CIPP it up! A new option for repairing a sewer line

A recent sewer inspection on a house my clients were buying revealed a few separated joints which would require three very difficult and costly spot repairs. The damaged sections were very deep, hard to get to, and in one case underneath a concrete patio that was a selling point for a house and something we didn’t want to damage.

The repair estimates for doing these three spot repairs or just replacing the whole line were all around $8,000.

Fortunately, there’s a new option that doesn’t require any digging and is more affordable. They can just access the sewer line from a cleanout near the house and insert a new lining that completely seals and repairs the line. We chose to go that route and the repair was completed quickly and for about half the cost of the new line. We had the sewer line inspected again and it’s in perfect working order.

Here’s a detailed description from the company that performed the work:

The CIPP Lining Process

CIPP (Cured in Place Pipe) is formed by a flexible lining which hardens in place. The lining repairs damage in the old pipe. One of the advantages of CIPP is that the new pipeline doesn’t have seams. This jointless construction eliminates weak points and results in a seamless, smooth liner.

CIPP repairs damaged pipes without digging or destruction. CIPP uses a combination of old-fashioned plumbing skills and high-tech methods to create a liner that hardens into a new pipe a few hours after installation. The procedure is quicker than traditional types of pipe replacement. The process involves several, important steps:

1. A technician examines the pipe with a sewer camera. The camera is inserted into a cleanout, an opening used to access pipes. The camera is pushed through the pipe and sends video to a monitor.This inspection is quick and allows our experts to diagnose various problems and areas of concern in the pipes, such as corrosion, collapsed joints, and other problems.
2. The technician will recommend the best course to repair the pipe. The pipe may need to be cleaned before its condition can be accurately assessed. We have various cleaning methods that we deploy depending on the type of pipeline material found in the system as well as its age.
3. If CIPP lining is decided to be the best course of action for repairing the pipe, our technicians will prepare a lining and insert it through the cleanout. No excavation will be required as we utilize the same access point established in our inspection.
4. The liner is inverted with water or hot air. The inversion allows epoxy resin to be applied to the inside of the pipe, covering corrosion and filling cracks. The resin-saturated material is cured using heat, light, or steam over the course of a few hours.
5. After the liner has been installed and is determined to have cured smoothly, we deploy our robotic cutters to allow movement through the system connections. The high-speed blades safely cut through the liner, and after the first, rough cut, we may attach different blades to refine the connections and establish smooth water and waste flow.

CIPP lining creates a pipe that will last for 50 years or longer. It’s a method that’s safe, economical, and causes less inconvenience than methods that require excavation. Cracks, holes, and leaks are repaired with this trenchless technology. Connections that carry water to or from the mainline are also blocked during the installation, and leaving them covered is problematic. For the times when pipes contain these connections, we use our robotic cutters to restore them.

Yascha Noonberg

Principal Broker | ADU Specialist | OR

He/Him

Consistently featured as one of the Top 50 Brokers in Portland. Certified Residential Investment Specialist "Yascha is absolutely an asset, not only to his clients, but his industry as a whole as an example of how REALTORS® should strive to conduct business...

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