How Trees Can Destroy Your Home's Sewer Line

June 08, 2016

You try to be wary and ensure you avoid putting anything down the drain that would clog your pipes. You don’t place anything in the toilet but toilet paper; you don’t put pasta, bones, or oils down the sink in the kitchen; and you make sure to have filters on all your drains. But have you covered all your bases in order to prevent a high-priced sewer line repair?

Look outside because you may be overlooking the most detrimental problem of all: tree roots.

Trees crave nutrients and their roots are how they get it, so the point of the tree root is always “looking for” and “reaching toward” a source of moisture and nutrients and they are enticed by a leaking sewer line that needs repair.

Most of time, tree roots will leave healthy, undamaged sewer lines alone. They usually only invade leaking, split, or damaged lines buried within the top two feet of the ground. When this takes place the original damage not only becomes worse, the tree roots can completely clog the sewer lines and decrease the water flow, resulting in overflows and possibly flooding your home or building.

So what do you do? Call a sewer line repair professional in Tempe.

A sewer line repair will most likely be easier (and less expensive) than a burst pipe, so if you believe there’s trouble with your sewer line, especially if you feel that tree roots are growing into the pipe, call Orangutan Home Services as soon as possible.

Sewer line repair technicians at Orangutan Home Services will use a sewer inspection camera to verify whether or not the pipe has a tree root problem. Once the problem has been determined, our sewer line repair expert will review all of your options with you and help you decide the best way to move forward, whether that’s a trenchless sewer line replacement or just cutting out the tree roots.

Keep in mind, faster growing trees, such as cottonwood, sweetgum, or willow, may cause more problems because they grow more rapidly. Slower growing trees are a better option, but they still need to be removed and another tree replanted every eight to ten years to avoid their roots from becoming an issue. Also, make sure you plant trees away from your sewer lines, that way you can help avoid damage and prevent those pesky (and often costly) sewer line repairs. If you’re not confident where your sewer lines are, ask Orangutan Home Services to flag the path of the sewer pipes.

So if you think your tree roots have entered your sewer line or you have any plumbing problems at all, call Orangutan Home Services in Tempe and we are happy to visit and see if you need a sewer line repair or do a complete plumbing maintenance to make sure your pipes are good to go.

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