Your home’s main sewer line is one of its most critical components, responsible for safely carrying all of your wastewater away from your property. It’s also completely hidden from view, making it impossible to know what condition it’s in—until a problem occurs. In the past, diagnosing a sewer line issue involved a lot of guesswork and could even require digging up parts of the yard. Today, modern technology provides a clear and definitive solution: a sewer line video camera inspection. This powerful diagnostic tool allows a professional plumber to see the exact condition of the inside of your pipes, eliminating guesswork and enabling precise, effective repairs.
How a Sewer Camera Inspection Works
The process is straightforward but technologically advanced. A trained plumbing technician will access your sewer line through a cleanout port (an accessible cap on your sewer line). They will then insert a flexible fiber-optic cable into the pipe. On the end of this cable is a small, high-resolution, waterproof video camera equipped with a powerful LED light.
The technician skillfully guides the camera through the entire length of your sewer pipe, navigating turns and traveling all the way to the point where your line connects to the main city sewer. As the camera moves through the pipe, it transmits a live video feed to a high-resolution monitor, allowing both you and the technician to see exactly what’s going on inside your pipes in real-time. A professional can record this footage for your records and can use a locating device to pinpoint the exact surface location and depth of any problems they find.
What Can a Camera Inspection Uncover?
A video inspection can identify a wide range of common and serious sewer line problems with 100% accuracy.
- Tree Root Intrusion: This is one of the most common problems. The camera can clearly show the dense, web-like mass of tree roots that have infiltrated the pipe through tiny cracks or joints.
- Cracked, Broken, or Collapsed Pipes: The camera can identify any structural damage to the pipe, whether it’s a small crack, a fracture from shifting soil, or a completely collapsed section that is obstructing flow.
- Pipe “Bellies” or Sags: Over time, sections of a pipe can sink due to poor soil compaction, creating a low spot or “belly.” This area collects solid waste and water, leading to frequent and recurring clogs. The camera can clearly identify these sags.
- Serious Blockages: The inspection can reveal the exact nature of a clog, whether it’s a solid foreign object, a heavy buildup of grease and sludge, or something else entirely.
- Pipe Material and Overall Condition: It allows the plumber to identify the type of pipes you have (e.g., older clay, cast iron, or modern PVC) and assess their general condition, helping to determine their remaining lifespan.
When is a Camera Inspection Essential?
While useful in many situations, a camera inspection is absolutely crucial in a few key scenarios:
- When Buying a Home: Before you finalize the purchase of a new home, especially an older one, a sewer inspection can uncover hidden problems that could save you from thousands of dollars in unexpected repairs after you move in. Home inspection associations like the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) often recommend a sewer scope as a vital part of the due diligence process.
- When Experiencing Recurring Backups: If you have to call a plumber every few months to clear the same drain, there is an underlying problem that a simple drain snake isn’t fixing. A camera inspection is the only way to find the root cause.
Your Experts for Sewer Camera Inspections in San Diego
Don’t guess what’s wrong with your sewer line. Get a clear and accurate diagnosis with a professional video inspection. For homeowners and home buyers in San Diego, the experienced team at Drain Masters offers state-of-the-art drain and sewer line video inspections. Contact us today to see the true condition of your pipes.