Fix the Pipe Without Digging Up the Yard
Trenchless pipe repair fixes a damaged sewer or water line from the inside, without excavating a trench along its entire length. Instead of tearing up your lawn, driveway, or landscaping to reach a broken pipe, we access it through one or two small entry points and repair or replace it in place. Papalia Home Services has offered trenchless repair throughout Boxborough, Acton, Westford, Concord, Sudbury, and Lexington since our founding in July 1990.
The Two Trenchless Methods We Use
- Pipe lining (CIPP): A resin-coated liner is inserted into the existing pipe and cured in place, creating a new pipe within the old one. Best for cracks, small offsets, and root intrusion where the pipe’s overall structure is still sound.
- Pipe bursting: A new pipe is pulled through the old one while a bursting head fractures the old pipe outward into the surrounding soil. Best for pipes that are collapsed, severely damaged, or too small in diameter for current needs.
When Trenchless Repair Is the Right Call
Trenchless repair works well for sewer and water lines running under driveways, mature landscaping, patios, or other hardscaping that would be expensive or disruptive to dig up. It’s most effective when the pipe’s problem is contained to its interior condition rather than the surrounding ground shifting or the pipe having no structural integrity left at all. We confirm which category your pipe falls into with a camera inspection before recommending trenchless repair over traditional excavation.
Why We Inspect Before We Recommend Trenchless
Not every pipe is a good candidate. A sewer camera inspection tells us the pipe’s material, the location and severity of damage, and whether the surrounding ground has shifted enough to affect the fix. If trenchless makes sense, we’ll say so. If your situation genuinely needs traditional excavation, we’ll explain why and what that involves instead. See our sewer line repair page for the traditional approach.