Roots
Roots in your sewer line
Roots don't break a sound pipe. They find a joint or a crack where water seeps out, get in, and grow toward the flow.
That is why a drain cleared in spring is slow again by fall. Cutting the roots clears the line for now. Lining closes the way in.
What we do
The camera shows where they enter
A jetter or cutter clears the pipe first
Lining seals the joints they used
Signs
What you notice first
None of these means roots on its own. Together they are a reason to look.
Slow drains in more than one place
A single sink is usually a local clog. Several at once point to the main line.
Gurgling when another fixture drains
Air pushed back up the line by something partly blocking it.
A backup after heavy rain
Water gets into a cracked pipe, and the line can't carry it all.
Sewer smell in the yard
A cracked or open joint outside, often near a tree.
A wet or green patch over the line
Water leaving the pipe feeds the lawn above it.
Cleared before, slow again
The roots grew back from the same opening.
Options
Three things we can do about roots
The camera decides which. Often it's the first two together.
- Step one
Cut and clear
A jetter or cutter takes the roots out of the pipe. It buys time and shows what the pipe looks like underneath.
- Step two
Line the pipe
A liner covers the joints and cracks the roots used, so there is nothing to grow into.
- When needed
Replace a section
If the pipe is too broken to line, we burst it or dig that section.
About roots and lining
Should I take the tree down?
Not on our say-so. A liner closes the way in, and the tree can stay. If a root has crushed the pipe or the tree is dying, that is a different talk, and the footage will show it.
Will roots come back after lining?
They can't grow through the cured liner. They can still press on the outside of the pipe, and we film the run again before we leave.
Does root killer work?
It can slow growth inside the pipe for a while. It doesn't seal the opening, so we don't count on it.
Next step
See where they get in
A camera visit shows the joint, the footage count and what the pipe looks like after cleaning.