What You See Is What You Fix
October 22, 2013
What’s going on inside your plumbing can be one of life’s greatest mysteries; the best way to solve that mystery is through a video inspection of your pipes.
Video inspection is a fairly new innovation, but it’s revolutionizing the way plumbers work with clogs and pipes that may be deteriorated, broken, cracked, or collapsed.
Clogs are far more common than compromised pipes. Since the days that indoor plumbing began, the two best tools in a plumber’s arsenal for clogs were plungers and drain snakes. Unless there was a specific item that was lodged in the pipe, a plumber had to guess what the cause of the clog was.
Today’s plumbers come equipped with video inspection cameras, as well as plungers and drain snakes.
The theory behind video inspection is simple: Send a video camera to look inside your pipes and tell you what’s going on. The camera is small enough to fit inside standard plumbing. It has wheels on the bottom and is attached to a wire that works as a power source and also relays the signal from the camera to a monitor. A light is attached so that no detail is missed.
The camera sends images from inside your pipes so that both you and your plumber can see what’s going on. The plumber is able to use expert knowledge to evaluate the situation. Is there a large amount of build-up on your pipes that is causing clogs? If so, what is the build-up? Are the pipes in bad condition due to deterioration or cracks?
Your plumber can show you, not just guess, what issues exist in your plumbing. You can ask questions about anything you see. It helps you to feel empowered because you are able to see what the plumber sees. After your plumber answers your questions, you can decide together what steps need to be taken to fix any problems.
Then you and your plumber can sit down again after repairs are made for another video inspection. You can see the improvements with your own eyes.
Beyond feeling like you have some control in what happens with your pipes, video camera inspections can help save quite a bit of time and money. No more guessing what the problems are in the pipes. No more tearing out walls, floors, foundations, or ceilings to find a problem. There’s no chance of the wrong repair being made because the problem was misdiagnosed.
In addition to identifying clogs and finding compromised sections of plumbing, video camera inspection is also helpful when purchasing a home to verify the plumbing’s condition or when something valuable has accidentally made its way down into the pipes and must be retrieved, such as jewelry.
Any time there is an issue with your plumbing, such as a clog or leak, it’s best to ensure that your plumber performs a video camera inspection. It’s worth it to know for sure what’s going on with your pipes. Mystery solved.