There has been a time or two when you have driven past a neighbor’s house and seen chaos. Huge machines were parked on both sides of the street to make your journey somewhat perilous. The yard, their driveway, and a part of the street were dug up. The house was dark because the water was turned off. Or, maybe one of the machines hit an underground power line to darken everything.
In other words, it looked like that particular patch of the property was under attack. In reality, they were repairing a broken water or sewer pipe. When you spoke to your neighbor about it, they told stories of disruption, disaster, and exorbitant costs. As you looked at you looked around your yard, you wondered if the same thing could happen.
The short answer … No. Technology has advanced to the point this type of excavation isn’t required anymore. Even for heavily damaged pipes. Today, money and property are safer thanks to trenchless pipe repair.
The operation is what it says. A huge swath of turn and blacktop do not need to be torn up anymore. Instead, procedures have been developed to repair existing pipes with minimal intrusion.
The first task addressed is to locate the broken area. This is done in many cases with a liquid smoke test. Repair teams use supplies from companies like Hurco Technologies to push smoke through the pipes. They check where the smoke comes out along the pipe. This is where the repair takes place.
One way to do this is relining the pipe. An adhesive is pumped into the pipe to coat its interior. Once dry, it becomes a new pipe. Another procedure is to pull a new piece of pipe into the damaged area. This breaks the old pipe for easy cleanup. In either operation, property shifting is minimal, so large equipment and repairs aren’t required. You and your home will feel safe when you do.
If you think something is going on with your water or sewer system, don’t wait for it to get worse. The longer sewage seeps into the water table the more the damage can be irreversible. Contact repair companies in your area to learn about their trenchless repairs and how much they cost.
