What You Need to Know About Trenchless Sewer Replacement

Trenchless sewer replacement has many advantages over traditional sewer excavation. It requires less construction, reduces traffic detours, and reduces disruption to people around the construction zone. It also minimizes disturbance to landscapes and outdoor structures, making it a frequent choice of sewer replacement contractors and homeowners.

Two common methods of trenchless sewer replacement are sliplining and pipe bursting

Both methods involve slipping a new pipe into the original pipe. The key difference is whether the old pipe is dismantled or used as an outer shell for the new pipe. In some cases, both methods are ideal choices, but a household plumbing inspection might find one more beneficial to certain situations.

Sliplining

Sliplining requires the new pipe to be narrower than the original pipe. The new pipe is pulled or pushed into the original pipe, and then grouted into place. Sliplining doesn’t dismantle the original pipe, which has become an outer shell for the new pipe, so the new pipe can’t be upsized. Upsizing the pipe’s capacity would require dismantling the original pipe, as is done with pipe bursting.

Pipe bursting

Pipe bursting is exactly as it sounds. The sewer replacement plumber pulls a bursting tool through the old pipe, forcing it open as the new pipe is dragged into place. Pipe bursting can replace pipes of similar or larger size, typically made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE). It’s also more environmentally-friendly than sliplining, which requires chemicals to grout the new pipe into place.

Cured-in-Place Pipe (CIPP) Lining is another common method

CIPP lining is ideal for repairing sewer pipes that don’t need to be upsized or be entirely replaced. It creates a new lining within the old pipe. A resin-saturated felt tube is inserted into the old pipe and turned inside-out with air or water pressure. This puts the resin in contact with the old pipe so it can be cured and hardened into a new lining. 

Trenchless sewer replacement can’t fix pipe bellies

Despite the benefits of trenchless sewer replacement, sewer lines that sag due to shifting soil and improper bedding can’t be replaced with trenchless methods. This is because a new pipe can’t be led through a misshapen pipe. Sewer replacement contractors also won’t cure a new lining into a pipe belly, as solid waste could remain stagnant in the belly and form a clog. The only option is to dig out the entire pipe.

Trenchless Sewer Replacement with Ehret Co. Plumbing & Heating

To learn more about trenchless sewer replacement, reach out to Ehret. Co Plumbing & Heating through our online contact form or call us at 510-528-4292. We’ll help you determine if your sewer line needs to be repaired or replaced, and if it will benefit from a trenchless method.