We love our palms, mesquites, and desert willows. They provide much-needed shade and beauty in the Las Vegas heat. But below the surface, a war is being fought between your landscaping and your plumbing.
In the desert, water is scarce. Your sewer lines are essentially an “all-you-can-drink” buffet for thirsty trees. If you have large trees or shrubs within 20 feet of your home’s sewer line, your plumbing is at risk. At Clean Hits Pipe Cleaning, we have seen beautiful front yards turn into excavation sites because of a single tiny root.
How Do Roots Get In?
Roots are incredibly strong and persistent. They don’t need a large hole to enter your pipes; they just need a vapor trail.
Warm water vapor escapes through microscopic cracks or loose joints in your clay or PVC sewer pipes. The tree roots sense this moisture and grow toward it. Once a hair-sized root tip penetrates the pipe, it drinks the nutrient-rich water inside and grows rapidly. As the root expands, it acts like a wedge, cracking the pipe open further and allowing more roots to enter.
The “Root Ball” Nightmare
Once inside, the roots don’t just sit there. They form a dense, mesh-like web known as a “root ball.” This web catches toilet paper, grease, and waste solids. Over time, this blockage becomes as hard as rock.
Signs You Have Roots in Your Pipes:
- Slow Draining: Especially in lower-level drains.
- Gurgling Noises: As mentioned in our previous article, this is air trapped by the blockage.
- Sinkholes in the Yard: If the pipe breaks completely, sewage leaks into the soil, causing the ground above it to sink.
- Greener Grass: If one patch of grass is suspiciously greener and faster-growing than the rest, it’s feeding on a sewage leak.
The Fix: Trenchless Technology vs. The Excavator
In the past, fixing root intrusion meant digging up your entire yard, destroying your driveway, and killing the tree.
Today, we have better options:
- Camera Inspection: We send a camera down the line to see exactly where the roots are and how bad the damage is.
- Hydro-Jetting: Our high-pressure water jets are powerful enough to cut through tree roots like a laser, clearing the line completely.
- Pipe Relining (Trenchless Repair): If the pipe is cracked, we can often insert a new epoxy liner inside the old pipe. This seals the cracks and creates a smooth new surface that roots cannot penetrate—all without digging up your yard.
Save Your Trees (And Your Pipes)
You don’t always have to cut down your favorite tree to save your plumbing, but you do need to manage the roots.
Call Clean Hits Pipe Cleaning at +1 702-808-3459 for a sewer camera inspection. We can spot root intrusion early and stop it before it destroys your main line.