Sewer camera inspection in northern Utah

The camera shows the inside of the pipe, from the house to the sewer main, in live video. It can find:

• Tree roots growing in through joints and cracks.
• Cracked, broken, or collapsed pipe.
• Joints that have shifted out of line.
• A sag, also called a belly, where water and solids sit.
• Grease, scale, and sludge on the pipe wall.
• Objects stuck in the line.
• The pipe material and where it changes, such as cast iron to clay.

The camera head carries a transmitter. A locator above ground picks up its signal, so we can mark the spot and the depth of a problem on the surface.

The camera has limits. It sees only the inside of the pipe. It cannot see through standing water or heavy sludge, so a dirty line may need cleaning first.

Get a camera inspection when you need to know the cause, not only clear the symptom. Good times:

• The main line has backed up more than once.
• Several drains are slow or gurgle at the same time.
• You smell sewage in the yard or basement, or a wet spot or dip has formed over the line.
• You are buying a house, above all an older one with large trees.
• You have been told you need a sewer repair and want to see the damage yourself.
• A main line clog was just cleared and nobody knows what caused it.

Trees are a common reason. Snyderville Basin Water Reclamation District, which serves the Park City area, warns that tree roots commonly invade sewer laterals through cracks or loose joints, leading to costly repairs.

The work is clean and needs no digging.

1. We find a way into the line. A cleanout is the usual entry. With no cleanout, we pull a toilet or go in through a roof vent.
2. We feed the camera through the pipe on a flexible rod and watch the video on a monitor. A counter shows how far in the camera is.
3. We note each problem and its distance from the entry point.
4. We use the locator above ground to mark where the problem is and how deep.
5. We go over the video with you and explain what each finding means.

Most home inspections take about an hour. It takes longer when the line has to be cleared before the camera can pass. You can watch the screen while we work and ask questions as we go.

Yes, if the house is older, has large trees, or has a history of backups. A general home inspection does not usually include the buried sewer line.

The sewer lateral is the pipe from the house to the public main, and its owner pays for repairs. Snyderville Basin Water Reclamation District, which serves the Park City area, states that the private property owner is fully responsible for the entire length of the lateral, from the building to the connection at the main. Jordan Basin Improvement District, in the south Salt Lake Valley, says the district is responsible only for its own property, not your line or your connection to the main.

A broken lateral becomes the buyer's bill the day the sale closes. An inspection before closing shows the pipe's condition while there is still time to negotiate.

We give free estimates. A camera inspection is a small job next to any sewer repair, and these are the things that change its price:

• Access. A cleanout makes the job quick. Pulling and resetting a toilet, or working from the roof, takes more time.
• Length of the line. A long run from the house to the main in the street takes longer to inspect and locate.
• Clearing the line first. The camera cannot see through standing water, sludge, or a root mass. A blocked line needs a cable or hydro jetting before the inspection.
• Locating. Marking the position and depth of one problem is simple. Tracing the whole line across a yard takes longer.

You get the estimate before any work starts.

What happens next depends on what the camera found. Many inspections end with good news: the pipe is sound and needs a cleaning, or nothing at all.

When there is damage, the usual paths are:

• Buildup. Clean the line with a cable or hydro jetting.
• Roots at one joint, or a single crack. Repair or line that short section.
• A long run of cracked pipe. Line or replace it. Trenchless methods work when the old pipe still holds its shape.
• A collapsed or sagging section. Dig it up and replace it. A liner follows the shape of the old pipe, so it cannot fix a sag.

We explain each option and you decide. If the problem is in the public main and not in your lateral, we tell you so you can call your city or sewer district.