Run that Sewer Camera If

Quite often I detect that hesitation in a customer when I recommend running a camera. I know that there are those companies out there that really push for that and use that as a way to generate more income at a higher cost to the customer but....It is an incredibly valueable tool that in the hands of a skilled operator can provide invaluable information.

We just finished jetting a job yesterday, an apartment complex where we hydro-jetted a short run of 75 feet that dumped into a mainline outgoing lateral and then ran another 185 feet to the city sewer connection.
The initial 75 was a restricted 3 inch wall c/o that dropped down into the run across to the next c/o. We jetted this with a medium hose and the appropriate sized nozzle. We hydro-jetted it thoroughly. Ran this probably 5 times slowly. The customer had mentioned from the start that they wanted to run a camera to document line condition so it wasn't an issue. When we ran the camera, whoa, surprise surprise, we found a very large belly in the line holding water right after the turn into the main outgoing. The pipe was almost completely full of water and there were a couple of very large grease deposits that truly looked like they hadn't been touched by a jetter even though we ran right past them 5 times. They were monsters and when they broke free, and they most assuredly would at some point, probably on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday night, you were guaranteed a back up.

The pipe being full of water was too much water for the medium hose nozzle to displace. You have to get that water out of the way so you can impact the grease itself. Without running a camera, you could never have guessed that.

The camera allowed us to make changes opting for a bigger hose with a very small nozzle and allowed us to know exactly where to spend our time and to verify visually to the customer that the blockages were completely removed.

If your having recurring problems, ie. having to cable every 4,6 or 8 months, run a camera. If you haven't run a camera in the last 10 years and your having an issue with your main line, run a camera. Think of it like a cancer screening at the doctor. If you can catch a problem before it gets too bad, your way ahead of the game. Two or three hundred on a camera could save you thousands.