Pipe Lining Cost
Prices For Residential Pipe Lining
The average 2,000 square foot house has approximately 90′ of cast iron drains under the slab. If you replaced the pipes the old fashioned way, you would need to dig up all the concrete and excavate a 3′ deep and 3′ wide trench throughout the entire house and then replace the pipe, sand and concrete, which takes about 8 weeks, after which the tile or carpet has to be replaced and then the house has to be sanitized. In South Florida it typically costs $50,000 for this size house, in addition to hotel and furniture storage costs!
On the other hand, 90′ of trenchless sewer pipe repair will run about $18,000 and installation would take about 3 days during which the tenants stay in their homes and can use the plumbing almost all the time.
What Factors Affect Pipe Lining Rates?
- Pipe Diameter: 3″ pipe uses less material and resin and the liner can be installed using less expensive technology than larger liners
- Pipe Condition: does it require a lot or little cleaning? does your 4″ pipe only have a 2″ internal diameter due to tough scale buildup?
- Pipe Access: does an access hole have to be dug in order to reach the pipe, or is the pipe on a rooftop, will traffic control be required to reach the pipe inside a manhole?
- Size Of Project: the shorter the pipe that is to be lined, the more it costs per ft. So 50′ of 3″ pipe under a house might run $200 per foot, but 3000′ of pipe in a high rise condominium might run $125 per foot.
Minimum Rates Apply
The equipment required for pipe lining is patented and thus very expensive, typically $150,000 for the basic package. Add to that pipe inspection cameras, say another $30,000, plus pipe cleaning jetters, another $60,000, it takes a lot of assets to line even the smallest length of pipe. As a result there are minimums that apply to each company for small pipe lining jobs.
Sample Price Ranges For Sewer Drain Pipe Lining Cost
For small pipes (2″-6″):
- Up to 200′: around $200 per foot.
- Over 200′: around $150 or less per foot.
Commercial Pipe Lining Cost (High Rise Buildings, Hotels, Hospitals, Factories etc)
So here’s the downside of commercial pipe relining: flow can’t be interrupted for very long, and building tenants are a pain in the butt!
If you were to ask a high rise renter this question: “would you rather have your water turned off for one day while we re-line your pipes, or would you rather have to live in a hotel for two weeks while we cut open your floors and walls to replace the pipe and pay an extraordinary large assessment to cover the cost, and upon your return re-tile your walls and floors?”
You would expect tenants to be happy with the pipe lining option, but despite that, they complain, turn on the water, bother the installation personnel etc. So commercial pipe lining jobs are quoted at typically double the residential rate as a rule of thumb.
In addition, commercial facilities like factories and hospitals have to shut down while installation occurs, or bypass pumping has to be installed. This increases commercial pipe lining costs dramatically.
Another huge factor in commercial pipe lining cost is mobilizastion. For residential work, the assets mobilized cost around $175,000, but for commercial jobs where pipe diameters exceed 8″, a vacuum truch has to be used to clean the pipe, and a self propelled video inspection camera has to be used, plus a water inversion truck has to shoot the liner, and a boiler truck has to cure the liner. These assets easily add up to $1,000,000. This increases the mobilization costs greatly. And finally, traffic control may have to be put inplace around manholes or access pits that have been excavated.