Trenchless Sewer Repair in West Chester, PA
“Trenchless” is a catchphrase in the plumbing industry that refers to different technologies which have a common result — they rehab or replace a hard-to-access pipe without the expense of needing to expose it. Put simply, an underground pipe is replaced without digging it up or a cracked pipe in a wall is renewed without opening up the wall to get to it. Pipeshark uses trenchless technologies such as trenchless sewer repair in West Chester, PA to fix sewer and drain issues where we have worked as licensed master plumbers for many years.
Be sure to get in touch with a professional trenchless contractor from our team today when dealing with sewer pipe issues in your home or commercial property.
What is trenchless sewer repair?
A trenchless sewer repair is one completed using a technology such as pipe bursting, pipe lining, pipe coating, point repairs, and slip lining. They all fall under the trenchless category because when the defective pipe is buried underground they can correct the problem without having to excavate a trench and replace the pipe traditionally.
Pipe bursting is used for underground piping and is especially effective if the old piping is collapsed or out of alignment. A steel cable is strung through the old pipe and then powerful hydraulic equipment pulls the cable. On the end of the cable is a bullet-shaped bursting head that is slightly larger than the old pipe. As the bursting head moves through the pipe it breaks it up and pushes the pieces slightly into the surrounding soil. On the back end of the bursting head, a new pipe is attached and is pulled into place of the old pipe. The new piping is the same type of pipe used for gas mains. The pieces are fused together and those joints are stronger than the pipe itself. So the new sewer line is essentially one solid pipe with no joints to leak or allow roots to get in. It’s as forever a sewer drain you can get.
Trenchless pipe lining manufactures a new pipe right inside the old one. A felt tube sized to the old pipe is impregnated with epoxy to a specific thickness and then inserted into the old pipe while the liner is still soft and flexible. A calibration bladder is inserted inside the liner and inflated to a specific pressure to push the liner tight against the old pipe. Hot water is circulated through the calibration bladder until the epoxy “cooks” into a hardened state. After that, the calibration bladder can be removed and the pipe put back into service. The whole operation is completed to the specifications of a code to ensure that the new liner is as strong as a new sewer and drain pipe one would buy from a plumbing supply. In fact, the technical name in the code for pipe lining is Cured-In-Place Piping (CIPP) because it manufactures a new pipe right inside the old one. The new liner is a stand-alone pipe — so the old pipe can rot away entirely and the new liner will be fine.
Pipe coating is a process that installs a polyurea liner on the inside of an old pipe by applying multiple coats of the polyurea. Each coat is applied by a spinning circular brush. This technology can save money over pipe lining when the old pipe to be rehabbed has small diameter branches that would be hard to reinstate. Pipe coating has its own code requirements and Pipeshark is certified in its use.
Point repairs are sometimes called pipe patches. They are essentially short sections of lining that also contain fiberglass and have a specific delivery and curing system. Most of these point repairs come in 2′ or 4′ lengths. Typically they are used where the existing pipe is in good condition but there is a specific issue at one point. A common example is a newly installed buried pipe that has separated at a joint. A lining material is wrapped around a heavy rubber bladder and slid into place in the piping. The bladder is then inflated and kept in place until the epoxy on the lining material hardens. Then the bladder is deflated and removed and the pipe can be put back into operation.
Slip lining is typically for larger pipes such as storm drains. A new pipe just slightly smaller than the old pipe is pulled through the old pipe with special equipment. Because the new pipe often has better flow characteristics than the old pipe, the flow capacity is often maintained even though the new pipe is a little bit smaller. The most common example is an old corrugated metal pipe (CMP) slip lined with new high-density polyethylene (HDPE).
What are the advantages of trenchless services?
Pipeshark has used a number of trenchless technologies to do trenchless sewer replacement, trenchless pipe replacement, trenchless pipe repair, and more. All methods are installed according to code requirements to ensure that the new sewer is a good quality installation. These trenchless repairs are usually faster and less expensive than traditional approaches. They don’t create the mess that an excavation outside or opening up a wall inside your home would make. They also eliminate a lot of restoration work, whether that be replacing a wall and repainting inside or replacing a walkway, landscaping, or just trying to grow new grass outside.
We offer trenchless sewer repair in the following locations with minimally invasive services:
- Philadelphia, PA suburbs
- Bryn Mawr, PA
- West Chester, PA
- Paoli, PA
- Ardmore, PA
- Berwyn, PA
- Devon, PA
- Harrisburg, PA
- Hershey, PA
- Lancaster, PA
- Lower Merion Township, PA
- Pottstown, PA
- Reading, PA
- Villanova, PA
- Wayne, PA
Contact Pipeshark Today
Schedule an appointment today with Pipeshark when you need trenchless services at reasonable costs. Call us or fill out our online form on this site to reach out to an expert from our team. We also specialize in:
- Trenchless Pipe Lining West Chester, PA
- Trenchless Pipe Bursting West Chester, PA
- Trenchless Sewer Lining West Chester, PA
- Drain Cleaning West Chester, PA
- Sewer & Drain Replacement West Chester, PA
- Sewer Inspection West Chester, PA
- Sewer Pipe Replacement West Chester, PA
- Sewer Repair West Chester, PA
