TrenchlessSewer Repair
Your sewer lateral can be rebuilt from inside the existing pipe, without jackhammering the driveway or pulling out mature landscaping. Hollywood Emergency Plumbing SFL uses CIPP lining and pipe bursting to restore lines through one small access point across Broward and Miami-Dade.
Six signs it's time to reline, not re-dig
You're Snaking the Same Line Every Season
If a cable service call keeps happening at the same spot every few months, roots have likely found a cracked joint. A structural liner seals that entry point instead of buying you another few months of relief.
Camera Shows Cracks or Flaking Cast Iron
Hollywood's older homes often still run original cast iron laterals. Once footage shows corrosion or hairline fractures along a pipe that still holds its shape, relining is usually the more sensible fix.
The Run Passes Under a Driveway or Pool Deck
When the lateral crosses under paver driveways or a screened pool deck, digging a trench means paying to rebuild all of that afterward. One access pit avoids the second bill entirely.
Several Fixtures Drain Slow at the Same Time
Tubs, showers, and the washer all backing up together points to the main line, not a single fixture trap. Scale buildup or a partial collapse in the lateral is a common cause we can address without opening the yard.
When Lining or Bursting Isn't the Answer
A totally collapsed section or a low spot holding standing water can't be lined into shape. We'll say so plainly on the camera review and scope a targeted dig instead of forcing a method that won't hold.
A Home Sale Inspection Flagged the Lateral
A failed sewer scope during a real estate deal doesn't have to stall closing. We reline the section in question and hand over before-and-after footage the buyer's inspector can review.
CIPP lining vs. pipe bursting, explained plainly
With CIPP lining, we feed a resin-saturated felt tube into your existing pipe and inflate it against the walls until it cures into a smooth, seamless liner. It bridges cracks and closes off the joints roots love, all while the original pipe stays exactly where it's buried. Pipe bursting is the heavier-duty option: a bursting head is winched through the failing pipe, cracking it apart outward as a new HDPE pipe is pulled in behind it, replacing the line rather than lining it. It's the right call when a pipe is too collapsed to line, or when a lateral needs to be upsized. We only recommend one method after camera footage confirms which the pipe actually needs.
What happens from scope to sign-off
Camera Scope & Locate
A push camera runs through your cleanout to pinpoint every defect and its exact depth. That footage, not a guess, is what decides between lining, bursting, or a spot repair.
Hydro-Jet the Host Pipe
Before anything goes in, we jet out grease, scale, and root mass so the resin bonds properly to the interior wall. A liner installed over debris is a liner that fails early.
Open One Access Point
Most Hollywood laterals need just one dig, at an existing cleanout or a single small pit, instead of a trench running the full length of the property.
Install the Liner or Burst the Pipe
For CIPP, the saturated tube is pulled or inverted into place and inflated to full contact with the old pipe walls. For bursting, the head is winched through while new HDPE follows it in. Both rebuild the line along its original path.
Cure, Then Reopen Connections
Depending on the resin system, curing happens with ambient temperature, hot water, or UV light. Once hardened, a robotic cutter reopens branch tie-ins from inside the new liner.
Final Scope & Written Warranty
A closing camera pass confirms the finished pipe is smooth and full-bore. You get that footage plus a written parts-and-labor warranty before we pack up.
What actually drives a trenchless quote
Every lateral behaves differently once we're inside it. We never quote a number blind, but here's what shapes the price once the camera confirms scope.
- Footage and pipe diameter a short 4-inch kitchen branch is a different job than a long 6-inch run to the city main.
- Which method the pipe needs lining and bursting use different materials and equipment, and pipe condition decides which applies.
- Depth and access conditions a lateral buried deep under a slab foundation or blocked by landscaping adds time on site.
- Number of branch tie-ins each connection that has to be robotically reopened after lining adds a step to the job.
- How much pre-cleaning is needed heavy scale in old cast iron or a dense root ball means more jetting time before the liner goes in.
- Local permitting some Broward and Miami-Dade municipalities require inspection sign-off on lateral repairs before the job closes out.
Based in Hollywood, running crews across two counties
Home Base: Hollywood
- Hollywood Beach
- Hollywood Hills
- Emerald Hills
- Boulevard Heights
- Downtown Hollywood
- Liberia
Broward County
- Fort Lauderdale
- Pembroke Pines
- Miramar
- Davie
- Pompano Beach
- Deerfield Beach
Miami-Dade County
- Miami
- Aventura
- Miami Gardens
- North Miami
- Hialeah
- Boca Raton
Pipes rebuilt, gardens undisturbed
"Our front lawn had just been re-landscaped and we dreaded the idea of a trench across it. They ran the whole lining job through one small pit near the cleanout and the yard looked untouched afterward."
"We had roots getting into the sewer every rainy season for years. Turned out the old cast iron had three separate cracks. They burst it and pulled in new pipe in about a day and a half. No more calls to the plumber every August."
"Appreciated that they told us straight when lining wasn't going to work. Our line had a belly holding standing water and they showed it to us on camera before recommending a small dig instead of pushing a liner that wouldn't hold."
"Sale inspection flagged our lateral two weeks before closing. They lined it, gave us the footage for the buyer, and we closed on schedule without touching the front walkway."
Trenchless Sewer Repair FAQ
What exactly happens inside the pipe during trenchless repair?
In CIPP lining, a soft felt tube coated in resin gets pulled or inverted into the existing pipe, then inflated so it presses flush against the interior walls. As it cures, it hardens into a rigid, jointless pipe inside the old one. Pipe bursting works differently: a conical head is pulled through the failing pipe, fracturing it apart while a brand-new HDPE pipe is drawn in right behind it. Both methods rebuild the line without opening a trench along its length.
Will this actually save me money compared to digging?
The per-foot cost of lining or bursting can run higher than a plain excavation, but the total project cost is often lower once you factor in what a trench would destroy: paver driveways, irrigation lines, mature landscaping. In Hollywood, replacing a driveway or resodding a yard after a dig frequently costs more than the sewer repair itself. When your line runs under anything you'd rather not rebuild, trenchless usually comes out ahead on the final number.
How long is a CIPP liner or new HDPE pipe supposed to last?
A correctly installed CIPP liner is generally rated around 50 years, and new HDPE pulled in through bursting carries a comparable rating. Both are jointless once finished, so there's no seam for roots to work into or for ground movement to open back up. That lifespan depends on thorough cleaning before install and a full cure, which is why we jet the host pipe first and verify the cure on camera before we call the job done.
Is every sewer line a good fit for trenchless repair?
No, and we won't pretend otherwise on the estimate. A pipe that's fully collapsed gives a liner nothing solid to bond to, and a severe belly holding standing water is a grade problem that no liner can fix from the inside. Those cases call for a targeted excavation to reset the pipe's slope. A camera scope tells us which situation we're dealing with before we ever recommend a method.
How disruptive is the job and how long will my water be off?
Most residential jobs wrap up in one to two days, well short of the week a full trench often demands. Because we're working through a single access pit rather than an open ditch across the yard, cleanup is minimal and hardscape stays undisturbed. You'll want to limit water use during the cure window, but there's no extended demolition to live around. We backfill that one small pit and leave the site as we found it.
Request a Camera Scope
Fix the pipe. Keep the yard.
A camera scope is the first step toward an honest answer for your sewer line. From there we'll recommend lining, bursting, or a targeted repair with a clear, up-front price. Hollywood Emergency Plumbing SFL serves Broward and Miami-Dade with licensed, insured crews.
Call (954) 613-1060