Trenchless sewer repair is structural pipe restoration done through small access points – usually a 3-foot by 3-foot pit at your property cleanout – instead of trenching the entire length of the lateral. On a typical East Vancouver lateral running 60 feet from the house to the City main under Commercial Drive, traditional open-cut means tearing up your front yard, the sidewalk, and half a boulevard tree. Trenchless cuts the disturbance to one pit at the house side and one at the City connection.

Three trenchless methods, all done in Vancouver:

**CIPP (Cured-In-Place Pipe) lining.** A felt liner soaked in epoxy resin is inverted into the existing pipe under air pressure, then steam- or UV-cured. The liner bonds to the inside of the host pipe and becomes a new structural pipe inside the old one. Restores full diameter (within 1/8 inch), seals all cracks and joints, blocks future root intrusion. Cost in Vancouver typically $190-$280 per linear foot installed.

**Pipe bursting.** A hydraulic head is pulled through the old pipe, splitting it outward into the surrounding soil while drawing new HDPE pipe behind it. Used when the existing pipe is too damaged for lining (collapsed, severely offset, undersized). Cost typically $220-$320 per linear foot. Requires slightly larger access pits than CIPP.

**Spot relining (point repair).** A short epoxy patch for a single offset, crack, or joint failure under 4 feet long. Done through a cleanout, no excavation. Cost $1,800-$3,200 per spot. Lasts as long as the surrounding pipe.

Vancouver permits all three under City of Vancouver Plumbing and Gas. Inspector signs off on the post-cure or post-burst camera footage.

**CIPP Full-Lateral Lining** – Felt liner with epoxy resin inverted from the cleanout through the entire lateral to the City connection. Steam or ambient cure depending on length. Final inspection by City. Used on most root-infested clay tile laterals from 1950s-1980s East Van and Mt Pleasant.

**Pipe Bursting** – Hydraulic head splits the old pipe outward while pulling new HDPE behind. Used when CIPP isn’t viable (collapsed or undersized pipe). Full one-day install on most residential laterals. Includes pre- and post-camera verification.

**Spot Relining** – Short 2- to 4-foot epoxy patch through the cleanout for a single offset joint, crack, or root intrusion point. Used on otherwise-healthy lines that just have one problem.

**Sewer Camera Diagnostic** – Required before any trenchless quote. HD scope from your cleanout to the City main, written report, MP4 file. See [sewer camera inspection](https://mambadrainageservices.com/drainage-service/video-inspection/).

**Locate + Mark** – Before any pit gets dug, we locate the lateral with a sonde and mark every utility crossing it (gas, water, hydro, telecom). BC One Call ticket pulled at no extra cost.

**Combined Trenchless + Hydro Jet** – For lines with grease and scale buildup, we pre-clean with [4,000 PSI hydro jet](https://mambadrainageservices.com/drainage-service/hydro-jetting/) so the liner bonds to bare pipe. Bundled pricing.

**Camera diagnostic before quote:** $389-$489 with MP4 and written report.

**Spot relining (under 4 ft):** $1,800-$3,200 per spot, done through existing cleanout, no excavation.

**CIPP full-lateral lining (typical 50-70 ft Vancouver residential):** $12,000-$22,000 including permit, locate, access pits, liner, cure, and City inspection.

**Pipe bursting (typical 50-70 ft):** $14,500-$24,000 including permit, pits, HDPE pipe, hydraulic equipment, City inspection.

**Combined CIPP + sewer cleanout install:** add $1,200-$1,800 if your property doesn’t have an accessible cleanout yet (most pre-1985 East Van homes don’t).

**Boulevard / City-connection trenchless tie-in:** $4,500-$8,500 add-on when the failure is at the property line under City right-of-way. Includes traffic control plan, locate, and City inspection of the new connection.

**Strata / multi-unit assessment:** custom quoted after walkdown – typical buildings run $40,000-$120,000 for full common-line restoration depending on length and connection complexity.

Firm prices in writing after the camera scope. No surprises mid-job – if conditions don’t match the scope we stop, show you the camera footage, and re-quote before continuing.

**How long does CIPP lining last in Vancouver?**
Manufacturer rating is 50 years; material warranty is 25 years. We’ve yet to see a properly-installed CIPP liner fail in Vancouver, but the technology was only widely adopted here around 2008 so real-world longevity past 18 years is still TBD. Pre-CIPP open-cut PVC sewer laterals from the 1990s are still running fine, and CIPP creates a structurally similar pipe – the resin layer is what differs.

**Is trenchless cheaper than open-cut in Vancouver?**
Sometimes. For a lateral entirely within your property line, open-cut is often $4,000-$8,000 cheaper than CIPP because excavation is straightforward and material is just PVC. For a lateral that crosses a sidewalk, boulevard, road, or mature landscape, trenchless wins on total cost because open-cut adds traffic control, asphalt restoration, and landscape rebuild that can easily run $15,000-$30,000.

**Do I need a permit for trenchless sewer repair?**
Yes – City of Vancouver Plumbing and Gas. Trenchless is plumbing work regardless of access method. We pull the permit under our licence. The City inspector signs off on the post-cure camera footage.

**Can you reline an entire perimeter drain?**
No – perimeter drains have hundreds of perforations along their length designed to take in groundwater. A CIPP liner would seal those perforations and defeat the purpose. For perimeter drainage failures, see our [perimeter drainage page](https://mambadrainageservices.com/drainage-service/perimeter-drainage-vancouver/).

**What if my line has bellies?**
A belly under 1 inch deep can be lined and the result is acceptable flow. A belly between 1-4 inches will be visible in the lined pipe but typically still flows. A belly over 4 inches deep means the line itself has settled and lining won’t fix the flow issue – open-cut with re-bedding is the right call. The camera scope tells us which.

**Will my driveway or lawn survive?**
For a typical CIPP install you’ll have one 3×3-foot pit at your house cleanout and one 3×3-foot pit at the City connection. Sod removed at start and replanted at end. Driveway only affected if the lateral runs under it (uncommon – most Vancouver laterals run alongside the driveway under the lawn). For pipe bursting, pits are slightly larger – 4×4 feet.

**Do you serve all of Greater Vancouver?**
Yes – Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, New Westminster, Surrey, Delta. Trenchless equipment is in-house, no sub-contractor rentals, which keeps Greater Vancouver pricing consistent with Vancouver-core jobs.

**What about commercial buildings and strata?**
Yes – roughly 40% of our trenchless work is commercial / strata. We schedule overnight, provide certificates of service for insurance, attend AGMs to present scope, and handle property-manager approvals. $5M general liability, full WCB.

**Do you offcouver, Burnaby, Richmond, New Westminster, Surrey, Delta. Trenchless equipment is in-house, no sub-contractor rentals, which keeps Greater Vancouver pricing consistent with Vancouver-core jobs.

**What about commercial buildings and strata?**
Yes – roughly 40% of our trenchless work is commercial / strata. We schedule overnight, provide certificates of service for insurance, attend AGMs to present scope, and handle property-manager approvals. $5M general liability, full WCB.

**Do you offer financing?**
Yes – Financeit 0% interest up to 24 months on jobs over $5,000. 90-second online application.