if clog in drain pipe is left to dry out... is clog easier to snake/ get out ???? or is it better to keep the clog wet in order to not turn into a rock??? (sorry, my apologies if this is a really lame question )

It's better to snake the clogged or restricted drain ASAP before it gets worse.
When there is water in the line or running through it while the line is being snaked out it can help flush out and carry away debris from the line.
NO chemicals.

e-plumber
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"The society which scorns excellence in Plumbing as a humble activity and tolerates shoddiness in philosophy because it is an
exalted activity will have neither good Plumbing nor good philosophy: neither its pipes nor its theories will hold water." -
John William Gardner 10/8/1912 - 2/16/2002

Repair your leaking Plumbing fixtures ASAP [www.theplumber.com]
This slow drip will waste 7+ gallons of water per day.

No one has allowed the blockage to dry before snaking while I've witnessed or done the snaking. I do not think that you will need to let it dry for better results.

Knowing how to use the snake and using the proper one will improve your odds.

Try Plunger, Closet Auger, or Snake in that order.

Most people want to use their drains as soon as possible, not leave them plugged until things dry out. But as far as snaking is concerned it makes no difference.

ASAP is always best. Ensure that once the clog is open you run water to flush the debris downstream. Do not stop snaking once the clog opens, continue downstream to ensure the line has been cleaned.

Rule # 1 for the drain cleaner, "Water is my friend" unless you have to drain several hundred gallons for access to a cleanout.

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Or if the "several hundred gallons" are inside the pipe waiting for you to remove the plug. In that case, don't be like the plumber I worked with one time who had his mouth open when he pulled the plug.

I was on a job where five attached townhouses were all clogged up to the first floor Powder rooms and kitchens. It ended up being that the C.I. sewer main sheared off at the footing, that's where the clog was.

ALL the piping for the five units was full with sewage, where the sewer left the building was about 10 feet below the first floor bathrooms, what a nightmare slowly draining the lines from a clean-out plug, it seemed like hundreds of gallons.

I couldn't snake the line from a roof vent or first floor toilet because of the house trap location in a semi-finished basement area, upstream of the clog.

e-plumber
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"The society which scorns excellence in Plumbing as a humble activity and tolerates shoddiness in philosophy because it is an
exalted activity will have neither good Plumbing nor good philosophy: neither its pipes nor its theories will hold water." -
John William Gardner 10/8/1912 - 2/16/2002

Repair your leaking Plumbing fixtures ASAP [www.theplumber.com]
This slow drip will waste 7+ gallons of water per day.

We all have a good one of these stories huh?!

I went to a main line clog call with another mechanic in an 8 unit converted Victorian. we checked the trap/vent outside and it was dry, so we thought the line was blocked between there and the house somewhere. Little did we know the line we looked in was abandoned, and the real block was in the main line out in the street. Luckily it was my turn to run the machine while the other guy pulled the clean out plug in the basement and fed the cable. The poor guy got 1/2 a turn on that IBTS plug under the cellar steps and BOOM....a column of doodoo water right in the face......I have never run so fast in my life!

needless to say,he had to ride in the back of the truck to the shop!

Gerry