Roebic FRK Foaming Tree Root Killer for Sewer Lines, 1 lb

This has stopped my recurring, yearly sewer rod-out because of the accursed Locust tree the city planted in front of my house. This will be the third year that I have not had to have the guy out to rod tree roots out of my sewer line. I use once a year about the end of June, so far, so good. What I suggest is the same as others, empty the two powders into a small, dry container, mix the two dry powders thoroughly by hand (do not add water!!). Remember, this stuff foams seriously so if you have one of the slower, older "swirly"-flush toilets, start your flush, wait until it is just starting to exhaust and then dump the powder in; if you have a more modern fast-flush, pull the handle and dump the powder at the same instant. You definitely do not want any residue left in the bowl at end of flush. I dump the stuff in just before bed, and let it sit overnight in the line. In the morning just use your bathroom/kitchen normally and the problem will be gone. [UPDATE JUNE 2014]: I have been using this once yearly and still no more problems. As a clincher.... my house is 120 years old and I have no record of the sewer being camera'd, so I hired a service to come in and run a camera through to the connection with the village main line. He completed about an hour ago, and totally clean, no sign of tree roots, collapsed tiles or anything else. Period. I saw it. The man couldn't find anything wrong at all. So, I think this proves that this stuff really works. Nobody will probably read this since is is an aged review, but at least I posted. :) [UPDATE JUNE 2015]: Still no problems, no backup or flooding. Next week I will treat the sewer again, but I think my tree root problems are over. [UPDATE JUNE 2016]: Yup, still good and no problems. [UPDATE MAY 2017]: Oh well, what the heck, I will update as long a I am thinking about it; I don't even think about sewer backup any more :) No problems last summer at all, I am using it a bit early this year, but I think I will be fine. [UPDATE JUNE 2018]: Yup, still root-trouble free. I had no problems last year at all. In addition, my next-door neighbor started using Roebic three years ago and his tree root problems disappeared. I still remind him of my big favor I did telling him about Roebic; very handy when I want to borrow something. :0) Incidentally, Roebic makes a couple of root remover products, be sure that the label specifies FOAMING, not just chemical or crystal powder. I don't know anything about those. My apologies about not answering some who posted a question!! For some reason Gmail stopped notifying me that I had a new post in my review. Guess I should check in occasionally. [UPDATE JUNE 2019]: Here I am again, it's time to do my yearly treatment tonight. No problems last summer/autumn, and my next door neighbor has no problems either since he started using Roebic a few years ago. It sure is a relief not to have to constantly call the sewer guy out. Keep on truckin' folks! [UPDATE MAY 2020]: Yup, still no sewer problems last year. I think this will be my last update, I am not sure if anyone is reading this anymore. Time marches on. This stuff works great for what it is intended. FEB.11/2021: Note that I have tried many times to find the questions directed to me about this product but can't locate them any more. I can edit my posts, but not answer questions, so I'm not ignoring anyone, I just cannot find where the directed questions are. Maybe Amazon doesn't allow this anymore?? I don't know. JUNE 2021: Still no more problems, same with my neighbor. New family moved in 4 years ago, I told them of the sewer problem, and they have no problems either. JUNE 2022: Well, I'm sure folks are getting bored reading this, but what the heck, it's a tradition now :) No problems last year as usual. New family moved in this autumn on the other side of my house, I told them about Roebic and they will use it just for insurance. I don't know what sewer guys are charging now but I'm sure it's a lot more than when I started using Roebic. Keep on truckin' folks! [EDIT] April 2023: Just a thought...I notice some folks post that it didn't work. If you have established root blockage this will not REMOVE it; you must rod-out the main sewer line to get rid of the established roots in it. Then Roebic will prevent new growth from blocking the line. Roebic will not remove established rootage in the line, you must clear it out first. June 2023: Yup. Same as last year, no problems. New family moved in next door, I told them about Roebic and saved them hundreds/thousands of dollars over the next few years of sewer rodding. May 2024: Is this getting boring? No problems last year, but the Cicadas (if you don't know what they are, just web-search it) love that hated Locust tree and are all over it. By the way...occasionally someone asks why there is a small paper in the middle of the bottle; I assume that keeps the two powders separated until you mix them. I don't know why, but it has always been there. Just throw it away. And...sometimes some of the powder is a bit lumpy. No problem, just use a paint stir stick to mix and crush the lumps, takes only 1 minute. May 2025: Yup, here I am again. No sewer problems last year. I will use it tonight as usual. Happy Sewers!! [UPDATE: May 2026]: Ok, still no problems last year. Let's see....to date is 15 years I have been using Roebic. So 15x$200 (plus or minus) service calls I have not paid for = $3000. Think I will take my wife out to dinner tonight!

This was easy to use and the directions were straightforward. We bought it to help deal with tree roots in our sewer line, and it has worked well for us. It’s a lot easier and less expensive than dealing with another sewer-line problem. I like having something we can use as preventative maintenance, and I’ll definitely keep using it as needed.

