As you may know from experience, a problem with a sewer system can develop into a major emergency in seconds, with water—or worse, raw sewage—suddenly pumping into areas where it shouldn’t be due to a damaged pipe or some other issue.

City sewer inspections help address these kinds of emergencies by sending sewer line inspectors into large pipes and other wastewater infrastructure to identify the root cause of a problem.

In sewer inspections, sewer line inspectors typically collect visual data to assess the condition of a pipe or some other part of wastewater infrastructure.

There are two main reasons to conduct a visual inspection of a sewer:

1) To identify and fix a problem that has suddenly created an emergency

2) As part of routine maintenance, in order to avoid a sudden emergency down the road.

A home sewer inspection typically refers to an inspection of a home’s pipes with an inspection camera attached to a snake line, also called a sewer scope.

Home sewer inspections are performed for the same two reasons listed above—either because a major emergency has arisen, like a flood in the kitchen, and the reason for it needs to be identified, or because the homeowner wants to learn about potential problems in their plumbing before they develop any further.

As the inspector runs out the snake line, the camera records everything within the pipe. The footage is then reviewed to try and discern the cause of any issues in the plumbing, like cracks in the pipe, the presence of roots, clogs, or collapsed lines.