Main Sewer Line Replacement in Salt Lake City, UT

Some sewer lines are past the point of spot repairs. When the camera shows damage throughout — multiple root intrusion points, extensive cracking, a bellied section where the pipe has sunk, or a line made of deteriorating Orangeburg or clay pipe — full replacement is the right call. Patching a failing line in one spot only delays the inevitable failure somewhere else.

We see this most often in pre-1970 homes throughout Murray, Midvale, Sugar House, and the Avenues. Original clay pipe joints loosen over decades as Utah's clay soil shifts seasonally, and Orangeburg pipe (a tar-impregnated cardboard product used from the 1940s–1970s) literally collapses under soil pressure. If your home was built before 1980 and you're experiencing recurring sewer problems, the camera will usually show a line that needs full replacement.

We offer two replacement methods: traditional excavation (digging a trench along the pipe path) and trenchless pipe bursting (pulling a new HDPE pipe through the old one). The right method depends on your pipe condition, property layout, and what's above the line — driveways, mature trees, or landscaping that you want to preserve.

Traditional excavation is necessary when the line has severe bellies (the pipe has sunk and can't be followed by trenchless equipment), when there are sharp bends in the line, or when the existing pipe has completely collapsed and lost its path. We dig a trench along the old line, remove the damaged pipe, and install new Schedule 40 PVC at the correct grade. Trenchless pipe bursting works when the old pipe still has a viable path — we pull a new HDPE pipe through the old one, breaking the old pipe apart as the new one takes its place. This preserves your landscaping, driveway, and yard. Most residential pipe bursting jobs are completed in a single day.