Why Is Sewer Line Replacement So Expensive?
Sewer lines guide wastewater from toilets, tubs, and sinks away from homes and toward the municipal sewer routes. No one likes to think about a sewer line’s contents and role. However, the dreaded task of sewer line replacement will eventually require your attention.
Why is sewer line replacement so expensive compared to other plumbing services? As your skilled plumber in Chaska, MN, Babe Plumbing has the expertise to answer this question. Find out why it costs so much to replace your sewer line below.
What Causes the Need for Sewer Line Replacement?
Most sewer lines can last between 50 to 100 years. Therefore, you shouldn’t have to replace a sewer line more than once in your life — maybe twice if you’re unlucky. You can increase your sewer line’s lifespan by:
- Clearing out old trees: Maturing trees have extensive root systems that grow toward running water. Removing large, mature trees rooted near your sewer line prevents them from infiltrating the pipe.
- Limiting your waste products: Sewer lines can efficiently handle toilet paper, water, and human waste. Other paper products, grease, and food scraps can cause the line to deteriorate faster or become clogged.
- Not flushing harsh chemicals: Avoid sending harsh liquid plumbers and other household cleaners down your sewer line. These chemicals can eat away at the pipe lining.
What Happens During a Sewer Line Replacement Service?
If your plumber must replace the entire sewer line, they will excavate and remove the old one first. This method requires heavy equipment to dig the trench. Then, they replace the line with a new one.
However, more often than not, your plumber can use trenchless methods. These techniques cost less and don’t create as much disruption on your property. As the name suggests, the plumber doesn’t need to dig to repair the sewer line.
A trenchless service typically repairs a weakened area and prevents pipe bursting. Your plumber installs a smaller pipe inside the old one.
Why Is Sewer Line Replacement So Expensive?
So, why is sewer line replacement so expensive? Even if you go the trenchless route, you’ll still pay a significant dollar amount for the service. It isn’t a DIY job, and you can’t afford to hire cut-rate, inexperienced contractors to handle the task.
Replacing sewer line pipes racks up an expensive bill for many reasons. Learn more about what the service requires below.
You Need Permits
Unlike a septic system, which keeps waste contents on your property, your sewer line connects directly to the municipal sewer system. Therefore, your plumber must apply for and acquire a permit to replace the sewer line before they begin any digging or replacement work. Each city may have different regulations dictating the type of materials you can use, how to dig, and other specifics.
Obtaining these permits takes time and money. While your plumber can enter your home and begin working on in-home plumbing issues immediately, they must work with your local government for problems that might affect city resources. These extra steps mean additional costs to cover time and application fees. It's crucial to account for these expenses when planning your sewer line replacement project.
Sewer Line Services Require Specific Skills
As mentioned above, the average Joe can’t perform a sewer line repair. The process involves multiple steps and lots of care. Your plumber must:
- Locate the pipe: They’ll examine property blueprints and other diagrams to ensure they work in the correct area.
- Dig in the correct areas: Even digging just a few feet away from the precise location could spell disaster for the entire street. Your plumber wants to avoid striking and damaging utility connections.
- Implement the replacement pipe: Sewer pipes are cumbersome. Moving them around without damaging other structures requires extreme care.
- Cover their work: Replacing and packing the dirt takes time.
- Repair the property disruption: Your plumber must make your property look like it did before. That typically means fixing your landscape or mending floors and walls if the pipe replacement occurred in your home.
Even trenchless repairs demand a carefully honed skill set. A skilled, experienced plumber is priceless.
The Materials Have a High Price Tag
When you replace a sewer pipe, you want the new materials to last. You want to avoid becoming the unlucky homeowner who oversees multiple sewer line replacement services. One way to avoid this conundrum is to select high-quality materials that can endure:
- Gradual ground shifts
- Temperature fluctuations
- Corrosion
While good materials cost more, they typically last much longer. Your new line replacement might even last up to a century with proper maintenance services.
Heavy Equipment Usage
Your plumber must rent various pieces of heavy equipment to facilitate the service safely. Some examples of equipment frequently used during this service include:
- Hauling trailers: They have to transport the pipe to your address somehow. Strapping it to a trailer is often the best option.
- Cranes: Small cranes can lift and set the pipe into the trench.
- Excavators: These machines dig the trenches before the plumber places the line.
- Relining tools: Plumbers use specific tools to align, seal, and set the fresh pipes.
Your plumber likely doesn’t own excavators and cranes because they don’t use them every day. They’ll add rental fees to your bill, increasing the final cost.
Don’t Forget Landscape Restoration!
Finally, your plumber shouldn’t consider the task completed until they restore your home and yard to their original glory. Since most sewer line replacement services involve digging up sections of your yard, you’ll likely need some help getting the lawn back in order. Sowing grass seed, replanting uprooted trees and shrubs, and rebuilding landscape features cost extra. However, these services quickly restore your property to its former glory.
Of course, you might go with more basic restorative tasks rather than a full service to lower the costs.
Let Babe Plumbing Do the Dirty Work for You
Why is sewer line replacement so expensive? The service requires specialized skills, heavy equipment, and various other tasks to safely complete. Understanding your property’s sewer system andidentifying clogs in your sewer vent pipe can prolong the system’s lifespan, including the sewer pipe.
Call Babe Plumbing at
(507) 443-3427 for a free quote on a sewer inspection. We’ll keep waste contents flowing away from your home.
Babe Plumbing is a professional emergency plumbing company based in Mankato, MN, with over 40 years of experience serving residents of southern Minnesota.
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