How Sewer Inspection Cameras Work

Sewer repair: it’s every homeowner’s worst nightmare. It’s intrusive, it’s expensive and it can take forever. You’re not just paying for repair; you’re also paying for someone to dig up your beautiful yard. And you don’t have any choice! …or do you? Enter the plumbing camera.

“Trenching” (digging) sewer repair was the only option for sewer repair once, but that’s not the case anymore. Thanks to modern technology, professional technicians have the sewer inspection camera. This camera, along with a suite of other plumbing equipment, makes it possible to fix damaged sewer lines without digging!

How Pipe Camera Inspection Works

One of our certified technicians inserts a specialized sewer pipe inspection camera into your sewer line via the clean out. The small fiber optic pipe camera is attached to a long, flexible metal cable. The technician feeds this cable down the sewer line and manipulates it remotely using small motors within the cable.

The camera connects it to a portable, closed-circuit display. Powerful lights on the camera illuminate the interior, so you can see every detail inside the pipe in real-time. Your technician will note the presence of debris, clogs, and even the tiniest cracks as the camera travels to the street and back.

When We Perform Plumbing Camera Inspections

You’d be surprised how often we can use camera inspection on the job. We recommend video drain inspection whenever it might prevent us from tearing up a lawn or busting up a floor.

Camera inspection is applicable to a surprising number of homes situations. It’s easy to use and all we need is a pipe or sewer opening wide enough to spool the camera equipment through. We can even make a temporary opening ourselves. 

Using the equipment, technicians can visually identify most fractures, breaks, root damage, and corrosion. Once we know what the problem is, we’ll know how to fix it in the most efficient way possible.

If we find a clog caused by tree roots, we’ll usually use rooting machines or hydro-jetting cleaners to blast it away. To seal leaks and fractures, we use a resin-based Cured-In-Place-Pipe (CIPP). Larger pipe breaks may require pipe bursting technology – which is still much easier and less invasive than the alternative. Whatever the problem is, camera inspection can help us positively locate and identify it so we know how to proceed.

Why It’s So Effective

Without video inspection, the only way to figure out what’s wrong with your sewer pipes is digging down to them directly. This process slow, costly, and destructive. It also requires a fair amount of trial-and-error. When we don’t know exactly where the problem is, we have to keep digging until we find it.

With the inspection camera’s help, we can measure exactly where the problem is. Once we know, we can solve it with minimal disruption to your home. Instead of cutting through a long section of pipe, for instance, we can go straight to the source.

An added benefit is that camera inspection can locate every problem your sewer pipes have, not just the most pressing ones. Often, camera inspections reveal the underlying cause behind repeated problems. Ultimately, camera inspections give you get a much better idea of the functionality and health of your sewer pipes.

Camera inspection and trenchless sewer repair may not be the right solution for every repair job. Sometimes, pipe placement or the nature of the problem necessitate a more conventional approach. In most cases, however, camera inspection technology makes sewer repair a much easier and less painful experience. Plus, it’s pretty cool. How often do you get to see the inside of your pipes?

Schedule Your Inspection Today

No matter what kind of sewer or pipe problem you have, you can rely on the certified plumbers at Benjamin Franklin Plumbing to resolve it. Whether that’s video inspection, rooting, hydro-jetting, or something else, we’ll make sure you know what we’re doing and why. We’ve helped countless satisfied customers in the Dallas area, and we’ve got the pictures to prove it!