# Buried Drain Inspection and Cleaning in Denver

Denver Sewer and Water inspects and cleans the buried drain line on residential and commercial property in Denver: the main building drain below the slab, the lateral out to the street, and yard or area drains. We camera the line before we recommend cleaning, because a slow buried drain can be a partial blockage, a bellied section, or root intrusion, and each of those calls for a different fix.

- Buried building drain and lateral inspection.
- Camera survey before any cleaning recommendation.
- Root, grease, and scale removal from the buried run.
- Cleanout access identified or installed where missing.
- Residential and commercial buried drain lines.
- Serving the Denver metro from southwest Denver.

## Why Does a Buried Drain Line Back Up?

The buried drain carries everything the building sends it, and in an older Denver property that run may be original clay, cast iron, or Orangeburg pipe laid decades before anyone thought to camera it. Roots find the joints, grease and scale narrow the bore, and settlement creates low spots called bellies where solids collect instead of moving through.

The pattern that tells us it is the buried line rather than a single fixture is simple: more than one drain acting up at the same time, or the lowest fixture in the building backing up first. A single slow sink is almost always a branch line issue inside the wall, and that is Afford-A-Rooter's lane, not ours.

- The lowest fixture in the house or building backs up before anything else does.
- Multiple drains slow down or gurgle at the same time.
- A cleanout in the yard bubbles or overflows.
- Sewage odor near the foundation or in a crawlspace.
- A drain that clears with snaking but returns within weeks.
- Wet or soft ground tracking the known path of the buried line.

## How We Confirm It Is the Buried Line

We run a camera from the nearest cleanout, or from the building's main cleanout when one exists, out toward the connection point. What we are looking for is where the material sits, whether the pipe holds standing water at rest, and whether roots are entering at a joint or the pipe itself has separated.

If the camera shows the buried run is clean and the backup is isolated to one fixture or one branch, we tell you that directly and point you to Afford-A-Rooter Plumbing rather than clean a line that does not need it.

- Pipe material, diameter, and condition.
- Location and depth of blockages, roots, or bellied sections.
- Whether the cause is on our side of the wall or theirs.
- Cleanout access and whether one needs to be added.

## How a Buried Drain Cleaning Call Runs

1. **Camera the buried run** Full survey from the nearest cleanout out to the connection point, recording pipe material, condition, and blockage location.
2. **Locate and mark depth** A sonde in the camera head lets us trace the line from the surface and mark its depth before any digging is considered.
3. **Select the jetting nozzle** Root cutting, penetrating, or descaling heads chosen to match what the camera found rather than a default setting.
4. **Clear and cut** Roots cut, grease and scale stripped, and material removed rather than pushed further down the line.
5. **Post-clean verification scope** The camera runs the line again after cleaning to confirm it is actually clear, not just quieter.

## What Drives Buried Drain Cleaning Cost

Line length, depth, pipe material, and how much root or scale buildup is present all move the number. A single cleanout access point is a quicker visit than a line that requires locating and a new access to be cut in.

We camera first and price against what we find, not against a guess made over the phone.

Call (720) 935-6221 to get the buried line looked at properly.

## Frequently asked questions

**Is this the same as unclogging a sink or shower drain?**

No. That is interior fixture and branch line work, which is handled by our sister company Afford-A-Rooter Plumbing. We work on the buried drain line running from the building out to the connection point.

**How do you know it is the buried line and not a fixture?**

Multiple fixtures backing up together, or the lowest drain in the building backing up first, points to the buried run. A single slow fixture with everything else draining fine is usually isolated to that fixture's branch line.

**Do you clean the line before or after the camera survey?**

We camera first whenever the line will pass a lens. On a heavily blocked line we may need to clear the worst of it before the camera can get through, and we explain that as part of the visit.

**Will cleaning fix a bellied or root-damaged section for good?**

Cleaning restores flow, but a belly in the pipe or a joint that keeps taking roots will keep collecting material until the pipe itself is repaired. We tell you when that is what the camera shows.

**Do you install a cleanout if my property does not have one?**

Yes, where access is needed to inspect or clean the buried line properly, adding a cleanout is often part of the recommendation.

**Are you the same as the city water department?**

No. Denver Sewer and Water is a private, family owned and operated company. We are not Denver Water or the City and County of Denver. We work on the privately owned buried drain line on your property, from the building drain out to the connection point.

## Buried Drain Services We Provide

- [Drain Scope and Video Inspection](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/drain-scope-and-video-inspection) Camera survey of the buried drain from the building foundation out to the main.
- [Drain Hydro Jetting](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/drain-hydro-jetting) High pressure water jetting to strip roots, grease, and scale from a buried drain line.
- [Drain Locating and Troubleshooting](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/drain-locating-and-troubleshooting) Sonde locating and depth marking to find a buried drain line that has no record.
- [Commercial Drain Cleaning](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/commercial-drain-cleaning) Buried drain line service for restaurants, retail, and multi-tenant commercial property.
- [Emergency Drain Cleaning](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/emergency-drain-cleaning) Fast response for a backed up or collapsed buried drain line.
- [Sewer Camera Inspection](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/methods/sewer-camera-inspection) How we read a buried line before recommending anything.

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Denver Sewer and Water is a privately owned, licensed and insured plumbing contractor. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Denver Water, the municipal water utility, or any government entity. To pay a municipal water bill or reach the public utility, visit denverwater.org.

Source: https://www.denversewerandwater.com/drain-inspection-and-cleaning