What to Expect During a Trenchless Sewer Replacement

Sewage – it ain’t pretty but it is one of the miracles of modern plumbing. Be it dirty water from the shower, washing machine or kitchen sink, not to mention the toilet, it just magically whisks away in an instant. But what happens when that doesn’t happen? When waste water drains away slowly or backs up completely, you may have an affordable solution.

What is Trenchless Sewer Replacement?

In many instances, Trenchless Sewer Replacement can be a less expensive and less invasive alternative to digging up the complete sewer line lateral. This is especially important for homeowners in San Francisco who want to minimize disruption to brick driveways, stone patios, landscaping, gardens, concrete slabs, and other structures. By minimizing the overall dig, the trenchless option also makes sense for long lateral runs of 75+ feet between your home and the city connection.

Ace’s trenchless sewer replacement specialists will “pull” a High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) pipe through the cracked or aging sewer pipe with minimal disturbance beyond two 4×4 points of entry and exit. Compared to a full line replacement, trenchless service typically saves property owners and managers up to 75% on labor costs while also dramatically reducing the need to dig up and replace concrete and landscaping. Steep hillsides and other access challenges may impact the estimated price.

Why is ACE the best choice for Trenchless Sewer Replacement in San Francisco?

ACE Plumbing & Rooter was one of the first plumbing companies in the Bay Area to offer trenchless sewer replacement. We proudly worked with the city of San Francisco to develop the codes and inspection criteria to make this technology a viable option for property owners in the city.

Here’s how your project will play out:

Sewer Line Inspection and Analysis – At the first sign of sewer line symptoms, ACE will come out and perform a thorough sewer line inspection. We can find and unclog any immediate issues, check the U-trap or venting, and run our HD cameras through the line all the way to the city connection.
1. Based on the amount of damage – from hairline cracks and intruding tree roots, to missing sections or corroded pipe – we can recommend a trenchless replacement, a partial sewer line repair, or a complete sewer line replacement
If Trenchless is an option, we will schedule the repair day and contact the city to mark all buried electrical, plumbing, gas, and data lines.
When our technicians arrive on replacement day, we will temporarily shut off water to your property
Next, we’ll find the least intrusive spots to dig two holes – entry and exit.
At each point, we will open the sewer line lateral and run a continuous HDPE pipe from Point A through Point B
Next, we’ll run new video and inspect our work down to the finest detail
1. The city inspector will then review our work and issue the permit
With the new sewer liner in place, we will seal the connections, replace the earth at the dig sites, If we broke concrete for an access point, we’ll pour replacement
Finally, we’ll clean up and leave the property in the best possible shape
1. Based on the dig points, you may need to re-seed parts of your lawn