What Is a Sewer Line Inspection? When Should I Get One?

For most homeowners, their sewer line is literally out of sight, out of mind. Your sewer line is the main pipe that transports all of your wastewater out of your home to the sewer. Since it’s buried underground, it’s easy to forget about it. However, a sewer line inspection may be what saves you from an expensive plumbing repair.

At Parker-Arntz Plumbing & Heating, Inc., we offer sewer line inspections for customers evaluating potential new homes or for current homeowners who suspect something wrong with their sewer line. Our sewer scoping and televising capabilities allow us to inspect your line without resorting to expensive, often destructive digging practices.

How Sewer Line Inspections Work

Our plumbers use a special camera for sewer scoping. We’ll send this camera down into your main sewer pipe so it can take video footage. It’s also fitted with a radio transmitter so we can tell exactly where the camera is in the pipe without having to dig up your yard.

The camera allows us to understand what’s going on in your pipe. Our plumbers have the skills and experience necessary to understand what they see on the video feed and determine if it warrants a repair. 

Do I Need a Repair?

Some repair needs are straightforward. For example, if our plumbers see a massive tree root infiltrating or warping the pipe, then a repair is almost always necessary.

However, some pipes may work just fine, even if they appear to be damaged. For example, the sewer scope camera may show an alarming crack or hole that, to the untrained eye, looks like it needs to be repaired fast. But our plumbers can tell if it’s the wall of the pipe that’s cracked or just a crack in the years of calcium and soap buildup, leaving the pipe’s wall intact.

Other plumbing companies may resort to showing these images to customers to get them to agree to unnecessary repairs. At Parker-Arntz, we can tell if these cracks and holes are truly causing leaks or if they don’t reach the actual walls of the pipe itself. You can count on our plumbers to give you a straightforward, knowledgeable assessment of your sewer line.

When to Inspect a Sewer Line

You should always schedule a sewer line inspection as part of a home inspection when buying a house that is more than 20 years old. Even for newer sewer lines, tree roots can present problems after a couple decades or so. 

The older the house is, the more important it is to inspect the sewer line. Older home builders often used materials for their sewer lines that unfortunately end up disintegrating over time. You may need to replace the entire line depending on the age of the home and which materials were originally used.

If you’re a current homeowner and you’re experiencing clogs, water flow issues, or unpleasant smells, then you may need a sewer line inspection. That way, our plumbers can determine if the sewer line is the cause of your problems.

The best time to schedule a sewer line inspection is before you’re experiencing any problems with your sewer. That way, our plumbers can repair small issues before they become massive, expensive projects. 

Schedule an Inspection Today

Our Michigan sewer line inspectors can protect your current home from expensive sewer projects or evaluate a potential new home for problems. We’re proud to help clients in Belding, Greenville, Livonia, and throughout the state of Michigan. Call Parker-Arntz Plumbing & Heating, Inc. today at (888) 641-3907, or contact us online to request an estimate.