The days of finding sewer lines using “divining rods” is over.  Thanks to technology, there are much better ways to perform a sewer line location.  Still, even with the advancements that brought us electronic line location, it still requires an expert to get it right.  Digging a 5 foot deep hole in the middle of someone’s lawn, only to find out that there is nothing there is never fun.  In this article we will be taking a look at some of the steps that can be taken to help find that ever elusive sewer line.

Why do you need to find your sewer line?

Before we go any further, why would you need to finds your sewer line in the first place?  There may be any number of reasons for this.  If you have had sewer line problems, and are looking for a better way to access the line for cleaning, you will want to install a cleanout.  To do that, you need to find the line.

Even if you have a cleanout, but suspect you may need a repair, you will want to know exactly where that repair is needed.  A Sewer Video Inspection combined with a line location can give you all the info you need to start the repair.

There are more reasons, but those are the two most common.

How to find the sewer line

An expert knows that most often the first thing to do is just look at the home.  An expert can often get a feel for where the sewer line runs by looking at how the home’s plumbing is laid out, combined with other factors, such as existing cleanouts, “S” marks on the sidewalk, etc.  BTW, never trust the “S” marks to give you the true location.  It is not uncommon for them to be off by 10’ or even more.

If the house has a crawlspace under it, it is usually fairly easy to see where the main sewer line exits the home, by looking in the crawlspace.  You can visually see where the line runs, and even if it goes underground prior to exiting, there is almost always a part of the foundation that has been chipped away to give plenty of room for the main.

An important fact to note, here, is that just because a sewer line exits the home at a certain point, does not mean it goes straight to the street from there.  Most sewer lines will change directions at some point, to meet the city tap.  This change of direction could be anywhere… even two feet away from where it exits the home.

Electronic line location is best used to fill in the gaps in the data that has already been collected.  There are many ways they can be used, but all of them work in pretty much the same general way.  For sewer line location, a device is usually inserted into the pipe.  The device sends out frequency waves that a wand will pick up, pinpointing the location.

An example of this would be a sewer camera with a signal emitter built into the head.  The tech will run the camera down the sewer line.  He can stop at any point, and use a wand to pinpoint the location of the camera head.

While this seems fairly fool proof, there are other factors that can sacrifice the equipment’s reliability.  One very common problem is underground utilities.  Nearby utilities can interfere with the signal, making it erratic.  Scenarios like this are one of the many reasons it is important to have an expert do the location.  Even if everything seems perfect, and it all makes sense, an inexperienced locator can still miss his mark.  The next thing you know, you have an extra hole in your front lawn, and there is no pipe in it!

Allstar Plumbing has been successfully performing sewer line locations since 1996, so when you hire us, you know you are getting an expert.  Do not take a chance on getting an inaccurate line location.  Call Allstar Plumbing today!