Sewer Line Repair & Replacement — Sacramento, CA
If you'd rather not get a sales pitch, you're in the right place. Tell us what's wrong, we'll quote it, you decide. What we won't do: try to sell you a service plan, push the most expensive option, or send a sales rep before sending a tech.
Notes on Sacramento housing stock
Sacramento's housing market has us seeing a lot of move-in inspections and "the previous owner did what?" calls. We sort them out.
Sample job
Last spring we got a call from a homeowner near the north Sacramento. Basement floor drain backing up after laundry. Diagnosis: a belly in the lateral was holding water. We spot-repaired the bellied section, ran the test, and were out the door in about two hours. Total: $1100 including parts.
Scope of work
Sewer lateral problems hit older homes hardest. Anything pre-1970 in most U.S. cities still has either clay-tile or Orangeburg laterals from the original build. Both fail. Tile cracks at the joints; Orangeburg collapses under load.
Diagnosis order: cable first, then camera. Cable clears most active blockages. The camera shows you what's actually happening down there — joint offsets, root invasion, bellies, broken sections.
Repair options depend on the lateral. Spot repair on a single broken section: $3,200–$6,500. Trenchless pipe burst on the full lateral (replaces clay or cast iron with new HDPE): $6,500–$14,000. Open-trench replacement: rare anymore, only when trenchless isn't feasible.
Permit is almost always required. Municipal sewer authorities want to inspect lateral work before backfill. We pull the permit and coordinate the inspection.
Pricing
For sewer line repair & replacement jobs in the Sacramento area:
- Sewer main unclog (cable): $240 – $540
- Hydro-jet + camera: $480 – $950
- Spot dig repair (5–8 ft section): $3,200 – $6,500
- Trenchless pipe burst (full lateral): $6,500 – $14,000
- Main water service line replacement: $2,800 – $7,500