Well,
I called Roto Rooter who said they had enough cable to clear 90 feet of pipe. They sent out a guy who ran a cable up 40 feet of the pipe with no obstructions and then ran into an area that he said was a collapsed section of the drainage pipe. He then checked it with a camera and said he could not get beyond the obstruction but did have a $900 high pressure water jet that could help but could not guarantee it. He charged $369 for his effort. Based on his findings I hired a backhoe and two guys to dig up the collapsed section. Lo and behold the pipe was in intact and in good condition but roots had entered one of the 1 inch perforated holes in in the pipe and clogged it up. You could see where the rooter he used had started to remove the matted roots until he stopped. He removed about 6 inches and had another foot to go. I called him back to come back and finish the job but he refused unless I paid for the job again. We removed the roots and the water flowed freely but I wanted to insure that the problem was finally solved. In my discussion with the manager she said I needed a permit from the town to dig up the drainage pipe and a liscensed plumber to inspect and replace it.
This was not a happy experience. The bottom line. "Be carefull when hiring these guys". Incidentally, she said her process does not clear roots.
