Sewer Camera Inspection in Jonesboro, GA

When the camera cannot go any farther

Most clogs give way to a cable or a jetter. A collapsed or badly broken pipe does not, and repeated attempts to clear it can make things worse. A sewer camera inspection shows what is really in the way: a pile of soil inside the pipe, a section that has caved in, or pieces of pipe wall lying in the flow. When a Jonesboro line simply will not drain, that footage is the first step toward a repair that fixes the right spot.

Signs a section may have collapsed

• Drains back up throughout the house and a cable will not open the line, or it opens briefly and closes again.
• The cable comes back with clay, soil, gravel or fragments of pipe on its head.
• A depression or soft spot appears in the yard along the path of the sewer.
• Sewage or a sewer odor shows up outside where the line runs.

What a collapse or break looks like on video

As the camera approaches a failed section, the pipe may change shape, then show missing pieces of wall with soil or roots behind them. In a full collapse, the view ends in a mound of dirt and the camera cannot pass. A large break might let the camera continue, crawling over the gap, with bare soil visible where the pipe should be. The distance counter records exactly where this happens, and a locator above ground follows the camera's transmitter so the technician can mark the spot, with an estimate of depth.

Seeing past the break

A camera stopped by a collapse cannot show what lies beyond it, and that matters for the repair plan. If there is a cleanout closer to the street, or a two-way cleanout, the camera can come in from the other direction to film the far side. Otherwise, the rest of the line is filmed once the collapsed section has been opened up. Either way, the goal is to know whether the break is an isolated failure or one of several problems along the run.

Living with the line until it is fixed

Keep water use as low as possible, since everything sent down the drain will back up somewhere. Keep vehicles off the area over the line, and fence off or mark any depression so nobody steps into it. If sewage is coming up in the house or the yard, treat it as urgent and use our emergency plumbing service in Jonesboro.

Repair options for a broken section

A collapse usually means digging at the failed spot, because there is no open pipe for a liner or a cleaning tool to use. Locating the break from above keeps that excavation as small as possible, which is the job of sewer excavation. If the footage shows more defects beyond the break, a broader main sewer line repair or replacement may make more sense than fixing one section at a time. For camera work on lines that have not failed, see our Georgia sewer camera inspection page.

Jonesboro permit rules for the repair

Jonesboro, in Clayton County, treats plumbing as a permit of its own, apart from any building permit, and its building permit application warns that fees double if work starts before the permits are in hand. The city's code generally calls for a permit before a plumbing system is altered, repaired or replaced, and permit questions go to City Hall's building permits office. The camera inspection itself does not alter the line, so those rules apply to the repair.

Jonesboro questions about collapsed lines

Can a collapsed sewer be fixed without digging?

Not at the collapse itself. Lining and other trenchless methods need a continuous pipe to work through, and a caved-in section leaves nothing to line. What locating does is keep the dig small: the failed spot is opened and repaired, then the rest of the run is filmed. If those sections are sound or suit lining, the digging may end there.

Is a dip in the yard always a broken sewer?

No. Settling soil, an old tree stump rotting away, irrigation leaks or other utilities can all leave depressions. A camera with a locator shows whether the sewer actually runs beneath the spot and whether the pipe there is damaged, which is far better than digging on suspicion.

Why film the rest of the line after the break is repaired?

A collapse often has company. The same soil movement, roots or aging that broke one section may be affecting others. Filming the full run after the repair confirms the new section is sound and shows whether anything else needs attention, so you are not back in the yard a few months later.

Have the failure found and marked

If your Jonesboro sewer will not clear and you suspect the pipe has given way, (404) 409-4448 is the number to call to have the failure found and marked before anyone digs.