TRENCHLESS SEWER LINE REPAIR — FIX WITHOUT TRENCHING THE YARD

Trenchless sewer repair is a category of techniques that fix sewer lines without trenching across the yard. Instead of digging a long trench from the house to the city tap, we work from access pits at each end (or sometimes through existing cleanouts). Two main techniques: CIPP lining (we coat the inside of the existing pipe with a fiberglass-reinforced epoxy liner) and pipe bursting (we pull a new HDPE pipe through the old one, breaking the old pipe outward in the process).

Both techniques save the yard. For a Traverse Mountain home with mature landscaping, a Holbrook Farms property with a paver driveway, or a Skye Estates yard with a pool — trenchless can be the difference between a 2-day repair and a 2-week landscaping project.

CIPP lining — for damaged but structurally sound pipe

We pull a fiberglass-reinforced felt liner soaked in epoxy through the existing pipe, inflate it against the pipe wall, and let it cure. The result is a new seamless pipe inside the old one. Works for: cracks, root intrusion at joints, minor offset joints, scaled or eroded interior. Doesn't work for: fully collapsed pipe, severe offset, missing sections.

Lifespan: 40-50 years. Process time: 1-2 days. Diameter loss: minor (3-5%).

Pipe bursting — for collapsed, completely deteriorated, or undersized pipe

We pull a bursting head and a new HDPE pipe through the old one. The bursting head fractures the old pipe outward and the new HDPE follows immediately. Works for: collapsed pipe, complete deterioration (cast iron, clay, Orangeburg), undersized pipe needing upsize. Doesn't work for: pipe under load-bearing structures, very tight bends.

Lifespan: 50+ years. Process time: 1-2 days. Diameter: same or larger.

Lehi use cases

Old Lehi cast iron mains (Main Street area, 1900s-1950s homes) — most common trenchless candidate. Cast iron with root intrusion, scale, and corrosion. CIPP lining works if the pipe is structurally intact; pipe bursting if it's deteriorated.

Old Lehi clay or Orangeburg — clay is brittle and cracks at joints; Orangeburg (paper-bonded fiber, used briefly mid-century) eventually turns to mush. Pipe bursting is usually the right call.

New-construction Lehi (Traverse Mountain, Holbrook Farms, Skye Estates) — rare trenchless need on PVC mains. Occasional belly from settling backfill or construction damage. CIPP lining can fix some of these.

Driveways and hardscape — Traverse Mountain homes often have paver driveways or stamped concrete that would cost $5,000-$15,000 to replace if trenched. Trenchless preserves the surface.

Pools and landscaping — Skye Estates and Spring Creek properties with backyard pools, mature landscaping, or expensive irrigation systems benefit hugely from trenchless.

What Valley does differently

Lehi office at 1490 N 300 E with full trenchless equipment on the trucks. We pull permits with the city of Lehi for every trenchless job and coordinate with the city sewer department for inspection at the city tap. Camera scope before and after included. 50-year warranty on the liner material; 10-year workmanship warranty on the install.

Honest quotes: trenchless isn't always the right answer. If the pipe is in too many segments of damage, or if access pits would still require significant landscaping disturbance, we'll quote traditional excavation comparison and let you decide. We don't push trenchless for the sake of higher revenue.