# Sewer Line Repair in Bear Valley, Denver Bear Valley was platted on curves rather than a grid, without alleys, on ground that falls away towards the creek. The result is laterals that cross a front yard and very often a driveway before they ever reach the main. Denver Sewer and Water works out how to get under that driveway before it works out anything else. - Curved streets and no alleys, so laterals run out the front. - Driveways and hardscape crossing the route on many lots. - Postwar fiber and early plastic both present. - Boring and bursting to avoid cutting concrete. ## The Route Is the Problem Before the Pipe Is Curved streets and irregular lots make for laterals that do not run in straight, guessable lines. Add a driveway laid across the route and a slab patio behind the house, and the geometry decides more about the project than the defect does. The pipe itself follows the period. [Bituminized fiber](/materials/orangeburg-pipe-replacement) appears on the earlier blocks and early plastic on the later ones, and slope towards the creek can keep flow moving past a section that has already started to deform, so the failure feels sudden when it finally arrives. - Orangeburg bituminized wood fiber pipe, generally good for around 50 years. - The pipe's round shape collapsing into an oval shape as it weakens. - Blistered, delaminating layers appearing on the inside of the pipe wall. - Roots breaking straight through the pipe wall instead of only entering at joints. - A cleared line clogging again in the exact same place shortly after. - Clay laterals mixed among the fiber on Bear Valley's curving streets, so it has to be confirmed line by line. ## Get Under the Concrete, Not Through It Where the existing corridor is sound and the whole run is due, [pipe bursting](/methods/pipe-bursting) pulls new pipe along it from two pits. Where the corridor itself is the problem, [directional boring](/methods/directional-boring) installs a new line on a better path and leaves the drive where it is. Both start the same way. [Line locating and marking](/methods/line-locating-and-marking) puts the route and depth on the ground, and [camera inspection](/methods/sewer-camera-inspection) establishes what the line is made of and where it has failed. A section that has lost fall still needs [open cut excavation](/methods/open-cut-excavation), whatever is on top of it. Excavation permits, right of way requirements where the run reaches the street main, and any traffic control on these narrower curving streets are confirmed with the city for the specific address before scheduling. We do the work under the permit; the city sets and inspects the standard. Readers looking for the municipal utility should start with [are you Denver Water](/are-you-denver-water), and our [Denver page](/locations/denver-co) explains the division of authority. - Camera inspection to confirm fiber pipe rather than assuming from the street's age. - Pipe bursting to pull a new lateral through the existing curved alignment. - Open cut where the driveway sits close to the surface or the pipe has already collapsed. - Directional boring to steer a new path under or around a driveway that crosses the route to the main. - Lining is not an option once the fiber host has deformed out of round. ## How We Approach a Bear Valley Sewer Project 1. **Confirm What's Actually Buried** Bear Valley's curving streets mix fiber and clay block by block, so we run a camera first to know which one is under a given driveway before talking replacement. 2. **Map the Fiber Section and the Driveway Above It** We record how far the fiber pipe extends and note exactly where it passes under the driveway, since that intersection often dictates the plan. 3. **Choose Bursting or Open Cut** If the run is straight and clear of the driveway slab, bursting is usually the fit. If the driveway sits directly over a sagged or collapsed section, open cut is used instead. 4. **Reconnect and Restore the Drive** The line is replaced, tied in, and inspected, and any driveway or landscaping disturbed by the work is restored afterward. ## What Drives Cost on a Bear Valley Line In Bear Valley, whether the fiber lateral sits under the driveway or clear of it changes the plan and the cost more than almost anything else. Depth and length of the run still set the baseline number, and surface restoration is added on top depending on what has to be cut into. Emergency repair after a driveway sinks over a collapsed line costs far more than catching the deformation with a camera first. Two questions set a Bear Valley price. Does the route cross concrete, and can the work go under it. When the answer is yes and yes, the saving is the driveway rather than the pipe. Anything inside the house is our sister company's lane: fixtures, drains, and water heaters go to [Afford-A-Rooter Plumbing](https://www.affordarooterplumbing.com). Blocks built in the same period are covered on our [University Hills](/neighborhoods/university-hills) and [Harvey Park](/neighborhoods/harvey-park) pages, and everything sits on the [Denver neighborhood index](/neighborhoods). ## Frequently asked questions **Will you have to cut my driveway?** Often not. Boring and bursting both work from pits at each end, so a route that passes under concrete can frequently stay under it. If the defect sits directly beneath the slab and has to be exposed, we say so before you commit. **Why does my line run at an angle to the house?** Because the street curves and the main follows it. Laterals here take whatever route reaches the main, which is one reason locating comes before planning. **Does the slope help or hurt?** Both. Extra fall keeps flow moving past a narrowing section for longer, which is helpful right up until the flattest part of the run is also the most deformed. **Is early plastic pipe a problem?** Not by age. Plastic gives out from crushing, poor bedding, or impact rather than decay, so the repair is usually local rather than wholesale. **Is your company part of Denver Water?** 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 are the contractor, not the utility. ## Bear Valley Sewer Line Pages: Related Neighborhoods From the 1945 to 1972 Build Era - [Orangeburg Pipe Replacement](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/materials/orangeburg-pipe-replacement) Replacing bituminized fiber pipe installed in Denver during the postwar building boom. - [How to Identify Orangeburg Pipe](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/materials/how-to-identify-orangeburg-pipe) The tells that separate fiber conduit from clay, cast iron, and PVC. - [Collapsed Sewer Line](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/materials/collapsed-sewer-line) What collapse looks like, why it is an emergency, and the only fix. - [Pipe Bursting](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/methods/pipe-bursting) Full line replacement pulled through the old pipe path without a long trench. - [Open Cut Excavation](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/methods/open-cut-excavation) Traditional trenching when the line has to be exposed and physically replaced. - [Sewer Camera Inspection](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/methods/sewer-camera-inspection) Video inspection that identifies the defect, its depth, and its location. - [Sewer Line Service in University Hills](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/neighborhoods/university-hills) Tract built blocks with long fiber runs and no alleys. - [Sewer Line Service in Harvey Park](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/neighborhoods/harvey-park) Mid-century subdivisions with long fiber runs under lawn. - [Sewer Line Service in Westwood](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/neighborhoods/westwood) Compact lots with shallow laterals under working alleys. --- 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/neighborhoods/bear-valley