# Septic System Video Inspection in the Denver Metro A septic video inspection puts a camera into the building sewer and the tank access so the condition of the line, the baffles, and the liquid level can be seen rather than guessed at. It is the step that decides whether a property needs a cleaning, a component repair, or a system replacement, and it is the step most often skipped. - Camera run from the building to the tank. - Tank interior, baffle, and outlet assessment. - Liquid level read against the outlet invert. - Locating and surface marking included. - Findings explained, not just recorded. ## What Can a Septic Video Inspection Actually Tell You? It tells you the material of the line and whether that material is still doing its job. Vitrified clay opens at the joints. Cast iron corrodes from the inside. Orangeburg deforms into an oval and eventually closes. PVC generally fails from installation faults and settlement rather than from age. Each of those shows on camera and each points at a different repair. It also tells you where the problem is, in feet from the access point and in depth below grade. That number is what turns an open-ended excavation quote into a defined one, because it defines how much ground has to be opened. - Pipe material and remaining condition. - Root intrusion, grease, and scale. - Bellies, offsets, cracks, and separations. - Distance and depth to each defect. - Tank inlet and outlet baffle condition. - Liquid level relative to the outlet invert. ## How Inspection Findings Change the Recommendation A clear line and a normal liquid level means the complaint is not in the system path we just examined, and the search moves to fixtures or venting inside the building. A blocked line with a normal liquid level means clean or repair the line and the tank is fine. A clear line with a level above the outlet invert means the tank is not discharging, and the investigation moves to the outlet and the field. Those three outcomes carry very different price tags, and there is no way to tell them apart from the surface. That is the entire argument for inspecting first. - Line blocked, level normal: clean or repair the line. - Line clear, level normal: look inside the building. - Line clear, level above invert: outlet or drainfield. ## How a Septic Inspection Runs 1. **Find the access** Cleanout where one exists. Where none does, we locate the line from the building and establish access. 2. **Run the camera** Full run out to the tank inlet, recording material, defects, distance, and depth as we go. 3. **Open and read the tank** Baffle condition, scum and sludge depth, and liquid level against the outlet invert. 4. **Mark and explain** Defect positions marked on the surface, findings explained in plain terms with the repair options that follow from them. ## What a Septic Inspection Involves Cost-Wise Access drives it. A property with a cleanout and a lid at grade is a straightforward visit. A property where the tank lid is buried and the line has no access point adds locating and digging before the camera can start. It remains cheaper than the alternative in every case we have seen. The cost of an inspection is a rounding error against the cost of excavating in the wrong place. Call (720) 935-6221 to book one. ## Frequently asked questions **Do I need an inspection if I am buying a property with a septic system?** Yes, and it should cover both the line and the tank. A tank that was pumped the week before a sale looks healthy from above regardless of its actual condition. The camera and the liquid level reading are what tell you whether you are buying a working system. **Can the camera see the drainfield?** Not directly in most cases. The field is a distributed network of perforated laterals rather than a single pipe. What we read instead is whether effluent is leaving the tank at all, which is the practical measure of whether the field is still accepting flow. **Will you show me the footage?** Yes. You should see what we saw, with the distances and the defects pointed out. A recommendation that comes without the evidence behind it is just an assertion. **How long does an inspection take?** On a property with existing access, typically under two hours including the tank assessment. Where the tank has to be located and the lid excavated, it becomes a longer visit and we tell you that up front. **Are you Denver Water or the city?** 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. A septic system is privately owned infrastructure, and we are the contractor a property owner hires to work on one. ## Related Septic Services - [Septic Systems in Denver](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/septic-systems/denver-co) The full septic lane: diagnosis, repair, replacement, and the excavation behind it. - [Septic Locating and Troubleshooting](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/septic-systems/septic-system-locating-trouble-shooting) Finding the tank, the field, and the actual failure point on parcels with no records. - [Septic System Cleaning](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/septic-systems/septic-system-cleaning) Clearing the lines and components that pumping alone does not reach. - [Septic System Repair](https://www.denversewerandwater.com/septic-systems/septic-system-repair) Targeted repair of tanks, baffles, lids, and the lines running in and out. --- 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/septic-systems/septic-system-video-inspection