A camera picked up several cracks in our cast iron plumbing pipes? What is recommended for this problem. A head of a snake tool was also found. On Monday, the company will rip up a portion of our front lawn take out part of the pipe to remove the broken fixture that is stuck in our pipe and replace that portion with a new pipe. They brought up something called "lining the pipe"...

Hello Pipes111...

Are the cracks located in one area only or are they showing up all over the entire length of the pipe ? Also, any roots inside your sewer ? Sewer video inspection should answer these questions. Then, you may consider replacing only a small section of pipe or entire length.

Cracks in Cast Iron pipe may indicate material failure due to its age so replacing a small section would not do too much as you will most likely go through it again in the near future. Replacing sewer is all about excavation and very little about plumbing so once your contractor brings his excavator to the job site, it should not be such as big deal to replace the entire sewer pipe.

Relining is a method of running a sleeve through the existing pipe. It is quite costly process so even with relining, I would suggest you do entire pipe rather than just small section..


Hope that helps / Back to you / Milo

They brought up something called "lining the pipe"..
Let me explain a bit more about my drainage problem and how I repaired it. 60 year old house. The builder used sub standard cast iron in the drainage. The 4" house main was completely ate up on the bottom of the pipe , blocked with roots and welling up in my living room floor. I was sure that the main had broke in two and I would have to jack hammer up the floor and tunnel under the foundation to transition to PVC, pick up the back bath and move the main outside the house but I had to know what was going on under the slab so a friend suggested running a camera down there. There was no distinct break in the main, however,it was completely ate up on the bottom. That's when Rooter Man of Sarasota and Gulf Coast Florida suggested relining the main, (see image). It took a day to clear the roots and pressure jet clean the main. Next day they came back and relined the main with epoxy. I now have a sewer main that will out last me, (50 year guarantee) and the best part is that I didn't have to, tear up my house and the cost was under half of what I figured to take the main outside around the house. Another bonus was that it was done without tearing up or disturbing my house. When they were finished I kept a piece of the epoxy liner to check it out. It was white and had the same thickness of Schedule#40 PVC.
I was amazed at the equipment RooterMan had outside my place. The equipment he had cost upwards of $100,000.00. Hi tech stuff that took a technician to run it. There were 3 men and 2 trucks to do the job. And it was completed in two days. Lottsa difference from the old days when I went out on a sewer call with a Ridged K-60 Sewer Machine and a ladder to get to the roof vent. I just wanted to point out that there's another option besides replacing drainage that the years have ruined. If your pipes are a candidate for a reline job I strongly suggest you look into it before you decide to replace the drainage pipes. I did and saved a bundle in addition to keeping my home intact. Just thought I would share that with you all. Regards and thank you for rating my answer, Tom