Sewer Line Repair in Seattle, WA
Side sewers, cleanouts and liners
Lighthouse Plumbing repairs side sewers across Seattle. We find the problem with a camera, dig only where the damage is, and fix it with new pipe, a cleanout or a liner. In Seattle the side sewer is yours all the way to the public main, and every repair needs a permit and a city inspection.
Kevin's Sewer Repair and Liner, September 2026
Kevin's house in Rainier View, in Southeast Seattle, had a side sewer with roots in it. In mid-September Caleb spent a couple of hours at the house tracking down the problem, and found it where the cast-iron pipe from the house meets the old concrete side sewer: roots had worked into the line there and damaged that section. Rather than trench across the yard, he laid out a plan to fix that joint and line the concrete pipe beyond it.
A week later we dug a hole about two feet deep and four feet long at that spot, cut out the root-damaged section and set a new double cleanout there, which opens the line in both directions for cleaning and inspection. Then the old concrete pipe was hydro-jetted clean and about 50 feet of it was lined, from the new cleanout toward the city sewer. Caleb was on site that day and came back the next afternoon to check the work and bed the repair. We left the trench covered with plastic and plywood until the city inspection, because Seattle requires an inspector to see a side sewer repair before it's buried.
From Kevin's Google review:
"Caleb and his coworkers were incredibly helpful, patient, and thorough throughout the entire process. Caleb took the time to explain everything to me in detail, including what was happening, what to expect next, and how the overall process worked. I really appreciated how transparent and informative he was, which made the entire experience much less stressful."
Kevin G., Rainier View, Seattle ★★★★★
More Seattle Sewer Work This Fall
In Greenwood in early September, Bradyn took on a side sewer that kept backing up: about 86 feet of old 4-inch and 6-inch concrete pipe running from the house to the city main. Before lining it, we had the homeowners run every fixture and downspout, and asked the neighbors to run theirs, to prove that an old connection on the line was an abandoned downspout and not a live drain. We dug down at the back of the house and lined the run to the main. With the line open, the camera finally got past the wye near the house and showed about seven more feet of concrete between the wye and the foundation, so we replaced that stretch with new Schedule 40 PVC while the hole was still open. The house couldn't send water down the line for about six hours while the liner cured.
Near Sand Point on a Sunday in September, Caleb's drain machine hit an obstruction about 30 feet out from the cleanout that it couldn't get past. He marked the spot, and that evening we dug down to the pipe there and set a new cleanout in it, giving a second way in to clear and inspect the line beyond the blockage.
In Matthews Beach in October, Caleb ran a camera from a basement cleanout as a courtesy for a homeowner collecting quotes. The line was clear for 30 or 40 feet before he hit standing water, and he got the camera about 80 feet out to an obstruction under the neighbor's yard. SPU's side sewer map showed that from there, the line is shared with the house next door.
Sewer Work We Do in Seattle
Camera inspections and locating
We run a camera from a cleanout, find the defect and mark where it is on the ground, so any digging is aimed at one spot.
Clearing backups and roots
Cabling and hydro-jetting clear a blocked side sewer. If a line keeps backing up after it has been cleared, a camera run afterward shows why.
Cleanouts and spot repairs
When a house has no usable cleanout, or the trouble is beyond its reach, we add one, as we did near Sand Point and in Rainier View. When the damage is in one place, we dig at that spot and replace it.
Lining
A liner is a resin-soaked tube put into the old pipe and cured in place, forming a new, seamless pipe inside it. SPU notes that lining disturbs less of the yard than open digging and can keep roots out.
Seattle-Specific Sewer Considerations
Some lines are shared
Some Seattle side sewers join a neighbor's line before they reach the main, and from the point where they join, the owners share maintenance and repair under Seattle Municipal Code chapter 21.16. That's what the camera found in Matthews Beach. SPU's maps can show whether your line is shared, and SPU will help notify neighbors about a repair.
