Expert Sewer Line Repair in San Diego

Replacing a sewer line can be quite a big project. The sewer line will need to located and dug up, the old one cut away and removed and the new line will have to be installed carefully to ensure proper flow. Considering the labor and cost involved, most people avoid sewer replacement until it’s absolutely necessary. Here are some of the top reasons we recommend skipping the repairs and installing a new line.

The sewer line is corroded

If your service line is made of cast iron, chances are it’s too old and corroded for repairs to make any sense. Most plumbers would agree, cast iron sewer lines should be replaced. Even if the line is intact, the inside will most likely be coated in a rough, flaky rust that slowns down running waste water and collects solid matter. A corroded main line will eventually split and collapse, making drainage, service and repair pretty much impossible.

Roots have destroyed the line

Roots are present beneath the ground surface of most residential and commercial properties. It’s not uncommon to encounter a root problem with your sewer line, but sometimes roots can undergo explosive growth and they work their way into your sewer and drain lines in search of water. Once inside they can grow very large and reach great distances inside drain pipes. When this happens, your sewer line can be severely blocked and even destroyed by invading roots. In theses cases it often makes more sense to replace the line than try to repair it.

The line is broken or collapsed

Regardless of what kind of sewer piping you have, it can crack, break and collapse if under enough stress and if material is old or weak enough. Cast iron and clay piping are more likely to have this kind of problem. In some cases, a broken section of pipe can be dug up and repaired. Often, however, there will be multiple problem areas; or the condition of the surrounding piping makes sewer line repair diffucult or impossible. It’s better to replace a line in this condition rather than risk having further problems down the road.

The line is backgraded

A backgraded drain line is a pipe that’s pitched the wrong way. In other words, the pipe is not angled downward enough for waste water to flow freely away from the building. If a sewer line is backgraded, waste water and solids will collect inside the line. Residue and debris will accumulate and will start to cause back ups. If a single section of the line is flat or backgraded, it’s possible to make a repair. But if the whole line or a large portion of it is backgraded, replacing the entire line ususally makes the most sense.