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Pros and Cons of Main Sewer and Water Line Material

Repipe

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At Wisler Plumbing and Air, we choose the best products we can get our hands on for our sewer and water mains. Once you put them in the ground, you don’t want to be digging them up frequently. There are several options, all with pros and cons, when it comes to main line materials.

When we’re talking about a main line, we’re referring to the sewer line that goes from your house to the street or septic tank, and the water line that comes from the meter at the street or from the well to your home. For the most part, those lines are underground. We use trenchless technology for both water and sewer lines. That can be pipe bursting, pipe lining, and then we pull water lines through the yard.

When it comes to water line product, the first one is what we call a poly pipe, which is a flexible black polyethylene pipe. We use the top PSI version, so that means it’s much thicker and more resilient to rocks, cuts, and leaks.

Another type of water line pipe is copper. It’s not frequently used, but it is a good pipe. It’s just much more expensive and doesn’t offer a tremendous value over the poly pipe. Some advantages are that it’s metallic, so it would be less susceptible to crushing or kinking. With poly pipe, if you get a really heavy rock or you’re driving over it repeatedly, it might crush because it’s a plastic product. However, the advantage to that is not having to excavate, because as it turns it the ground, it can bend and ply to different contours.

For sewer lines, there is SDR 35, which is a very thin wall. Many times, city sewer systems will use that pipe. There is Schedule 40 PVC, and then we have the HDPE pipe, which is a heavy-duty polyethylene. And if we do pipe lining, that’s done with wool, epoxy, and polyethylene.

The advantage to the SDR 35 is it’s less expensive and it’s easier to handle because it’s thinner and lighter. But it can be compromised much easier with rocks and can get holes. It’s also not a glued joint. It’s a gasket joint, which means roots can grow into those and cause problems.

With a Schedule 40 PVC, it’s much more rigid and not going to collapse. It’s going to be sturdy enough to handle going under driveways or sidewalks where there’s traffic. And it is a glue joint. So, if it’s installed properly, you won’t have root issues. It is probably one of the more expensive products that is used for sewer lines, so one of the disadvantages is just the sheer cost of it.

Some of the advantages to the epoxy lining system is that it’s seamless, so it doesn’t have fittings or anything in it. That causes the flow rate to be very high. One of the cons is that you wouldn’t want to put it in unless you can’t gain access.  You probably would just use pipe bursting or excavation to do that.

As far as the HDP pipe, which we use for pipe bursting, a disadvantage to it is that it’s not as rigid as the Schedule 40, but it’s still better than the SDR 35. It is fused, so you have to have special equipment to be able to put together that pipe. We heat it up and actually fuse it together instead of gluing it. It’s very resistant against roots; there are hardly any cracks to it. It’s also flexible, so we can pull it in and match the contours of the sewer line.

All in all, you need to be able to rely on the professional that’s coming to your home to look at your situation and assign the correct products. A lot of times, you might benefit as a consumer by going with the cheaper option. The materials are a very small portion of the overall cost. So, we’re going to use the best materials: the highest PSI poly pipe for water lines, Schedule 40 PVC for excavation jobs, and HDP pipe for our pipe bursting.

Like I said in the beginning, when you put them in the ground, you don’t want to dig them up. We choose the best products possible for sewer and water mains.  If you have any questions, you can reach out to the team at Wisler Plumbing and Air at 540-483-9382.

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A sewage backup is one of the worst things that could happen to someone’s plumbing system, short of a huge water rupture that just floods the entire home. What makes sewage worse than a water rupture is all the nasty stuff in it. It’s very likely disease-ridden and full of bacteria and viruses. Plumbing systems are designed around making sure sewage is safely contained and ensuring there’s no crossover into the drinking water or living space. If you’ve ever heard the saying, “Plumbers protect the health of the nation,” that’s why.

First, take it seriously.

If you have a sewage backup, do not procrastinate. It is a serious issue that should not be taken lightly. It can become a very expensive issue to resolve if it gets worse. For instance, if you saw a small amount of water around the basement’s floor drain, you’d need to get it checked out before it became 10” of water.

Next, decide whether to repair or replace.

Sometimes a backup isn’t fixed by running a snake or cable down the line to get it clear. You’ll find yourself in the situation where you have to decide whether to repair or replace the sewer line. It might seem like a no-brainer to repair, but what if it backs up again in a year? Then you’ve wasted money. Fortunately, there are several options when it comes to repair and replacement.

We can do a pipe lining in the basement or front yard in some situations, preventing us from having to bust up the floor or ground. If someone has a finished basement and a pipe underneath is causing the problem, sometimes we can do a pipe lining without having to bust up all the concrete. The other possible solution might be pipe bursting, where we dig holes at either end of the pipe. Then we put in a cable and pull a new sewer line through. This is really advantageous because we don’t have to dig up all the dirt and damage the landscaping or sidewalk.

