Mamba Drainage Services
Sewer Repair Vancouver
Sewage backing up in the basement floor drain? Blockages coming back every few months? Roots inside old clay tile? We diagnose on camera, fix what can be fixed, replace what needs replacing, and go trenchless wherever the pipe allows it.
Sewer line repair, replacement and emergency response. 24/7 dispatch across Greater Vancouver. Call (778) 961-0824.
Signs the problem is the sewer, not the fixture
A clog at one fixture is a fixture problem. These are the ones that mean the main lateral.
- The toilet, the sink and the shower all drain slowly at the same time
- The basement floor drain gurgles when the washing machine empties
- The main line has been snaked more than twice in the same year
- Sewage smell in the yard or a soft, always green patch over the lateral run
- Backups that come back on a schedule rather than after a specific misuse
Why Vancouver sewer lines fail
Vancouver’s sewer infrastructure is older than most Canadian cities. The combined sewer system, where storm and sanitary share one lateral, was the standard here until the 1990s, and roughly 90% of pre-1990 properties still run on it. The private side lateral, from your house out to the property line, is the part you own and the part most likely to fail.
Root intrusion at the property line connection. The transition from your lateral to the city sewer is the joint that goes first. Roots from boulevard trees, cedar, maple, willow and ornamental cherry, find the joint, expand into the pipe, and then catch every flushable wipe and grease ball that comes down the line.
Cast iron and clay tile collapse. Pre-1970 East Vancouver and Burnaby homes were piped in clay tile, the curved sections with bell and spigot joints, or early cast iron. After sixty or seventy years the joints crack, sections offset, and eventually a length gives way. The collapse might be eight feet down the yard or thirty five feet out at the property line, and nobody knows which until a camera goes in.
Bellies and offset joints. When old pipe settles unevenly, which is common through Strathcona, Mount Pleasant and Hastings-Sunrise where the soil is glacial till over fill, sections sag. Sewage pools in the belly, builds up, and blocks the line chronically even with no roots anywhere near it.
So every sewer repair here starts with a camera scope. The footage shows what is failing, how far it sits from the cleanout, and whether the failure is on your property, which makes it your fix, or past the property line, which makes it the City of Vancouver’s.
24/7 emergency dispatch
Sewage in the basement does not wait for business hours
A clogged sewer at 11 PM is an emergency call. A clog that keeps coming back is a structural problem you can plan around. Either way the camera goes in first and the phone is answered live.
How a sewer job runs here
Sewer tips every Vancouver homeowner should know
- Know where your cleanout is. Usually a capped four inch pipe standing up at the side of the house or in the basement. If you cannot find it, ask us to locate it on the next service call. Knowing where it is saves real trouble in an emergency.
- Never flush flushable wipes. They do not break down like toilet paper. They collect at the property line root intrusion point and build the grease and fibre mat behind the worst backups we see.
- Watch for slow drains in several fixtures at once. If the toilet, the sink and the shower all drain slowly, the problem is in the main lateral, not the fixtures. Scope it before anybody snakes it again.
- Two main line clogs in a year means get a scope. Repeat clogs at the main line have a structural cause, a belly, an offset or a root mass, and snaking will not fix any of the three for good.
- Scope before you buy. Standard BC home inspections do not include a sewer scope. On a pre-1980 Vancouver home it is the cheapest insurance in the deal, and a clean report in your own listing package takes an argument off the table when you sell.
- Keep grease out of the kitchen sink. Fats and oils cool, cling and catch. The clog they build is out in the main lateral, twenty feet from the house, not at the trap arm where you can reach it.
What Vancouver customers say
Ryan was great! My landlord called him to fix my blocked kitchen sink. He showed up the same day (on a Sunday) and fixed the problem. He even cleaned the sink and dried up all the water that had leaked before he got there. And he was very careful coming in and out of the house so my cat wouldn’t get out. I’d definitely recommend him.
Ryan is INCREDIBLE. He has been responding to all of us (four houses and families!) affected by a sewage back up. This is all on Boxing Day and beyond, in terrible weather full of ice, cold and rain. He is so knowledgeable, and knew what was needed right away. Just the top of his field I am sure. As well as that, he is incredibly calm, respectful, kind and fair. I am truly amazed by this person's capacity and competence in combination with his noble, calm presence in the face of a real mess. Thank you Ryan, so very much!
I had very positive experience with Mamba Services, Ryan was amazing to work with and took care of my drain issues in no time. He arrived on time, was very professional and efficient in carrying out the work. What impressed me was how honest he was in recommending needed repair. He was very patient in explaining the different options. I will certainly call them for future projects.
Had an excellent experience. Ryan was fantastic, it was an after hours call late in the evening and he showed up exactly in the time frame he gave. Took care of the kitchen sink issue within minutes all systems were running like new. Pricing was extremely reasonable, Ryan was patient and explained everything to me while fixing my problem. I would highly recommend this company for any plumbing work.
Ryan was efficient, experienced, and knowledgeable. He was able to squeeze me into his schedule with short notice and wasted no time with my appointment. He arrived on site inspected the issue, and was quickly at work with resolving the problem. I am very pleased with his service and honesty. He provided recommendations that will help assist me in future occurrences.
Sewer repair FAQ, Vancouver
Drain cleaning clears the blockage. Sewer repair fixes the structural cause. If the main line has been snaked three times in a year and a half, you do not have a clogging problem, you have a sewer problem. Cleaning handles the symptom, repair handles the failure underneath it.
The camera scope tells us. One offset joint or one collapsed section means a spot repair is the right call. Several failing sections, or a whole lateral of end of life clay tile, and a full replacement makes more sense over the life of the house. The scope is the diagnostic and the quote follows it.
It depends on where the lateral runs and which method the pipe allows. Trenchless lining needs only two small access pits and avoids driveway demolition entirely. An open trench replacement may have to cross it. We map the lateral with the sonde locator first, so you know exactly what is affected before you sign anything.
The City of Vancouver, or whichever municipality you are in. Plenty of homeowners have paid for repairs that were the City’s responsibility because nobody showed them where the boundary was. Our sonde locator marks the property line against the distance on the footage, so you can request a City service if the fault is past your line.
Yes. Commercial maintenance contracts for restaurants on a quarterly grease hydrojet, strata buildings on a semi annual main stack flush, and parkades on an annual storm lateral scope. We carry full general liability and WCB coverage, and after hours and overnight scheduling is standard.
It depends on the policy. A sewer backup endorsement, which is an extra rider, covers damage from a backup but usually not the repair itself. A sudden failure such as a collapse from frost heave is sometimes covered under the main policy. Slow deterioration from root intrusion rarely is. We provide adjuster ready documentation either way.
5 year workmanship warranty on spot repairs and trenchless lining. 10 year workmanship warranty on full replacements. Pipe materials carry the manufacturer warranty, typically past 50 years for ABS, PVC and HDPE. The certificate of work is emailed at project completion.
Call (778) 961-0824. Stop using water anywhere in the house, no flushing, no laundry, no showers, because every litre you put into the failed lateral makes the backup bigger. Open the basement windows for ventilation and stay out of contact with the sewage. We run 24/7 across Vancouver and Burnaby.
On every emergency call. Timestamped MP4 footage, a written report in the cause and condition language the adjuster expects, and our compliance certificate.
24/7 EMERGENCY DISPATCH
Water where it should not be?
Ryan picks up. Live dispatch, and you get a real arrival window on the call.