Damaged Sewer Pipes Read This Before You Contact a Plumbing Contractor

Sewer pipes do not remain intact forever. Roots invade, drastic dramatic temperature shifts burst seams, and average wear compromises the integrity of older lines. It's good bet that your house will stay standing longer than the fortitude of your sewer pipeline, and that means the time will come when you will need to call a plumber.

Cast iron was previously the gold standard in plumbing pipelines, including the lateral sewer line, which drains from your home into the sewer main. When this pipe ruptures, often the wisest action is to replace the cast iron with new ABS pipe that will not face the same dangers in the future.

Another contemporary sewer pipeline replacement strategy is called trenchless plumbing. This strategy makes it possible to fix the sewer pipeline without tearing up your lawn. One variety of trenchless sewer pipeline repair is called the "bursting method": Plumbers will pull a new pipe through the existing, ruptured pipe. This further bursts the broken pipe to make room for the new one.

A second trenchless sewer pipeline repair technique is the "lining method." Using this strategy, contracters will place a flexible tube through the broken sewer pipeline and inflate it. This lining will then make any ruptures in the existing pipe totally moot. Better still, the lining can easily be removed and fixed (or switched out) when needed.

Even with trenchless sewer pipeline repair, it is possible for nearby roots to repeat their damage. In addition to fixing the ruptures in the pipeline, property owners may consider blocking root growth in the direction of the pipe for any nearby heavy foliage.

The price of sewer pipeline repair significantly changes depending on the business doing the work and how much work has to be done. Some sewer pipes run under garages, driveways, or landscaping. Especially under such circumstances, trenchless replacement can be a very desirable alternative. When choosing a plumbing contracter, ask for quotes from at least two different plumbers. Make sure all of the quotes include all of the same items. Contractors often charge significantly different costs for similar parts. Also make sure you get in writing the expected state of your property after the work is finished. Put another way, if a contracter does have to dig a trench in your yard or necessitate other cleanup work, it should be understood whose job it is -- theirs or yours -- to get everything looking good again.

Whenever you ask for an estimate for a sewer fix, get an idea of whether it's likely more fixes will have to be have to be performed in the very near future. Especially underneath older properties (or newer properties connecting to an older sewer pipe), it could be worth performing an entire replacement project instead of little-by-little fixes, so that you won't have to face a similar hassle two years from now. Many plumbing companies such as sewer drain cleaning Tacoma WA offer a warranty on sewer pipeline replacement, some of them for as long as you own the home.