Sewer Camera Inspection in Germantown, MD

What happens when you call

The number on this page connects you with an independent plumber who takes drain and sewer work in Germantown. Plumber Washington DC Pros is a referral line, not a plumbing contractor, so price and timing are settled directly with that plumber. It helps to say which fixtures are slow, whether the basement floor drain has backed up, roughly when the house was built and whether the line has been snaked before.

On the visit, the plumber looks for a cleanout, often in the basement or near the foundation outside. If water is standing in the pipe, they open it up first so the lens can see the pipe wall. The camera then travels toward the street on a flexible push cable while the plumber watches a monitor, noting the distance to anything unusual. A locator in the camera head lets them mark the spot on the lawn or driveway above it.

What shapes the cost

• Whether there's a usable cleanout or the camera has to go in through a toilet flange or roof vent
• Clearing a blockage first so the camera can pass
• The length of the run from the house to the connection at the street
• Locating and marking defects from the surface
• A saved recording and written notes you can keep

Germantown conditions

Germantown grew from farmland into a planned community of a downtown and several villages, and a sewer line finished in 1974 is what opened the area to that growth. Most of the housing in ZIP 20874 is younger than in the inner suburbs: the 1980s were the biggest building decade, and only about 18% of homes predate 1980. That points to plastic drain lines in many houses. Plastic doesn't rust, but it can settle into a low spot that holds water and solids, pull apart at a joint, or get damaged when a deck, patio or fence goes in later. A camera tells you which of those you have.

If the footage shows a defect worth fixing, the repair is plumbing work that needs a WSSC Water permit and a plumber registered with WSSC. WSSC's simplified homeowner permit doesn't cover buried piping deeper than four feet, so sewer repairs are normally filed by the plumber.

Before the plumber arrives

• Clear boxes and storage away from the basement cleanout and floor drain
• Hold off on running the washer or dishwasher
• Note which drains back up first and when it started
• Find any paperwork from earlier drain cleaning or repairs