Sewer line failing?Camera first. Always.
Nobody should quote you a sewer replacement without putting a camera down the pipe. We look first, you watch the screen with us, and then we talk about what it costs — because roots, a belly and a collapsed clay line are three very different jobs.
- Camera from $195
- Trenchless where the ground allows
- Permits filed & inspected
wait for Monday
The real decision
Does your lawn have to come up?
This is what people actually want to know, and the honest answer is that it depends on the pipe rather than on the contractor. Here's how the two methods compare.
Trenchless — pipe bursting or lining
2 access pits
The new pipe is pulled through the path of the old one, so the ground between the two access points is never opened. On one Montclair job we replaced 80 feet of collapsed 1940s clay this way, and the driveway was never touched.
- Roughly half the lawn and driveway damage
- Usually finished faster, often in a day
- Needs a reasonably straight run and sound surrounding soil
- Not possible where the line has completely collapsed or badly offset
Open trench — the traditional dig
Full excavation
A mini-excavator opens the run from the foundation to the city tap. More disruption, but it's the only option on some lines and it lets us correct pitch, add a cleanout and see everything we're replacing.
- Required where the line has collapsed or the pitch is wrong
- Lets us reset fall to the proper quarter-inch per foot
- Landscaping restored and sidewalk patched to township spec
- NJ One Call marks utilities before anything is dug
Which one you get is decided by the camera survey, not by what's convenient to sell. If a contractor quotes a sewer replacement before running a camera, that number came from somewhere other than your pipe.
Start here
What's actually wrong down there?
Four things account for nearly every failed sewer line in North Jersey. Pick the one that sounds like yours.
Roots, nearly always
A clog that comes back on a schedule isn't a clog. Tree roots find the joints in old clay pipe, grow into the flow, and catch everything that passes. Cabling clears a path through them and buys you a few months. The camera tells you whether it's worth doing that or fixing the line.
Stop running water and call
A full blockage or a failed line, and every flush upstairs makes it worse. This is a 24/7 call. We clear it first so the house is usable, then camera the line to find out whether it was a blockage or the pipe itself giving up.
The line is leaking into the ground
Wet ground over the run, grass that's greener in one strip, or a soft depression means waste is escaping the pipe and washing soil away underneath. That gets worse quietly and then suddenly. It needs locating and excavating rather than clearing.
Best money you'll spend before closing
A sewer survey isn't part of a standard home inspection and a failed lateral is a five-figure surprise. On a pre-1970 house with mature trees out front, it's worth doing before you sign. You get the footage either way, which is useful at the negotiating table.
Flat rate, no bait
What it costs
Sewer work has the widest honest price range of anything we do, because depth, length and what's on top of the run change everything. Nobody can quote it properly from a phone call.
- You watch the screen with the tech as it goes down
- You keep the footage whatever you decide to do
- Then we quote from what's actually in the pipe
The spread on a full replacement is real and it is not a negotiating tactic. A short shallow run under a lawn sits near the bottom. Sixty feet at depth under a driveway and a sidewalk, with the township wanting the concrete restored to spec, sits near the top. Which one you have is knowable in about twenty minutes with a camera, and we would rather show you than guess at you. Every replacement is permitted and inspected, and NJ One Call marks the utilities before anything is dug. NJ Master HVACR Contractor Lic. #19HC00145700 · bonded · insured.
How the job goes
Four steps, no mystery
Camera down the line
Before anyone talks about price. You watch the screen with the tech and you keep the footage regardless of what you decide.
Located and marked
We trace the run from the surface so we know exactly where it is and how deep, then NJ One Call marks the other utilities.
Written options
Trenchless where the pipe allows it, open trench where it doesn't, and a straight answer about which one your line is. Permit filed with the township.
Restored and signed off
Correct pitch, new cleanout at the foundation, landscaping put back and concrete patched to spec. Inspector closes it out.
Real work
Our jobs, not stock photos
Questions we get a lot
How much does a sewer line replacement cost?
A full lateral replacement from the foundation to the city tap runs $4,500–$15,000, and the spread is genuine. Length, depth and what sits on top of the run — lawn, driveway, sidewalk — move the number more than anything else. A spot repair on a single failed section starts around $2,500. We quote from the camera survey, not from the phone call.
Will you have to dig up my lawn or driveway?
Often not. Trenchless pipe bursting pulls new pipe through the path of the old one from two access pits, which typically halves the surface damage. It needs a reasonably straight run and sound soil around it, and it isn't possible where the line has fully collapsed or badly offset. The camera decides which method your line can take.
Why do you insist on a camera first?
Because roots, a belly holding water, an offset joint and a collapsed section all present the same way at the fixture and cost wildly different amounts to fix. Twenty minutes with a camera is the difference between a quote and a guess. You watch the screen with the tech and the footage is yours whatever you decide.
Should I get the sewer checked before buying a house?
On a pre-1970 house with mature trees near the line, yes. A sewer survey isn't part of a standard home inspection, and a failed lateral is a five-figure problem that becomes yours at closing. It's $195, and the footage is useful whichever way the negotiation goes.
Do I need a permit?
For a replacement, yes. The township permit runs $250–$500 and the work gets two inspections, one with the trench open and one after backfill. We file it and coordinate both. NJ One Call marks the gas, electric and water before any digging starts.
Can roots be dealt with without replacing the line?
Often, for a while. Hydro-jetting with a cutting head clears roots properly rather than punching a hole through them, and it carries our 6-month no-clog guarantee. On a sound clay line with root intrusion at the joints, jetting on a schedule is a legitimate way to defer replacement. On a line that's cracked or offset, it's money spent on a problem that's coming back.
What pipe do you replace it with?
Schedule 40 PVC on an open-trench replacement, set at the proper quarter-inch-per-foot fall, with a new cleanout at the foundation wall so the next person has access. Trenchless jobs use HDPE pulled through the old path.
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Same backup, third time this year?
Put a camera down it before you spend another dollar cabling it.