There are plenty of scenarios where plumbing excavation is necessary, so here’s what you should know!
We often support construction crews during our new construction plumbing projects with plumbing excavation, which entails moving soil, rocks and other materials to access pipes and underground areas for residential and commercial plumbing systems.
A lot of plumbing excavations will require specialized equipment like mini excavators and other digging tools, but there are also certain situations in which manual digging is safer to avoid damaging any pipes.
Although Beehive Plumbing also specializes in many different trenchless pipe repair technologies like pipe lining, we’ll still be there for you when excavation work is needed. Below we’ll be detailing everything you need to know about plumbing excavations!
The Overall Importance of Plumbing Excavation
Plumbing excavation is often a very important part of plumbing repairs and maintenance strategies. When your drain pipes are severely damaged, it’s possible that trenchless pipe repairs might not be enough to support your plumbing system’s long-term future.
Severely damaged pipes often need to be replaced, which can sometimes require excavation work. This type of work will allow our Master Plumbers to properly access your property’s pipes, and then make the necessary repairs or replacements.
How To Prepare For Plumbing Excavation
The following steps are required during the preparation stages for any plumbing excavation work:
Thoroughly Inspecting Drain Pipes
The very first thing our team will do is properly inspect your property’s drain pipes to get a better understanding in terms of the damage you’re experiencing. We’ll typically use state-of-the-art pipe inspection cameras to give us a firsthand glimpse into what’s going on, because this will guide the rest of our strategies.
Obtaining Any Necessary Permits
Our team will then help you obtain the permits your project will require from your local municipality. This is an important step of any plumbing excavation project, because it’ll better ensure that everything is conducted in accordance with your local government’s guidelines and regulations.
Preparing The Excavation Site
Once your permits are acquired, the excavation site will then be professionally prepared. This may require removing any obstacles, marking out the excavation area’s boundaries, and identifying underground utility pipes.
What To Expect From The Plumbing Excavation Process
There’s no denying how there’s a lot that goes into the plumbing excavation process, and the following is what you can expect while these types of projects are ongoing at your home or business:
Different Types of Excavation Methods
There area a few different excavation methods that plumbing companies utilize, and below are some of the most common methods:
- Open trenching: This is the most common type of plumbing excavation that involves manual labor and/or heavy machinery to dig out the trench. The uncovered soil is then placed in a safe spot until it’s needed later on.
- Horizontal drilling: This is a more complex type of plumbing excavation, and this is actually considered to be a trenchless excavation. A lot of pipelines are installed with this technique, which utilizes a directional drilling machine to excavate a predetermined path that new drain pipes can then fit through.
- Hydro Excavations: This excavation technique utilizes high-pressure water to create a trench by loosening and ultimately removing soil.
Removing The Excavation Site’s Soil
Digging is the initial step of any excavation process, and as mentioned above, plumbing companies utilize a few different digging methods. But no matter what type of digging method is needed, the purpose will be to safely access the property’s drain pipes.
Shoring Up The Trench
It’s also important for plumbing companies to shore up their excavation sites and guarantee that the site is safe from collapsing. This may require a support structure installation on all sides of the trench.
Repairing/Replacing The Damaged Pipes
When repairs are possible, our experts will be sure that this is the direction we go with the excavation project. However, there are plenty of scenarios in which plumbing excavations are mainly done due to a property needing a pipe replacement.
In this situation, the new pipes will be correctly installed and connected to your plumbing system.
Backfilling The Excavation Trench
The previously removed soil will then be used to fill the excavation’s trench back in, and this process will always be done very carefully to guarantee that there are no gaps or voids in the soil above the pipe.
We’ll then consistently compress the earth within the trench to prevent settling issues in the future.
Contact Beehive Plumbing To Learn More About Our Plumbing Excavation Services
Beehive Plumbing is one of the top plumbing companies in the entire northern Utah region, so we’ve supported a lot of properties that require plumbing excavation projects.
Contact us online or give us a call at 801-661-8155 to speak with our excavation specialists today about what’s going on with your drain pipes!
