Sewer Lateral Compliance

If you are planning to buy a home in the Bay Area, you will likely learn about the requirements of sewer lateral compliance during the process. Multiple cities require some version of this prior to the sale of the home. If you want to learn more and/or your realtor mentioned this, you’ve come to the right place!

At Discount Plumbing, we work with hundreds of realtors in the Bay Area because we simply are the best! We are the only vendor you will need from start to finish, regardless if your sewer lateral fails compliance or passes with no additional work needed. Rest assured we will coordinate with inspectors to pass final inspections and get your compliance certificate before the close of escrow.

We work with almost all lenders and allow for projects to be paid directly out of escrow! We have excellent relationships with local City Inspectors and can walk you through the entire process. We handle everything from obtaining permits, coordinating with the City Encroachment Depts, Public Works, Building Inspectors, etc. to make sure the job is completed before the close of escrow.

The sewer lateral compliance process takes few days from start to finish and varies from City to City. Give us a call and we can start immediately with a Video Camera Inspection of your Sewer Line. Then we’ll fill out the required paperwork and submit it to the City on your behalf. Unfortunately, chances are that your sewer lateral will not pass City compliance standards and you’ll need to get the sewer line replaced. But fear not, this is a fast and easy process and will not interfere with the sale of your home. We can usually get your project started within two weeks and complete everything within just one day. Just think of it as another closing cost.

Plumbing 101: Sewer Laterals Intro

First you need to understand the plumbing basics of the home. Water flows into and out of the home. Most commonly the water is coming in from the City water main, but select few homes may have water access via a well and/or might go out to a septic tank. In the highly-populated urban areas City provided utilities are most common. Water flows into the home via local City water dept and sewage waste flows out via City lines for treatment and processing.

Every home’s internal plumbing lines connect to the “City main” sewer pipe. The pipe that connects your home to the “City main” or “sewer main” is called the sewer lateral. The sewer lateral runs from your home to the City Main (locations may vary). Most of the time the City Main is located underground in front of your home in the street. FYI, homeowners are responsible for the sewer lateral, its condition and keeping it clear/unclogged. Once the sewer lateral connects with the City Main, the responsibility falls on the City. Even if your sewer lateral runs underneath a sidewalk, on a neighbors property, or on an easement, the responsibility still falls on the homeowner (most of the time).

Why does the City require Sewer Lateral Compliance and Sewer Line Replacement?

Many homes in the Bay Area were built ~100 years ago. The original sewer lateral pipes were made out of cast iron, terracotta pipe, Orangeburg pipe and a variety of other materials. Because of older building methodologies, they are not holding up to the test of time. They have been especially susceptible to root intrusion and cracking due to ground movement. The joints have separated/shifted, the pipes have cracked or collapsed, and nearly all sewer systems have some type of leak into the ground water. Environmental studies have shown that a large amount of waste water has been seeping into the groundwater and getting into the Bay and nearby streams and oceans. The governments solution to the problem was to mandate people fix their sewer lines when selling their home and/or doing certain remodels and permitted home improvement projects. Specifically related to new home sales, the City titled this the Private Sewer Lateral Ordinance (aka Point of Sale Ordinance).

Call Discount Plumbing Rooter Inc. Today!

Trust Discount Plumbing Rooter Inc to help with your City Sewer lateral compliance paperwork and sewer camera inspection. We will take a video recording of the sewer line and submit it on your behalf to the correct city official. Discount Plumbing Rooter Inc will handle the entire process starting with the sewer camera inspection on your main sewer line, provide you with a competitive sewer pipe replacement bid, and then lastly submit the sewer lateral inspection report paperwork and video to the city department. We perform these services 7 days per week, 365 days per year! In doing so, we will pull permits with the city and part of our quality guarantee is that your sewer replacement is guaranteed to pass inspection!

If your sewer line fails inspection, we are here to assist with your Sewer Lateral Replacement as well! We specialize in trenchless sewer lateral replacement and standard “trenched” sewer lateral repairs and replacement. We have been doing these jobs for the past 30+ years which is why we are the #1 City Official recommended vendor. You can trust our experienced team for all jobs related to sewer inspections, sewer repairs, and sewer lateral replacement. We work directly with homeowners, city officials and realtors with point-of-sale requirements for sewer lateral inspections in all required cities throughout the Bay Area.