Sewer Camera Inspection in Fort Worth, TX

When a sewer line inspection makes sense

• A drain or the main line that was cleared not long ago is stopping up again
• Several drains slow down at once, or toilets gurgle when the washer empties
• Sewage has come up through the lowest drain in the house, often a tub or shower
• A sewer smell indoors, or a soggy, extra-green strip of grass over the line
• You are buying, selling or renting out an older home

Buying a home in Fort Worth? Scope the sewer first

A standard home inspection usually stops at the drains you can see. The buried line that carries waste out to the city main is usually the owner's responsibility. In Riverside, Oakhurst, Six Points, Fairmount and the Northside, where many houses date from the 1920s through the 1960s, that line is often original cast iron or clay.

Book the camera during your option period so there is time to act on what it shows. Ask the seller where the cleanout is, and keep the water on: running water through the line shows where it pools in a sag. Sellers can scope the line before listing, too.

Recurring clogs: camera before the next cleaning

When a line keeps clogging, something inside is catching waste, usually one of these:

• Tree roots in the many joints of old clay pipe
• Rust scale narrowing old cast iron so paper and grease snag
• A belly, or sag, where the pipe has settled and water sits
• An offset or separated joint
• Grease built up along a kitchen line
• A cracked or partly collapsed section

Each calls for a different fix: roots at one joint may need only scheduled cleaning, while a long run of rusted-through cast iron points toward replacement. The camera shows which problem you have and where.

Why Fort Worth sewer lines fail the way they do

Fort Worth sits on expansive clay that heaves after heavy rain and shrinks in a dry summer. The movement separates old joints and lets pipe settle into sags, and mature trees send roots toward any joint that seeps. On a slab, drain lines run under the concrete, so pinpointing a problem matters before anyone opens a floor. In Fairmount's many pier-and-beam homes, the crawlspace exposes much of the piping, but the yard line out to the main still needs the camera.

How the inspection works

1. We start at an access point, most often an outdoor cleanout. If the house has none, lifting a toilet often gives the camera a way in.
2. If the line is blocked, we open it first so the camera sees the pipe, not the clog.
3. The plumber feeds the camera through the line and notes each problem and its distance from the access point.
4. We walk you through what the camera showed and what, if anything, needs to happen next.

What you get from a camera inspection

• What the line is made of, including where cast iron or clay changes to plastic pipe
• What is wrong, if anything: roots, cracks, offsets, sags, scale, grease or a collapse
• Where it is, measured from the access point, so any repair goes to the right spot
• A plain recommendation: no work needed, cleaning, a section repair or replacement

After the inspection

A clog or buildup usually means drain cleaning or pipe cleaning. Damaged sections go to drain repair or sewer line repair and replacement, and a line failing along its length may need drain replacement. Restaurants and other businesses: see commercial plumbing.

Coupons and where we scope sewer lines

Our coupons page lists $50 off for new customers; 10% off for seniors, military and first responders; and a $0 dispatch fee with a repair, each with its terms.

Camera inspections cover all of Fort Worth, from Riverside, Six Points and Oakhurst near our base to the Northside, Fairmount and Near Southside, plus Haltom City, North Richland Hills, Saginaw, Lake Worth, Benbrook, Kennedale and Burleson. See all service areas.

Sewer camera inspection FAQ

Book a sewer camera inspection

Call (817) 755-5621 to book a camera inspection, or send a non-urgent request through our contact page.