Of course, then there are the traditional ways of excavating or busting up someone’s floor, which we’ve done for many years. This is one of the more invasive ways to deal with the issue, but sometimes you don’t have another choice. The cost might make this a no-brainer, especially if we don’t have to dig very deep.

Regardless of what decision you make, these are all very complex, difficult jobs. You need to make sure to hire someone skilled, experienced, and competent. That’s the best way to give you peace of mind that the job is done correctly. While house shopping, you might want to ask whether the sewer line has been replaced. You’ll generally be able to see the condition of the HVAC system, roof, water heater, etc. But because the sewer line is out of sight and out of mind, it’s easily skipped over. I’ve actually seen homes put on the market solely because the sewer line needed to be replaced. If that information isn’t disclosed, it’s definitely something you want to find out before buying a home.

If you want an inspection, we’ll find out pretty quick whether there’s a problem by running a camera down the sewer line. To learn more, reach out to Wisler Plumbing & Air by contacting us online or giving us a call at 540-483-9382.

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There are two types of sewer systems: septic systems, which are used in rural homes, and municipal systems for homes in the city. We don’t repair or replace septic systems—the health department has to get involved and it can be a very major process. (Sometimes the pipe going to the septic tank needs to be repaired or replaced.) If you use the city sewer, the pipe coming from your home to the city tap is your responsibility, so it’s not as much of an undertaking as replacing the whole septic system. It’s a good idea to have someone look at the sewer system with a camera. After all, you don’t have to dig up everything to see what kind of shape it’s in and what might be causing the problem. This is also how we can determine what kind of pipe it uses, which is a very important thing to know. You don’t want to repair a clay or Orangeburg pipe because it will probably fail right beside the area that was repaired. Depending on the type of pipe, it might be a better idea to replace the entire thing or just a section. Even if it’s a PVC pipe or a pipe made of a relatively new type of material, it still might be a good idea to replace it entirely. If it failed in one place and it was put in by the same team, more than likely they used the same kind of practices throughout the entire system. A premature failure means that another section will likely fail later down the road. It’s extremely frustrating for a homeowner to have to dig up their yard multiple times. Disturbing the grass and landscaping over and over is definitely not much fun. You can save yourself the frustration by going for a replacement. Most people minimize the severity of a sewer backup in terms of damage or the burden it places on a home. I can’t stress this enough: a sewer backing up into your home is not anything that you ever want to deal with. It tends to happen when you have guests in your home because that’s when the sewer system is being worked the most. (A backup isn’t very likely to happen when you’re just using a small amount of water by yourself.) It can be extremely embarrassing to have a backup when family is visiting. Sewage is highly disease and bacteria ridden water, and when it backs up into the home it creates an unsanitary situation that you would not want to have to deal with. The best time to take care of it is as soon as you become aware of the situation. It’s definitely something you don’t want to play around with. If you think you have a sewer issue, contact us online or give us a call at 540-483-9382. We can do a camera inspection of the sewer line and find out its condition.      

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Being a complete residential plumbing service means that we cover everything from the water that comes into your house to the sewer that goes out, and everything in-between. We do large or small jobs, from something as small as a simple toilet repair to something as large as a full sewer line replacement. To be able to achieve that, we need to have technicians with a very wide range of experience. Our technicians are each trained to specialize in different areas of expertise. Some specialize in sewer line replacements and water line replacements outside of the home, for instance, while others specialize in water heaters. This helps to ensure that our clients can be completely confident that whenever they call on us to visit their home, we’ll be able to handle the situation.

In order to get truly great service, our customers need someone that specializes in exactly the problem that they’re encountering. Technicians who specialize in key areas will be the most competent, and as a result provide the best service. For instance, there are a few technicians we have that specialize in tankless water heaters. Whenever someone has a problem with their tankless water heater, our specialist will be the one to make the visit in order to ensure the job is done as efficiently as possible. The repair or replacement will be done correctly, and our customer will have peace of mind knowing that someone very competent is in their home.

Many times, we’ll get a call regarding a problem such as a backed up drain. It might end up turning into something outside that needs to be addressed. Our experienced technicians can handle whatever arises, including very large jobs. The largest job would probably be doing a complete repipe of all the plumbing inside a customer’s home. We’ve done that with as many as five bathrooms in a house. Wisler Plumbing and Air has the experience to set up a project of that size, along with establishing a clear timeline. We make sure that we work with the client to let them live in their home as usual, so that means making sure there are facilities available at all times. We’re also there for customers who need the smallest tasks taken care of. If you just have a dripping faucet or a leaky toilet, we can definitely take care of it.

Wisler Plumbing and Air is a family owned business. Our employees have many years of experience gained from on-the-job training. We strive to make sure our customers are completely satisfied with our service, no matter how big or small the job.

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