Sewer camera inspection in San Diego

What the inspection is

A self-leveling color camera on a push rod goes into the line, usually through a cleanout, and the technician drives it from the house to the main while you watch the screen. A sonde in the camera head lets the technician locate any problem from the surface with a receiver and mark on the lawn or driveway where a break is and how deep. The whole run should be recorded; ask for the file.

What it shows

• Roots, and which joints they came through
• Cast iron scale and channel rot: the rusted floor of a 1950s pipe, or a floor that isn't there any more
• Offset and separated clay joints from soil movement
• Bellies: low spots holding water, common where the clay soil under a Clairemont or Tierrasanta yard has settled
• Cracks, holes and collapses
• Orangeburg pipe, which looks blistered and egg-shaped
• Where the line goes, how deep it is, and whether there's a cleanout (often not, on pre-1970 homes)
• Old repairs, illegal connections, and the condition of the tap at the main

What it can't show: a pipe that's completely full of water or sewage until it's cleared, which is why an inspection on a backed-up line starts with a cable or jet.

When to get one

Before a repair quote. Any sewer repair over a simple clearing should start with a camera, and you should be able to see the footage. If a contractor tells you the line needs replacing and can't show you why, get another inspection.

Before buying a house. A sewer inspection in San Diego before buying any house built before about 1975 is the cheapest due diligence in the transaction. A general home inspector doesn't look at the lateral. Some California cities and districts require a sewer lateral inspection or certificate when a property is sold. Ask the city or sanitation district for the address before you list or buy, and get a camera inspection either way. Finding a $12,000 lateral before close is a negotiation; finding it after is your bill.

After repeated clogs. Cleaning the line every spring is a sign it has a problem cleaning doesn't fix. The camera shows what.

After foundation or landscape work. Anything that moved soil near the pipe, or a new tree planted over it.

What it costs

Usually $250–$500 for a standard residential run, with the locate and the recording. If the contractor is already there clearing a backup, the camera is usually at the low end. Ask whether a post-repair camera run is included.

A paid inspection is a real service; a free one is often paid for by the replacement it finds, and that's a bad incentive to hand a contractor. Shopping for a camera inspection, San Diego homeowners should compare what's included: the recording, the locate, and a written summary.

Reading the footage

Ask for a walk-through on site. The camera inspection guide shows what roots, scale, offsets and bellies look like on screen so you can follow along, and signs of a broken sewer line covers what usually prompts the inspection. Before buying, a sewer camera inspection (San Diego houses from before 1975 especially) is also the record your agent can use in negotiation. A sewer line inspection that turns up a problem points to one of sewer line repair, trenchless or replacement, and the footage is the thing that tells you which.

Hydro jetting and sewer line cleaning in San Diego

Cast iron usually needs to be descaled before the camera can see the wall, and clay usually needs roots cut. Ask about hydro jetting: San Diego cast iron from the 1950s often needs a descaling nozzle before anyone can judge the pipe. Ask whether the contractor carries a jetter; jetting is usually $350–$800, and the camera is at the low end of $250–$500 on the same visit. If the line turns out to be sound, that's the whole bill, and you've had a proper sewer cleaning and a recorded baseline for the next time something feels slow. How often you need sewer line cleaning, San Diego homeowners often ask; the honest answer is that a sound line rarely needs it on a schedule. For a clog that's backing up the house right now, see drain cleaning and main-line clogs.

What a good inspection report includes

The footage is the main thing, but a short written summary makes it useful later. It should list:

• The address, the date, and where the camera went in (cleanout, toilet or roof vent)
• The total length of the run, from the entry point to the main
• Each problem with its distance and, where located, its depth: roots at 18 feet, offset at 31 feet, and so on
• The pipe material along the run, since many lines change from cast iron to clay at the foundation
• Whether the camera reached the main and what the connection looked like
• What the inspector would recommend, with more than one option where more than one would work

A summary that says only "line needs replacing" isn't a report. Ask for the distances.

Using the footage when you're buying

Book the inspection inside the inspection window of the purchase contract, not after it. Ask the seller whether there's a cleanout and whether the line has been cleared or repaired before; receipts help. Watch the run in person if you can. If the camera finds a problem, get a written repair price from the footage, and let your agent decide how to use it. If the line is sound, keep the file anyway. It's your baseline for the next twenty years.

Mistakes to avoid

• Accepting a verbal "it looks bad" with no file and no distances
• Letting the camera run while the line is still full of water
• Skipping the locate, which is what turns a problem on screen into a spot on your lawn
• Assuming a newer house is fine; 1970s ABS can still have crushed sections and bellies
• Getting an inspection only from the company that will quote the replacement, on a large job

How often to re-inspect

A line that cameras clean doesn't need a schedule. Re-inspect after a backup, before a sale or remodel, or if a drain starts to slow again. A clay line with roots at a few joints is different: a jet and camera every 12–18 months, with each visit's footage kept, shows whether those joints are getting worse. Compare the new file with the old one at the same distances.