Sewer Line Repair in Pomona, CA

Signs of a sewer line problem

• Main line clogs that come back weeks or months after being cleared.
• Several fixtures backing up at once, starting with the lowest drain in the house.
• A wet, sunken or unusually green strip of lawn between the house and the street.
• Sewer smell in the yard or along the foundation.
• Roots coming back on the cable every time the line is cleaned.
• Rats or roaches showing up near drains. Both can get in through a broken sewer line.

Sewer camera inspection

A waterproof camera on a push rod goes into the line through a cleanout or the toilet flange and shows the inside of the pipe on a monitor. Here's what it can find:

• Roots coming in through joints
• Cracks, holes, and joints that have separated or shifted out of line
• Sags, or bellies, where the pipe has dropped and holds water and waste
• Crushed or collapsed sections
• Orangeburg pipe that has flattened into an oval
• Heavy rust and scale inside cast iron

A transmitter in the camera head lets the plumber find the problem spot from above and mark its location and depth on the ground, so any digging happens in the right place. Ask for a copy of the recording. It's useful for comparing quotes and for insurance.

Repair options

Spot repair

Dig down at the problem spot and replace that section. This makes sense when the camera shows one bad joint or a single break and the rest of the line is sound.

Full replacement by trench

Dig along the line and lay new ABS or PVC pipe. This is the fix for a line with sags, because the trench lets the plumber set the new pipe at the right slope.

Trenchless sewer repair

Two trenchless methods cover most residential work:

• Pipe bursting. A bursting head is pulled through the old line, breaking it apart and pushing the pieces into the soil while a new HDPE pipe follows right behind it. It needs an access pit at each end instead of a trench the full length of the line.
• Pipe lining (CIPP). A flexible liner soaked in resin is pulled or inverted into the old pipe and cured in place, forming a new pipe inside the old one. It can often go in through an existing cleanout.

Trenchless works best when the old line still holds its shape and slope. Lining doesn't fix a sag, and a section that's completely collapsed usually has to be dug up. The camera inspection tells you which options your line actually qualifies for.

Add a cleanout while it's open

If your house doesn't have an outside cleanout, the time to add one is while the line is already exposed. It makes every future cleaning and inspection easier.

Who's responsible for the sewer line?

Your sewer lateral runs from the house to the city's main, which is usually under the street. In most Southern California cities the property owner is responsible for the lateral, sometimes including the part under the sidewalk and street. Before work starts, call City of Pomona Public Works to confirm where your responsibility ends.

Replacing a sewer line needs a permit from the City of Pomona Building & Safety Division, and digging in the street or parkway may need a separate permit from Public Works.

Why sewer lines fail in older 909 homes

Clay pipe

Pre-1960s homes in Pomona's older neighborhoods commonly have vitrified clay sewer laterals. The clay itself holds up, but the joints every few feet let roots in, and decades of ground movement push sections out of line.

Orangeburg

Some postwar tracts were built with Orangeburg pipe, made from wood fiber and tar. It softens and flattens over time. If the camera shows a black, oval-shaped pipe with blistered walls, that's probably it, and it needs to be replaced, not cleaned.

Cast iron under the slab

In 1950s and 1960s slab homes, the building drain under the floor is often cast iron. It rusts from the inside, and the bottom of the pipe can wear through, letting sewage leak into the soil under the house.

Mature trees

Pomona's older streets have big trees in the parkways and yards. Roots go where the water is, and a leaking sewer joint is a steady supply.