EDIT 9/10/26: I'll start by saying the product still works great. Now for my new info: I received my auto-shipment of Roebic Foaming Root Killer yesterday, and used it today in my mom's house. When I opened the bottle, there was a small towlette or cloth sticking out of the powder. Not sure if that's normal, but okay, not a big deal. Then I started dumping the powder into the toilet - now, mind you, it starts foaming right away and starts ascending toward the top of the toilet bowl - instructions are to flush right away or it will overflow. Well, I got about half the bottle dumped in and no more would come out. I looked inside the bottle, and the bottom half of the powder was all caked together. I had to quickly find something to poke down into the bottle to break up the powder... all the while, the stuff I already dumped into the toilet was rising toward the top of the toilet bowl. I was frantically trying to get the caked powder broken up to dump into the bowl. I was able to succeed mostly, at least enough broken up (with some larger chunks) to be able to dump the rest into the bowl before it overflowed. SO, either the bottle had been opened and exposed to moisture, or the product was old (there is no expiration date on the bottle that I can find). So, next time, I guess I'll take a screwdriver and stick it down into the bottle to make sure the powder is all broken up before I attempt to dump it into the bowl. (earlier post): My mom has issues with tree roots getting into her house pipes, causing flooding and major damage. Her whole basement floor had to be pulled up and replaced when her basement flooded from a backup caused by tree roots (thank goodness for insurance!). She used to have a roto rooter/plumbing company come out twice a year to ream out the pipes, but the roots still got into the water pipes in our dry climate between those appointments. Ideally, having the pipes reamed every 3 months would be the best, but it’s expensive each time they come out. After her basement flooded, they recommended she use this brand foaming root kill between her 6-month appointments. So she has the pipes reamed out, then 3 months later she uses the foaming root kill, then 3 months later the pipes reamed, and the foaming root kill in 3 more months. So far, so good. The plumber said they now get very little roots when they ream out the pipes. Seems this product is doing what it’s supposed to!

Works good as intended but do not breath the dust when you open the bottle Not Good

Fabulous company, excellent product. I contacted the manufacturer on this for a not-their-fault issue and they were spectacular. Kind, supportive, really listened, and resolved the issue without any fuss. A breath of fresh air from folks who specialize in septic and other less-than-lovely aspects of life. Kudos!

Great price for three bottles. It foams like they say it does! Appears to work so far as line has not "re-plugged" in the last two months from roots in old clay tile sewer line. I did not flush in the toilet, but added to the clean out in the main line closest to where the roots were. New piping was PVC and clear, the problem is in the old piping from the property line to main.

Whole bottle was supposed to be poured in when toilet is flushed & left for 6 to 8 hours. When I flushed the toilet and poured the bottle in, only half the bottle poured in because the rest (half the bottle) was stuck to the bottom. I had to use a straw to break it up. I'm going to pour the second half in, in the morning & hope it still works the same. Other than this product being stuck to the bottom of the bottle, Ive used the product beforw & so far it works pretty good.

I really can't give this product five stars yet, since I've only used it once, a few weeks ago. The real test of a root killer is if you use it regularly, and you have no more problems with roots clogging your pipes. I had to have a rooting job done recently. Though the rooter lady said there was no guarantee that a root killer would work, it was a good idea to use one. I read the good customer reviews of this product so I decided to get it. Trees can grow roots no wider than a hair, but when they reach a pipe, the water makes them grow and grow. You put the root killer into the toilet that is closest to the main line and flush twice, then don't use your toilets for 8 hours. This Roebic Foaming Root Killer was easy to use. Though you don't want it to come in contact with your skin, it's much less toxic than some root killers. A big help was that there is a short video demonstrating how to use it on Roebic's website. There are two types of powder in the canister, separated by a flushable piece of paper. While wearing rubber gloves, pour in the entire contents of the jar. The jar looks big in the picture because there's nothing next to the photo, but it's a small jar. The powder expands quickly on contact with water. When you flush, hold the handle down for a long time. Then wait for the water level to come back up and flush again. The man in the demonstration video said that every homeowner should use this product "once or twice a year." I plan to use it three times a year because I have a tree in my backyard with gigantic roots. UPDATE 8/1/22 to 5 stars: I've used this product 10 times already, for maintenance every 6 months. Until now I've been problem-free. The one exception happened this week. I did the root killer routine in January of this year. I have a Kaffir Plum tree in my back yard with a giant root system. I had the tree pruned extensively earlier this year. A couple of days ago, the shower started to smell bad, indicating roots causing sewer water to back up. The tree must have responded to the "assault" of extensive pruning by sprouting a lot more roots than usual. A tiny root the diameter of a hair, once it finds water (main line pipe) will invade the pipe and clog it. I did the root kill procedure today and all seems OK.

Mousse à peine et n'attaque pas les racines

Worked for me! Had ongoing blockage in a toilet and plumber said it was likely roots and may occur again and require a camera to be sent down for $600. Bought this and the issue stopped.

Excellent product, kept having repeated problems of obstruction for a long time of my indian type of toilet, tried copper sulphate, got some relief but not enough, plumbers came doing inefficient work , quite a bad situation, nothing was really working so far but this product used once solved the problem, now several months have passed and the situation is no more problematic as it used to be , some little obstruction may sometimes happen but flushing more solves it , that's a real relief!!!...very precious ! I will repeat after one year..

perfecto

The first time I bought this, I wrote a bad review, as it didn't immediately do anything. But, after a few weeks I noticed my drains were no longer backing up during heavy rainfall. To my surprise the roots had obviously been killed & slowly been washed away. Unfortunately, as roots do, they grew back a couple of years later. Again, same process & same pleasing result. I'm now on my third purchase, which should tell you I'm really pleased with this, as an alternative to digging up the drain & physically removing roots. Which would cost way more!