
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Commercial Jobs — restaurants, offices, retail
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Years Experience — licensed & insured
Decades-Old Lines, Decades-Old Problems
U.S. Census data puts the median Tempe home's build year at 1984, the oldest of any East Valley city we serve. In mid-century neighborhoods like Maple-Ash and Mitchell Park near ASU, and in ranch homes across south Tempe, sewer lines have had decades for roots to find the joints and for buildup to narrow the pipe.
Before anyone quotes a big repair, a camera inspection shows what you have: a clog we can clear, roots that need hydro jetting, or a damaged section that needs repair (see sewer line repair in Tempe).
Sewage or water coming up in the street is the city's: Tempe Wastewater Collection takes sewer problems at 480-350-2837.
Tempe's Free Fat Trapper
Tempe residents can request a free Fat Trapper, a grease container with disposable bags, from the city's Environmental Services Section at 480-350-2678. Used cooking oil can also be dropped off for recycling at the Household Products Collection Center.
The city also warns against degreaser cleaners: they break grease up for a moment, then it rejoins as solids further down the line.
Tempe's do-not-flush list includes:
- Wipes, diapers and kitty litter, even if labeled "flushable"
- Paper towels, tissues, cotton balls and swabs
- Floss, hair, lint and mop refills
- Cooking grease, food scraps and dairy
Main line already backed up? It's $99 to clear it through an accessible cleanout (residential, no pools; mention the offer). Other calls begin with a $99 service call that goes toward the repair.