A sewer camera inspection is a video survey of the pipe that carries wastewater out of your house. A technician feeds a small camera head through a cleanout or a removed toilet and watches the pipe on a monitor, noting its material, slope, joints and any damage along the way.
Most inspections are planned ahead. Buyers, owners with repeat clogs and homeowners planning a landscaping or driveway project all book one. If sewage is backing up now, call the 24/7 line and ask for a plumber to clear it first.
Who books a sewer inspection and why
Home buyers
A standard home inspection does not look inside the buried sewer line. A camera pass before closing shows roots, offsets or a collapsed section while the price can still be discussed.
Owners with repeat clogs
If a cable clears the line and it slows again, the camera shows the cause, whether that is roots, grease, scale or a sag.
Anyone planning a dig or a build
Before a driveway, deck or addition goes over the sewer line, the camera records its depth and path.
Owners of older lines
Cast iron, clay and fiber conduit deteriorate with age. A survey tells you how much life the pipe has left.
What the camera looks for
The camera travels from the cleanout toward the street or the septic tank. We stop at anything unusual and mark its distance from the entry point.
- Root intrusion at joints, and how dense the mat is.
- Cracks, breaks, offset joints and sections that have collapsed.
- Bellies or sags where water and solids collect.
- Grease buildup, scale and mineral deposits.
- Pipe material changes, such as cast iron meeting plastic.
- Connections that should not be there, like a roof drain tied into the sewer.
A locator on the camera head lets us find the pipe from above ground. That tells you exactly where it runs and how deep, and it shows where to dig if a repair is needed.
What you get after the inspection
You watch the video with us on site or see the findings the same visit. We explain what is minor, what is worth watching and what needs repair. Our approach is to describe the pipe honestly, not to find work.
If the line is sound, we say so and you have a baseline for future comparison. If there is damage, we lay out the options in plain terms, from cleaning to lining to replacement, and we give you a clear price before work starts. The repair options are on our sewer line repair page.
| Finding on camera | What it means | Likely next step |
|---|---|---|
| Clean pipe, good slope | No action needed | Keep the report for reference |
| Heavy grease or scale | Pipe wall is narrowed | Hydro jetting or cabling |
| Root intrusion at a joint | Joint is leaking | Cut roots, then line or repair the joint |
| Belly or sag | Water collects and solids settle | Monitor, or replace the section |
| Collapsed or broken pipe | Line has failed | Excavate or burst the section |
Town sewer or septic: tell us which you have
Londonderry homes connect either to town sewer or to a septic tank. The inspection works for both, but the route differs. On town sewer we follow the line to the property line or the main. On septic we follow it to the tank inlet.
Ask the Londonderry Department of Public Works at 603-432-1100, extension 460, whether your address is on a sewer main. If you are buying, that answer belongs in your due diligence. A septic system also needs its own inspection by a septic professional, which is separate from a house line camera pass.
If the camera finds damage that will need a dig, Building and Zoning Enforcement at 603-432-1100, extension 440, can say what the town requires.
What a sewer inspection costs
We give you a clear price before work starts. These factors shape it:
- Whether a cleanout is accessible or a toilet must be pulled.
- The length of the line and any branches.
- Whether the line needs cleaning first so the camera can see.
- Whether you want a locating survey to mark the path.
- A written summary or recorded video for a buyer or lender.
Homeowners insurance does not usually pay for an inspection, since it is a maintenance cost and not a claim. Call (603) 815-9179 to book a visit and ask about same-day appointments when available.
Where we run sewer cameras
We inspect sewer lines across Londonderry, including North Londonderry, Wilson and the Woodmont Commons area. We also serve Derry, Hudson and Litchfield. If the camera shows only a heavy buildup, our sewer line cleaning service is the usual follow-up.
A camera shows whether a line meets the slope and joint expectations of the International Plumbing Code (IPC), and we explain what is out of line.
Questions we hear in Londonderry
A typical single-family inspection takes under an hour once the camera is in the line. A long run, a branch or a line that needs cleaning first can take longer.
A cleanout is the easiest entry, but not the only one. If there is none, the camera can often go in through a removed toilet or a roof vent, and we can suggest installing a cleanout for future access.
A standard home inspection does not cover the buried sewer line, and a collapsed or root-filled pipe can be costly to fix. A camera pass before closing shows what you are inheriting.
It shows the pipe to the tank inlet. The tank, baffles and leach field need a septic professional. We tell you when the house line is fine and the tank is the likely cause.
We can record the inspection and share the findings. Tell us at booking if you need it for a purchase, a lender or an insurance file.
Same-day appointments are available when the schedule allows. Call (603) 815-9179 and tell the dispatcher what you need.