Sewer line repair is necessary in the city of Medford, Oregon. It’s unclear exactly how old the city’s system is, but typically systems need replacing after about 40 years. If the City Council votes to approve a $509,096.90 contract it would breathe new life into the city’s aging system. In addition, they’d be able to make the upgrades without digging up and destroying the streets, according to the local news source MailTribune.com.
That’s because the city is looking at trenchless sewer repair costs and benefits for their potential project. Whichever company wins the current bidding process that’s playing out will seal about two miles of pipes by installing a certain kind of polyester cured-in-place pipe, or CIPP liners. This sort of trenchless sewer repair technology has an estimated lifespan of up to 50 years.
If all goes according to plan, the project is expected to be completed in May. Even though trenchless repair options can cost 30 to 50% more than conventional digging in some cases, they can still be more cost effective in the long-run because you’re not spending thousands of dollars in additional restorative work.
Many people are still not familiar with this technology even though it’s been around for at least 10 to 15 years in the residential setting, and even longer commercially. In one poll by Angie’s List, 78% of respondents had never heard of “no dig” sewer technology.
Despite this lack of widespread knowledge, trenchless sewer repair has become an increasingly popular option for many local governments, businesses, and individuals. Trenchless technology continues an upward growth trend in the U.S., where it has captured nearly half of the $3.4 billion market for sewer line rehabilitation and about an eighth (12.9%) of the $1.5 billion spent on repairing potable water pipes.
Medford is just the latest example of entities taking advantage of the innovative and efficient means of trenchless sewer repair.