It’s hard to know what is happening in your sewage system. With so many pipes buried underground and trapped in your home’s foundation, how can you possibly know what kind of condition your sewage system is in or if there are any underlying problems? Thankfully, sewer camera inspections can provide you with accurate and detailed information related to your sewer.
Pine Breeze Inspections utilizes camera systems to quickly and accurately diagnose any issues inside your sewer pipes, taking the guesswork out of diagnosing issues as well as catching any minor issues before they become expensive problems.
What is a Sewer Camera Inspection?
Sewer camera inspections involve a small waterproof video camera mounted on the end of a flexible cable. This camera snake is inserted into the sewage system and pushed through the pipeline in order to do a visual inspection. These cameras can be used in underground pipes as well as pipes encased in concrete, located behind walls, or beneath your home’s foundation.
As long as there is access to the pipe, a sewer camera can be used to inspect the pipeline.
When to Use a Sewer Camera Inspection
Sewer camera inspections are a quick and easy way to determine the health of your plumbing systems and detect issues early before they become expensive repairs.
That being said, there are two situations where sewer camera inspections can be especially helpful:
Older Homes
Most houses over 20 years old are at risk of having issues with the sewage system. If your home was built prior to the installation of a city sewer line, your sewage piping may still be connected to a cesspool. Even if your piping has been rerouted to the city sewer line, cesspools pose a serious risk of sinking and collapsing.
A sewer camera inspection may also be a good idea if your home was built in the late 1940s-1950s. During this time, sewer lines were commonly made of tar paper and pressed wood. Also known as “Orangeburg pipes“, these pipes were designed as a low-cost alternative to metal pipes. Though they were made to last 50 years (under ideal conditions), Orangeburg pipes have been known to fail in as little as 10 years. Today, very few building codes accept Orangeburg pipe as a building material.
If you are looking to renovate your home, or if you are buying a new home, a sewer camera inspection is recommended to ensure that the sewer piping is up to code and to eliminate any future and costly issues.
Sewer Backup Issues
The worst thing you can do if your plumbing is acting funny is put off having a sewer camera inspection done. When small issues are caught early, they can be remedied before they become large, expensive problems.
You may notice one or more of these signs if there is a potential sewer backup:
- Toilets won’t flush or plunge
- Toilet bubbles when flushed or when a sink or tub is drained
- One piece of plumbing causes backups in other pieces of plumbing
- More than one drain is clogged
- The presence of a foul smell near drains
Any of these signs warrant a closer inspection to determine the cause. The sooner the cause is found, the quicker a repair can be made.
Sewer Inspection Services
At Pine Breeze Inspections, our goal is to solve your drain issues by diagnosing, resolving, and repairing them in a timely manner. Most importantly, we want to ensure these issues don’t happen again.
Contact us today for more information about sewer inspections!