What a camera inspection shows
The camera head sits on a flexible cable and travels from a cleanout or a pulled toilet toward the street. A screen shows roots, cracks, joints that have shifted, low spots where water pools and heavy scale or grease.
A locator on the surface tracks the camera so we can mark where a problem sits and how deep it is. You watch the footage with the technician, who explains what each image means and how serious it is.
When an inspection is worth booking
| Situation | Why a camera helps |
|---|---|
| Buying a home | The seller's inspection may not cover the sewer lateral, and repairs are costly to find out later |
| Repeated clogs or backups | It shows whether the cause is the pipe or what goes down it |
| Before a remodel, addition or landscaping | You learn the line's path and depth before digging |
| After a repair | It confirms the work and the new slope |
| Older home with the original line | Age and material may be unknown until a camera shows them |
If the camera finds a problem, repairs are covered under sewer line repair, and a heavy buildup may be cleared first with sewer line cleaning.
Buying a home or planning a dig?
Call and ask how a camera inspection fits your timeline.
Inspecting sewer lines in Wilsonville homes
Wilsonville mixes new and older housing, from Villebois and Frog Pond, which are still being built, to Charbonneau, which began in 1972 and has passed 50 years. Pipe age and material differ across those areas, and a camera tells you what is actually underground rather than guessing from the house's age.
If you are buying an older home in Charbonneau or elsewhere in town, add a sewer inspection to your due diligence along with the home inspection. A line that looks fine from the inside can hide roots or a broken joint.
Who owns which part of the lateral depends on where the line meets the city's main, so ask Wilsonville Public Works. Call 811 before any digging that follows an inspection.
What happens during the visit
Locate the access
We find a cleanout or pull a toilet to give the camera a way in.
Run the camera
The camera travels the line and we watch the screen together.
Mark and explain
Problem spots are marked on the surface and explained.
Advise
You get plain options, from doing nothing to repair, with a clear price.
What affects the price of an inspection
A clear price comes before work starts. These are the main details.
Related plumbing services
Roots and grease found on camera are often cleared with hydro jetting, and we offer inspections in Sherwood and the surrounding towns too.
Frequently asked questions
Most inspections take under an hour, though a long line, a heavy blockage or a hard-to-reach cleanout adds time.
Yes. You watch the live image with the technician and we explain each finding. Ask what you will receive afterward when you book.
It is a sound idea, especially for an older home. A standard home inspection does not always cover the sewer lateral.
It shows what is blocking the line, and if it is a clog we can often clear it the same visit and then re-run the camera.
Not necessarily, since the camera can go in through a pulled toilet, but a cleanout makes access easier and future service quicker.
Yes, our crews work in Sherwood and nearby towns.