Seattle Drain Service
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Plumbing And Sewer Line Leaks
Even if you do not have a foundation problem, you should have your sewer lines tested. Over time, leaking and broken sewer lines can cause significant home foundation repair problems.
Houses built before 1974 usually have cast iron sewer lines and these houses have a higher probability of plumbing problems. Cast iron pipes corrode as they age so the older the house, the greater the chance that the plumbing has failed. Cast iron pipes also have lead joints that are structurally weak and can separate after years of movement in Texas shifting soils. Basically, the older your home, the greater the chance your home may have a plumbing or sewer drain line problem. Please click the following link for a detailed and technical explanation of "Under-Slab Plumbing Leaks and Damaging Differential Foundation Movements."
Generally, houses that were built later than 1974 have ABS or PVC(thick, hard plastic) sewer pipes. These pipes usually do not fail unless there has been some significant foundation movement. Occasionally, plastic pipes are found to be leaking because they were never connected correctly when the house was built.
Before starting a home remodel or any foundation repair work, a hydrostatic pressure test and or a camera inspection of the sewer / drain lines under the slab should be performed by Seattle Drain Service. This is to establish if there are any existing leaks in the sewer drain lines. In some cases homeowners insurance will cover the cost of accessing sewer lines in order to repair them. Also, if an insurance company engineer concludes that leaks in the sewer lines caused the foundation problem, your homeowners insurance may cover all or some of the cost of home foundation repair. This test must be done before foundation repairs are begun for coverage to be effective.
Today, most new homeowners insurance coverage does not cover sewer drain line failure. Also, insurance policies do not cover plumbing problems that occur as a consequence of leveling a house.
Seattle Drain Service can tunnel under your home to install or repair your sewer line pipes in a worst case situation but it is better to use modern Trenchless methods like pipe bursting or pipe lining to repair under slab drains. So often people only worry or think about under floor drains when they have backed up. Then they are snaked which gets the line open again but does not fix the opening that let the roots in. We can reline these pipes before the water being let out can cause a foundation problem. The savings compared to floor cutting and demolition far out weigh waiting.