 | Braden Peak is the manager of Roto-Rooter Sewer, Drain, Septic and Grease Trap Service in Pittsburg, KS. A Girard native and a graduate of Pittsburg State University, he is a licensed sewer contractor and has been with the company since 2002. He can be reached at 620-231-5630 or by emailing kpp_rotorooter@yahoo.com. You can also become a fan of Roto-Rooter of Pittsburg on Facebook.
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Plumbing
2013-04-30 08:19:36
What information will video inspections of drain lines provide?
A-That’s a great question and I will try to answer it as non-biased as I can. I’m very fond of performing video inspections. Hands down it is one of the single most important tools we have. For lack of a better explanation, performing video inspections is the plumbing version of a colonoscopy. Video inspections reveal problems in a more efficient manner and it takes the guess work out of the equation. Some professionals choose not to take advantage of video inspection technology and I will agree it isn’t always needed. However, we don’t have x-ray vision and we can’t see underground so when the situation arises it is best to use the technology that is available.
As I’ve covered before, a home inspection prior to purchasing a new house only covers a brief check of the drains. Unless the sewer line is video inspected, the inspector can only determine superficial problems or symptoms of a plumbing system. Until the home is occupied and water is being used accordingly the problems may be hiding out of sight. Sanitary service laterals can be expensive to repair or replace and finding out there is a problem before you purchase the house is always best. It doesn’t have to be a deal breaker, but rather it is simply an insurance policy.
During the video inspection, the service lateral can also be located and traced via a sonde that is mounted inside the camera head and the use of a hand held locator. This feature is important in a number of ways. First of all, if a repair is needed the area of excavation needs to be mapped out and the depth needed to expose the pipe should be determined. That saves time and time saves money. If you are planning to build a structure, pool, or install landscaping it is best to have your sewer service lateral marked to avoid any intersections. The call before you dig companies do not locate sanitary sewer service laterals. Seeing the problem is only half of the equation. Finding the problem is the other half.
Video inspections are not limited to just sewer service laterals. Water lines, storm lines, certain kinds of duct work, etc. can all be video inspected as long as they are large enough in diameter for the camera to travel through the line. Countless animal rescues have been made as well as lost valuables recovered using video inspection equipment. The cameras come in all shapes and sizes ranging from the size of your pinky finger to large scale crawler cameras for giant storm drains.
A picture is always better than an educated guess. Would you rather take someone’s word or would you rather see it for yourself? In my experience, the video inspection process has saved thousands of dollars in time and resources over the years in determining how to attack or repair a problem area. There are too many scenarios to list here on how these systems have benefited professionals and the end user. As always, thanks for reading and if you have any questions regarding this article or any drain questions in general, please feel free to contact me. Thanks for reading.
