How Do You Repair a Sewer Line?

When it comes to sewer line repairs, many factors affect the number of repair option(s) available as well as the final price.

Some of the aspects that determine our repair or replacement methods are:

Location of the Problem
If the break is under the home, we will usually have to excavate a tunnel to the area. That is always preferred if the break cannot be pinpointed so we can access the entire line. Occasionally, we may be able to penetrate the slab and make the repair. This method is never preferred because of the mess and other repairs that have to take place, but sometimes it makes more sense.

If the break is not under the home but in the line going to the city sewer (or septic) then we will excavate the area in question. Sometimes excavation requires us to tunnel under the driveway or sidewalk. Sometimes it requires a third party to remove a tree or other landscape feature.

Accessibility
The break’s proximity to the home’s exterior is always a deciding factor. However, pool decks, patios, mortared retaining walls, large trees, driveways & sidewalks, etc. all play a part in the repair options available. Unless your home is the rare pier & beam variety, the sewer system and lines are always going to be buried below ground. How accessible the repair location is and the amount of excavation that is required are always major factors when building a plan and quote.

How Many Fixtures Are Involved
If the repair is relatively unknown—for instance, affecting an entire bathroom or isolated to a general area (branch arm)—then usually the most viable option in the DFW area is to excavate a tunnel under the home. This allows us to expose all of the lines to all of the fixtures and replumb the entire bathroom, kitchen, or laundry area.

On occasion, as in the case of older cast iron pipe systems, sometimes the entire house has to be excavated via a tunneling process. This will expose every line, allowing us to remove the old age cast iron and replace it with new appropriate-sized PVC. PVC pipe then gets hung with industrial support hangers from the bottom of the exposed slab. This repair option will outlive the home.

How Many Linear Feet of Pipe Are Involved
We have completed tunneling jobs in excess of 150 linear feet under homes from multiple angles and entry points. We have also replaced long runs exceeding 600 linear feet of sewer pipe with pump lift stations that pressurize the wastewater and debris through the sewer line to the city sewer system.

How Much Concrete Removal Will Be Required (If Any)
Almost inevitably, some concrete will have to be cut or chipped away. Sometimes that means a concrete beam(s) that a pipe passes through. Sometimes it means a footer near the exterior of the home that ties a vent or sink drain to the system. Sometimes large sections of the driveway have to be removed. The cutting, busting, and disposal process is one of the more costly things we do. Avoiding this is preferred but almost impossible and sometimes unknown until the excavation has been completed.

Age of System and Type of Materials Used When Installed
Cast iron pipes have a limited lifespan. If your home was built in 1985 it is possible a spot repair or branch arm replacement can be done rather than the entire system. But this is only putting off the inevitable! If your home was built in 1980 or earlier and has cast iron, then an entire replacement is really the only viable option.

Pipe Relining
There is a very complicated “trenchless sewer repair” process from Europe that has made its way to the US market. There are multiple versions, but it is known as “epoxy pipe relining.” We have looked into the various processes, and at this time the equipment and materials are cost-prohibitive versus the tried and true method of a full PVC replacement.

In comparison pipe relining can be approximately double the cost of the traditional excavation and PVC re-piping option. In addition, we have concerns about the limitations and potential problems of these trenchless sewer line repairs.

Pipe relining typically reduces the already narrowed diameter of the smaller cast iron pipe. The relining method also follows the path of the existing pipe as its guide. And if that pipe has developed a belly over the years, then your new epoxy-coated relined system will also have a belly. That makes the whole process pointless because a properly functioning plumbing system must have a constant downward fall.

Contact Earl’s Plumbing today for sewer line repair service!