Trenchless methods
Pipe bursting in Hartford
Pipe bursting is how a sewer lateral gets replaced when there is nothing left to reline. A new pipe is pulled in along the old route while the old pipe is broken apart around it, and only two small holes are dug.
The principle
A bursting head is a tapered steel cone with a diameter a little greater than the pipe it is sent through. Anchored to a cable or a string of rods, it is pulled or pushed from one end of the lateral to the other. As it advances it cracks the surrounding clay, cast iron, Orangeburg or plastic and pushes the fragments out into the surrounding soil, while the new pipe, a fused length of high-density polyethylene attached directly behind the head, is drawn into the void. When the head arrives at the far pit the new pipe occupies the exact route of the old one. Everything above that route, from the lawn to the sidewalk to the slab or basement floor to the pavement, is untouched. For a Hartford lateral the comparison is with a trench dug the full distance from the house to the street main, a right-of-way permit and several days of traffic control.
The cases bursting is for
Across Connecticut, lining comes first whenever the camera allows it, because a liner is installed through a cleanout with no excavation. Lining fails as an option when the host pipe has lost its form. A collapsed section, a stretch of Orangeburg gone oval or flat, a sag where water pools, or a pipe undersized from the beginning for the building it serves are all conditions a liner cannot fix. Bursting handles every one of them, and the head can be chosen to pull in a 6-inch pipe where a 4-inch one came out. The decision between the two techniques is covered in detail at the trenchless technology reference.
The order of operations
It starts with the inspection, which fixes the location of the collapse or sag and the depth of the pipe along its run. The crew then digs one pit by the main to launch from and another at the building to receive the head, each a few feet square, unless a cleanout riser or manhole already in place can serve. The HDPE is fused into a single string on site and attached behind the head. The pull begins, the old pipe breaks apart and the new one slides into its place. Connections are made at both ends, the pits are filled and compacted, and the camera documents the new line from end to end. A house lateral is normally finished within a day. Because the pits are compact and the pull is entirely underground, the season has little bearing on scheduling.
What replaces the old pipe
Fused HDPE is a different class of pipe from anything it replaces. It has no joints, so roots have no entry point. It does not rust or corrode. It is rated to serve for a hundred years. And it flexes: in ground that swells and shrinks with moisture, settles under load, or heaves in cold weather, a rigid pipe fractures and a polyethylene pipe moves with the soil and keeps flowing. A liner rehabilitates the existing pipe; bursting replaces it outright, which is why bursting is the method for pipe past the point of rehabilitation.
Permits, locates and the right-of-way
A plumbing permit is required for any lateral replacement, and the portion under the public right-of-way adds a street or encroachment permit. Many utilities also want to witness the new tap at the main before that pit is closed. Ownership of the lateral generally extends to the main in most cities and counties; the contractor verifies how Hartford handles it and obtains every permit. A utility locate request is filed before any pit is dug, because the head displaces soil and has to be kept clear of gas, water, electric and communications lines. All of that is the contractor's responsibility, not yours.
What to ask before you sign
Ask why bursting instead of lining and expect to be shown the footage. Ask which pipe will be installed, how its sections are joined and what the warranty says. Ask about permits, the locate request and how the two pits will be restored. The contractors at the directory of verified contractors have demonstrated licensing, equipment and completed bursting projects, and what verification requires explains what that review involves.
Estimates are free. Call now: (877) 880-8125.
Other trenchless services in Hartford
Trenchless Sewer Repair Hartford
Repair or replace a failed sewer line with little or no excavation.
Sewer Pipe Lining (CIPP) Hartford
A resin-saturated liner cured in place forms a new, jointless pipe inside the old one.
Sectional Point Repair Hartford
A short liner fixes one bad spot and leaves the rest of a sound line alone.
Sewer Camera Inspection Hartford
See what is actually wrong before anyone quotes a fix.
Hydro Jetting Hartford
High-pressure water strips roots, grease and scale so the pipe can be inspected and lined.
Sewer Line Repair & Replacement Hartford
When a line cannot be lined: spot excavation or trenchless replacement, chosen from the footage.
Questions we hear about pipe bursting
Why would a contractor recommend bursting over a liner?+
Because a liner needs an intact host to cure against, and some pipe no longer provides one: a caved-in section, a crushed stretch, Orangeburg gone flat, a long water-holding sag, or a lateral too small for the building. Lining is the first preference because it involves no digging at all. Bursting is for when the video rules lining out.
How much digging is involved?+
Two pits, each a few feet on a side: one by the building, the other near the main. Where an existing cleanout riser or manhole is available it stands in for a pit. The ground between them is not disturbed.
What is the replacement pipe?+
Fused high-density polyethylene, a single jointless length rated for roughly a century of service. It yields to soil movement instead of fracturing, which matters in any ground that swells, settles or heaves.
Can the new pipe be bigger than the old one?+
Yes. Stepping a 4-inch lateral up to 6 inches is one of the most common reasons to burst instead of line, particularly for a house converted to apartments or one that has added bathrooms over the years.
How do I get a quote?+
Phone or use the form. A camera run comes before anything else; where lining is not feasible the proposal says why and prices the bursting. Estimates are free; call now.