Sydney has expansive and beautiful tree cover, especially in the older areas where you will find large well-established trees. Apart from being beautiful they provide a number of social and ecological roles that the world just can’t do without. But as gorgeous and necessary as they are above ground, they cause havoc to our modern life below ground. Root systems can uplift pathways, driveways, pierce gas and water services and create their own home within our wastewater pipework.
Which suburbs have the worst tree root problems?
As mentioned some of the older suburbs in Sydney have some of the most beautiful and established trees, but they are also the suburbs that have the oldest and most vulnerable sewer and stormwater systems. Most of these suburbs will have earthenware pipework or “clay” pipes as commonly known. These pipes are now obsolete as they become brittle and dislodged over time.
Tree roots have one job, to provide nutrients to the tree. They grow towards the easiest and best source of water. Dislodged or cracked earthenware pipes are a perfect source of water. Over time these roots grow into the pipework disrupting the flow of wastewater and eventually completely blocking flow altogether.
How do I remove tree roots from my sewer?
An environmentally friendly and effective way of removing these roots is to use a high-pressure water jet. These jets use 4000psi to push water from specially designed heads down the pipe line forcing the roots to break away from the pipe and flush down the waste system. The high pressure water jet also cleans the line, removing any build up of lime or other nasties lurking in your pipework.
But jetting the line is just a band-aid to the symptoms, not the cure. You can get away with jetting for a few months and in some cases years if you are lucky, but each time you blast those roots away they grow back thicker and faster, much like pruning. They also cause more damage to your pipes as they create more cracking and larger holes. The more you jet the more roots you will have, and the worse the pipework is when you come to fix. This will reduce your options when you finally want to fix it.
How do I repair a cracked sewer line due to tree roots?
You can repair cracked pipes by digging up the existing pipes and replacing them with PVC. Or, if you don’t want to disrupt your environment, you can reline your pipe work using no dig technology.
Call the Drainage Experts
Pipe Relining Solutions are drainage experts and have been fighting the good fight against tree roots in Sydney for over a decade. We have seen it all and have never meet a root we can’t remove. We can jet your pipes and provide you with the best permanent fix solutions for your situation and budget, or we can put a preventative jetting plan together if you are not able to permanently fix the problem just yet.
Roots are a nuisance but we have the solutions!