Sewer Camera Inspection in Nanaimo & Vancouver Island
P3 Mechanical & Electrical runs a waterproof camera down sewer and drain lines for homeowners, buyers, and property managers across Nanaimo and central Vancouver Island, so a repair decision rests on footage rather than a guess. An inspection is about an hour on site for a typical house, and it is quoted in writing as its own item rather than folded into a repair you have not agreed to yet.
When it is worth looking inside the line
There are two moments when looking inside the line is worth the money. The first is before buying a house. A home inspection covers what can be seen and reached, and the buried lateral is neither — so a 1950s house on the older streets of Nanaimo can pass inspection with a clay line full of roots underneath it, and the bill lands on whoever owns it next. The second is before any repair. Clearing a line, re-grading one bellied section, and replacing a whole run are very different pieces of work at very different prices, and which one the line needs is something you can watch on a screen instead of taking on trust.
What shows up on the recording is specific: roots entering at a joint and how much of the bore they are taking, a section that has dropped below grade and is holding water, an offset where two lengths no longer line up, scale and corrosion on the invert of old cast iron, grease shelved along the wall, and the exact distance from the access point to each of them. A sonde on the camera head lets us mark position and depth on the surface above, which is what turns a general finding into a dig the size of the problem.
What's included
- A camera pass through the accessible length of the lateral or drain line
- Distance readings so every defect has a measured position along the run
- Surface locating of depth and position over the defect, marked on the ground
- Pre-purchase inspections for buyers, on the line a home inspection cannot reach
- Post-repair verification passes on work that has just been completed
- A plain walkthrough of what is on the screen, and what each finding does or does not require
Pricing & what's covered
Free estimate
We price the job after an in-home visit, once someone has seen what's there.
- One-year warranty on our labour. Equipment and parts are covered separately, under the supplier's or manufacturer's own warranty.
- We'll go over licensing and equipment with you at the visit.
How it works
Access — we work from the cleanout where there is one, or find another way into the line; on some older houses the access itself is the first thing that has to be dealt with.
The pass — the camera travels the run while the footage plays on a monitor, and you are welcome to watch it live rather than hear about it afterwards.
Locating — where something needs attention, the sonde is used to mark its depth and position at the surface, so nobody guesses where to dig.
What it means — we go through the findings and separate what needs work now from what is worth watching, with the recording as the evidence for both.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a sewer camera inspection cost in Nanaimo?
An inspection is priced as a single short visit, and a long or hard-to-access run costs more. Either way the fee is small next to the repair decision it informs — the whole point of it is to stop you paying for the wrong repair, so it is quoted on its own before anything else is discussed.
Should I get the sewer scoped before buying a house?
On an older property, yes. A standard home inspection does not go inside the buried lateral, so root intrusion, a bellied section, or a cracked clay run stays invisible until it backs up. On the Island that matters most for houses built before the 1970s, where clay tile and cast iron are still common, and for any lot with mature trees over the line.
What can you actually see on a sewer camera?
Roots coming in at a joint and how much of the pipe they block, cracks and holes, offsets where two sections no longer line up, bellies holding standing water, corrosion along the bottom of cast iron, grease and scale on the walls, and anything foreign that has lodged in the run. Each of those comes with a distance reading, so the finding has a location and not just a name.
Can a camera find a leak in my water pipes too?
No — a sewer camera works in drain lines, which are open to air and wide enough to push a camera down. Pressurised supply lines are too small and too full of water for that, so a hidden supply leak is found by listening and thermal work instead. That is a different service: water leak detection.
Do I need a cleanout for a camera inspection?
It helps a great deal. A cleanout gives the camera a straight, purpose-built way into the line, and if the house does not have one — common on older Island homes — we look for another access point, such as a removed toilet or a stack. Adding a proper cleanout is often worth doing while the line is open for other work.
How long does an inspection take?
Usually about an hour on site for a typical house, including the walkthrough of what the footage shows. If the inspection leads to a repair, that work carries a one-year warranty on our labour, with the materials we supply covered by their own manufacturers.
Ready to get it fixed?
Call now, or send us the details online and we'll follow up.