//Quick answer
- Two methods: lining (a new pipe inside the old) and bursting (a new pipe pulled in behind a head that breaks the old).
- Saves driveways, hardscape and landscaping.
- Access difficulty and the location of the break decide whether it fits, job by job.
- No flat price: quoted after the camera inspection.
01Definition
How does pipe lining work?
A liner saturated with resin is pulled or inverted into the cleaned lateral and cured in place, forming a smooth new pipe inside the old one. It follows the existing path and needs the host pipe to be mostly intact and mostly round.
How does pipe bursting work?
A bursting head is pulled through the old pipe from one access pit to another, breaking the old pipe outward while dragging a new pipe into the space behind it. It gives you a new full-diameter pipe and can replace pipe too damaged to line.
02When it applies
When does trenchless make sense?
When the failed section runs under a driveway, patio, mature landscaping or a structure, when the surface restoration would cost as much as the pipe, and when the access at each end is workable. In the operator's own words, difficulty of access and the location of the break make this determination, and it varies from job to job.
When does digging win?
A short break in open ground, a collapsed section that nothing can be pulled through, a bad belly that has to be re-sloped, or a line with too many turns and taps for a liner. Open excavation is also the method that lets a crew correct grade, which trenchless cannot do on its own.
03What goes wrong
What goes wrong with trenchless done for its own sake?
Lining a bellied pipe leaves a bellied liner. Lining a collapsed pipe is not possible. Choosing the method before the camera inspection is choosing blind. The comparison page on trenchless vs traditional repair lays out both columns honestly.
04Proof
- A camera goes down the line before anyone quotes a drain or sewer repair, and the camera inspection is included with the $99 drain snaking.
- When a job needs a permit, Done-Rite pulls it and schedules the inspection.
- Six plumbers averaging more than 9 years in the trade each, plus a General Manager with 25+ years.
- 1 year minimum warranty on labor. Manufacturer warranty handling varies by manufacturer.
- California CSLB C-36 licence #998069. Licensed, bonded and insured, with workers compensation.
05Action
Start with the camera
Trenchless and sewer replacement are quoted after the inspection because the length, access and break location drive the price. Sewer work usually needs a permit; when it does, Done-Rite pulls it. Financing is available with terms up to 10 years.
//Keep going
Learn
//Terms used in this guide
Where this applies
Done-Rite runs these calls across Orange County from its shop in Anaheim, CA, with no trip charge in any city it serves.
Common questions
It depends on the job. Difficulty and difficulty of access drive the decision, and the location of the break makes a big impact as well. It varies job to job.
Yes, trenchless and sewer replacement work usually need a permit. When one is required, Done-Rite pulls it.
It varies by job, driven by access difficulty and where the break is. There is no flat price; it is quoted after a camera inspection.
