Do you locate utilities before excavating?

Always. Locates are requested and then verified on site, and around known crossings we expose the utility with vacuum excavation rather than digging blind. Locate marks are an approximation of horizontal position, not a guarantee of depth.

How much of my yard gets torn up?

That depends on the method the pipe supports. A lined run needs access pits at each end. A full open cut replacement needs a trench the length of the run. We show you the footprint on the site before the work starts so it is not a surprise on the morning of.

Do you restore the surface after excavation?

Yes, and to the specification for what was cut. Concrete is replaced with concrete, asphalt with asphalt, and turf is backfilled and compacted properly so the trench does not settle into a rut over the next season.

Will you need to dig in the street?

Only if the work is in the right-of-way, which is common in Denver because the owner's lateral runs to the main under the street. That triggers a right-of-way permit, often a traffic control plan, and the city's restoration standard.

Can you excavate around mature trees?

Usually, and often that is the reason to choose a trenchless method or a hand and hydro excavation approach instead of a machine trench. Protected trees and parkway canopy carry their own rules in Denver, and those get planned in before we quote.

What happens if you find something unexpected in the trench?

We stop and tell you before we keep going. Unmarked utilities, prior repairs, and buried debris are real in a hundred year old city. Changing the scope quietly is how people end up with a bill they did not agree to.

Excavation in Denver

An independent, licensed plumbing contractor. Not affiliated with Denver Water or the City and County of Denver.

Denver Sewer and Water performs underground utility excavation for sewer lines, water lines, storm drains, septic systems, and taps across the Denver metro. We locate before we dig, choose open cut or trenchless based on what the camera and the site actually show, pull the permits, and restore the surface we opened. The crews and the equipment are ours.

(720) 935-6221 Request a Free Quote

Sewer, water, storm, and septic excavation.
Verified utility locating before any digging.
Open cut, hydro excavation, and directional boring.
Right-of-way permits and traffic control.
Compaction and surface restoration to spec.

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Family Owned and Operated, Not the City Utility

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Second-Generation Specialists

Fast Response Across the Denver Metro

What Denver customers say

4.8 average from 18 Google reviews

Prompt service and worked well into the night to restore service due to hard soil. And did their best to prevent large scars to the yard
Jennifer Mahaffey
Denver Water And Sewer did an excellent job replacing my sewer lines. Trevor and his crew are extremely competent, honest, professional and prompt.
David Colson
Very direct and to the point. Extremely efficient and professional.
Sam Hayden

When Does a Line Have to Be Excavated?

A line has to be excavated when the pipe can no longer serve as a host for a trenchless repair or when the connection point itself has to be reached. That means collapse, loss of grade, a belly holding water, a re-route, a new tap into the main, or a deformed material like Orangeburg that cannot support lining. If the pipe still holds its shape and the slope is sound, we would rather line it or burst it and leave your yard intact.

The decision is not a preference. It comes off the camera footage, the locate, and the depth. We grade the line, mark where the defects sit, and then tell you which method the pipe can actually accept.

(720) 935-6221

Signs You May Need Sewer Line Repair

Collapsed pipe or a section that has lost its shape.
Bellies and lost slope that lining would preserve rather than fix.
A new or replacement tap at the main.
Re-routing a line around a structure, an addition, or a tree.
Deformed Orangeburg or badly separated joints.

Denver Sewer and Water crew replacing a residential sewer lateral in a shored backyard trench — Sewer lateral replacement in a Denver backyard, trench shored and pipe staged.

How We Diagnose It

Open Cut or Trenchless? How We Decide

Trenchless is the better answer when the host pipe holds its shape, the grade is sound, the defects are distributed rather than catastrophic, and there is access at both ends. Open cut is the better answer when the pipe is collapsed, the slope has to be corrected, the alignment has to change, or the work is at a connection point that has to be exposed and inspected.

There is a third case people miss. Sometimes the cheapest honest job is a hybrid: line the long run and open cut only the failed section at the property line. We quote what the pipe supports, not what sells easiest.

Compare repair methods side by side

Common Causes of Sewer Line Damage

Host pipe intact and grade sound: lining or bursting is usually the right call.
Grade correction required: excavation, because no liner fixes slope.
Alignment change or re-route: excavation.
Tap or connection work: excavation to the main, with shoring.
Mixed condition: line the sound run, open cut the failed section.

How an Excavation Job Runs

1
Camera and Locate
We scope the line, grade it, and mark depth and defect locations. Utility locates are requested and then verified on site before any equipment moves.
2
Permits and Traffic Control
Sanitary review, right-of-way permits, and a traffic control plan where the street requires one. We carry these rather than handing them to the owner.
3
Site Protection
Access route planned, surfaces protected, spoils staged, and tree protection observed where the canopy or root zone is regulated.
4
Careful Exposure
Around known crossings we vacuum excavate rather than dig blind. Paint on grass is an approximation, not a guarantee.
5
Excavate, Shore, and Replace
The trench is opened and shored to depth, the pipe is replaced or the connection is made, and the work is inspected before it is covered.
6
Backfill and Restoration
Compacted in lifts to the spec for the surface above, then the surface is restored to what was cut, including concrete, asphalt, and landscape.

Backfilled and restored lawn after a sewer line replacement at a Denver home — Backfill, compaction, and restoration are part of the job, not an extra.

Why Our Own Crews Matter Here

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“Excavation is where a job goes wrong quietly. Bad compaction shows up as a settled trench a year later, and bad locating shows up the same afternoon.”

Denver Sewer and Water

“We run our own excavators and our own operators, so the crew that scoped the line is the crew that opens the ground.”

Denver Sewer and Water

What Drives Excavation Cost?

We will not put a number on this page, because excavation pricing is driven by conditions we have to see first. Depth is the single largest driver, followed by what is above the pipe and what has to be put back.

The honest version is that a shallow lateral in an open back yard and a deep connection under a concrete street are the same pipe and very different projects. We quote after the scope and the locate, not before.