Sewer Scope
Sewer scope inspection.
A camera down the lateral, from the house to the main. It is buried, it is the homeowner’s responsibility in most jurisdictions, and it is one of the few five-figure repairs a standard inspection cannot see coming.
- Camera survey
- Root intrusion
- Bellies and offsets
- Pipe material
- Breaks and blockages
- With your inspection
1Visit, with your inspection
48Hours to your report
2004Inspecting since
3States covered
Why it is worth doing
The one repair nobody budgets for.
The lateral is the pipe running from the house to the municipal main, and replacing it means excavating whatever sits on top of it — lawn, driveway, occasionally the street. Nothing about the inside of the house tells you what condition it is in.
Older laterals are clay, cast iron or, in some post-war housing, Orangeburg. Tree roots find the joints, sections settle into bellies that hold water, and the first symptom is usually a backup into the basement.
What you get
Three things this buys you.
Two to three hours on site for a typical property, and the report within 48 hours. If the utilities are off we bring propane and a generator and power the building up rather than reporting it as unverified.
Priced before you own it
A known lateral problem is a negotiation. An unknown one is your bill.
Located along the run
Distance from the house, so a contractor knows where to dig.
Booked with the inspection
Run during the same visit rather than as a separate appointment.
Where we draw the line
We inspect. We do not repair.
Our code of ethics forbids our inspectors from performing repairs, or from estimating repair costs, on a property they have inspected. An inspector who can profit from the problems he finds has a reason to find them.
You get a plain account of what is wrong and how serious it is. A licensed contractor prices and fixes it, and we will come back and re-inspect the work at a minimal fee.
Often booked with this
- Septic system testing
- Plumbing inspections
- Basement inspections
- Well testing
- Home inspection
- Pre-listing inspection
Sewer Scope
Book the inspection.
Monday to Friday 8am–6pm, Saturday 9am–2pm. Give us the address and we will scope the right inspection for the property.