Can I Line Missing Pipe?
So, my question of the week was “can I line a pipe that has missing sections?” The simple answer is yes, but as with all things, we need to know more. Is the missing section round or is it oval? Will a liner follow the missing section of pipe or will it fall into washed away soil and no longer be on the grade of the original pipe? Is the missing section of pipe below the water table?
Several years ago, a customer had a 6″ line that was buried under the Home Depot Event Center in Carson, California. The sewer pipe was bored through with a 24″ diameter drill. The drill was being used to build the stadium for seating. The hole was in the wrong location and not used. It was backfilled and the correct location was located and the hole was drilled and the column poured in place. As the trim out of the restrooms proceeded, the plumbing fixtures were set, and tested. The plumbing backed up and our customer was called. Everyone assumed construction debris had been pushed into the drain line and it needed to be cleaned so they could finish the construction and open the building for an event the next weekend. As camera work and cleaning began, it was soon apparent that the dirt in the line was continuing to come in as they cleaned. It was also apparent that there was a 2′ section of pipe that wasn’t there. With the stadium built above the line and no open cut could be accomplished without tearing down the stadium, the jetter was put away and a cable machine brought it to see if they could get a hole through the section of missing pipe. In the meantime, we were called to see if we could line through a missing section of pipe. We suggested installing a pre-liner before lining the pipe. We also suggested that the pre-liner extend at least 2′ beyond the missing section of pipe. The pipe was lined the following day and the Home Depot Center opened as planned for the weekend event. That was 11 years ago and no issues have occurred in that time.
Since then, countless projects have been completed where lining has replaced missing sections of pipe. Remember, our calculation of liner thickness is based on existing pipe that is fully deteriorated and not offering any support to our liner at all. Our customers haved lined pipe with over 30′ and more missing pipe. The most challenging part of lining sections of missing pipe is the contractors ability to clean the pipe good enough to get it lined. Two full days of cleaning out a pipe that has missing sections is usually lined in a half hour or less. The glory and pay go to the lining process, but the cleaning work is what really made it successful. Unfortunately the cleaning part gets very little credit when the job is done.
If you have a pipe with missing sections and aren’t confident, please contact us. If you have video of what you are attempting to line, even better. We can help you with approaches so you can talk about the line with missing sections you lined years ago.
Ben Lehman
Pipe Lining Supply of Illinois
910 West Wilson Street
Batavia, IL 60510
Office (630) 326-9061
Cell (630) 277-2637
President
10yBen, I think Simon said it best, right on point! Clearing the line of the blockage is the difficult part. So many things can go wrong while cleaning. Lining is the easy part.
Head of product development RSM
10yHi Ben yes you can the controlling factors are can you get a line through the drain in question, can you clean it sufficiently and as with all lining material can it be constrained through the voided area. when lining drains with voids we always use a pre-liner as this acts as both a guide for the liner and also as a constraint. if you would like to see some pictures please contact me on my email address and i will send you some pictures of what is possible.