Sewer Line Maintenance: Addressing the Challenge of Tree Roots

tree roots growing into a sewer line

A lush green yard with flourishing trees, shrubs, cover crops, grass, and beneficial wildlife is every homeowner’s dream. At the same time, homeowners want the underground pipes beneath their lawns to function smoothly and last a lifetime.

But these two goals can sometimes clash, warns Stringer Management. That is because tree roots occupy the same space as your underground sewer lines, and when these two dissimilar features of your home meet, they can create severe plumbing issues for your home.

Sewer lines are a conduit for wastewater transportation – including sewage (urine & feces) plus greywater (dirty water from sinks and laundry) – out of your home. This water has high levels of the nutrients that plants need.

Plant roots can sense the presence of this nutrient-rich water inside the sewer line. That is because of the distinct heat signature of the dense water inside the pipes compared to the relatively normal thermal characteristics of the surrounding areas.

To access these nutrients, trees bend their roots toward your sewer lines, looking for ways to break into the pipes. If there is a crack in the pipe, or it has become brittle due to aging, tree roots can exploit this weakness to invade the line.

Other times, tree roots do not specifically seek out a sewer line. They may be in the same location inside the soil as the sewer lines. These roots may grow around the line, exerting pressure on the surrounding soil until the pipes shift out of place and crack.

What are the signs that tree roots have invaded your sewer line?

Signs of tree root intrusion into an underground sewer line

If the drains in your home are chronically slow and you also have trees in your yard, there is a chance that tree roots may be interfering with the sewer line.

Because they are close to the ground, sewer line problems show up very quickly in ground-floor toilet drains. Tree root invasion will cause ground-floor toilets to act up.

A clogged sewer line will have trapped sewer gases inside it. These can eventually find their way into your home, fouling the air.

Trapped air inside the sewer line may be displaced through the toilet bowl, causing a bubbling sound every time you flush the toilet.

A broken sewer line discharging into the soil beneath your lawn will cause grasses above that area to be unusually green.

As the problems in your sewer line progress, permanently wet or soggy spots will appear near the broken sewer line.

How to solve and prevent tree root intrusion into your sewer line

As a first step, you should take direct action to remove the tree roots and restore the water flow inside the pipes. You can do this by sewer rodding or hydro-jetting the sewer pipes.

Sewer rodding is a drain cleaning method that uses a flexible rod with a rotating cutting head to remove the blockages inside a sewer line. The line is inserted into the sewer line through a floor drain or clean-out and guided to the site of the blockage. The operator uses the spinning motion of the metal cutting head to shear away the tree roots inside the pipes.

Hydro-jetting is a modern drain cleaning method that uses high-pressure water to blast away blockages from a sewer line, including tree roots. A flexible hose is inserted into the line with a powerful nozzle. Using a pressurizing machine, water is sent into the pipes to clear the blockages and wash the debris out of the line.

The above are corrective measures for sewer lines that have already been clogged by tree roots. There are also methods for preventing the problem and avoiding a recurrence after clearing your sewer line through hydro-jetting or sewer rodding.

Permanent tree removal

This is what it sounds like – the tree is cut down to prevent future interference with the sewer line. Note that removing a tree does not always stop the roots from growing. Tree removal must be accompanied by tree root removal.

Installing tree roots barriers

These are metal, stone, or plastic barriers installed at a distance between the tree roots and the sewer line. Root barriers let you retain the trees in your yard without any risk of potential tree root damage to your sewer lines.

Other measures for dealing with tree root intrusion into your underground sewer lines include installing an air gap filtration system, using chemical root inhibitors, and installing sewer pipes resistant to tree root intrusion, such as PVC pipes.

If you are currently dealing with this problem in your home, it is a good idea to talk to a tree root removal expert and have them assess the issue to recommend the best solutions.