Repairs need a permit, clearing doesn't
SPU requires a side sewer permit for any repair, on private property or in the right-of-way, and a city inspector checks the work before it's covered. Clearing a clog or cutting roots needs no permit. Work in the street also needs a separate permit from the Seattle Department of Transportation.
Old concrete pipe
Both Seattle linings we did this fall went into old concrete side sewers, in Greenwood and in Rainier View, where the concrete met the cast iron coming out of the house. Old joints, and the places where one pipe material meets another, are the spots we watch most closely on the camera.
SPU can help before you spend anything
SPU's side sewer program will help find your line on its maps and review a scope video where the connection to the main may be damaged, and its advice is to get at least three bids before a repair starts.
Our Process
1. Camera and locate
We find the problem and mark it on the ground.
2. Show you the options
You see the footage and get the repair and its price in writing.
3. Permit and repair
We arrange the side sewer permit and the inspection, then make the repair.
4. Inspect and test
The city inspector sees the work before it's covered, and we run water through the line before we leave.
Frequently Asked Questions: Seattle Side Sewers
Where does my Seattle side sewer end and the city's main begin?
At the tee or wye where your pipe joins the public main, which is usually under the street. Everything from the outside of your foundation to that fitting is your side sewer, including the part under the sidewalk and street. The main is SPU's, and the pipe inside your house is plumbing, which Public Health permits and inspects.
My side sewer is shared with a neighbor. Who is responsible for repairs?
You and your neighbor share it from the point where your two lines join. Seattle's code makes the owners of every property on a shared side sewer responsible for its maintenance and repair from that junction to the main, while each owner keeps the section on their own side. SPU suggests neighbors agree on the scope and the contractor together.
Do I need a permit to clear a backed-up side sewer in Seattle?
No. SPU doesn't require a permit for unclogging a side sewer or removing roots from it, so clearing can start as soon as we arrive. A permit is required for any repair or replacement, on your property or in the right-of-way, and a city inspector has to see the work before it's covered.
How much does side sewer repair cost in Seattle?
On our Seattle invoices from 2025 and 2026, clearing a backed-up side sewer ran about $500 to $1,000, digging down to repair a section or add a cleanout about $4,500 to $6,500, and lining a side sewer about $16,500 to $20,000, tax included. SPU's repair permit for work on private property generally costs $280.
What moves the price: how deep and how long the dig is, what sits on top of the line, how many feet need lining, and what turns up once the pipe is open. The Greenwood job, 86 feet of liner plus seven feet of new pipe at the house, came to about $20,000.
Can a Seattle side sewer be lined instead of dug up?
Usually, yes. SPU allows lining under a side sewer permit, and it needs only an access pit at the start instead of a trench along the whole line. It suits a line that has roots or cracks but still holds its shape; a collapsed section or a deep sag needs a dug repair or a different method.
Can I get help paying for a side sewer repair in Seattle?
Possibly. Seattle offers interest-free loans for side sewer repair to low- and fixed-income homeowners through its Side Sewer Assistance Program, and SPU's side sewer program can help sort out whether a problem is yours or the city's before you pay for anything.
Serving Seattle from Fall City
Our shop is in Fall City, and Seattle is one of our busiest service areas. Without traffic it's about 45 minutes to Rainier View and 50 to Greenwood or Matthews Beach, and a camera visit can still come quickly: the North Seattle scope in our guide to sewer scopes before you buy was booked one evening and done the next morning.
More about our Seattle service area · Back to sewer line services
Why Seattle Homeowners Call Us About Side Sewers
We handle the permit and the inspection
We arrange the side sewer permit and the city inspection, as we did for Kevin in Rainier View.
We tell you what the camera shows
We tell you plainly what we see, including when the trouble is on a shared line or past your property, as Caleb did in Matthews Beach.
Licensed, Bonded & Insured
Lighthouse Plumbing is a fully licensed, bonded and insured Washington plumbing contractor. Our license number is LIGHTP*762K2, and you're welcome to verify it with Washington State L&I before we start. More detail is on our licensing and insurance page.
Get Your Side Sewer Looked At
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