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You hear an unsettling noise coming from your toilet, you spot wastewater accumulation in your backyard, and your first reaction is to fear the process of excavation work done by plumbers on your beautifully maintained lawn. Until recently, there was only one solution to such a problem, and that was excavation work.
Whenever a plumber uses the term “no dig”, most homeowners in Sydney will automatically want to know: what is pipe relining, and is it a temporary fix or a permanent one?
From our experience at Emergency Drains, we have seen how destructive tree roots and the wear and tear of age can be on Sydney’s pipes. This article outlines everything you need to know about drain pipe relining in Sydney, its cost, and whether or not it is right for your home.
Pipe lining is a method that involves the insertion of a soft liner with epoxy resin into the damaged pipe. It then becomes a new pipe structure after being inflated and cured, repairing all cracks and blocking the entry of roots in the pipeline.
Imagine placing a rugged, seamless lining within your faulty drainage system. This liner will bond onto the interior surface of the old pipe. It covers up all the cracks and holes while ensuring a smooth inner lining, thus improving water flow. The best part is that the whole process is done beneath the ground through available access points.
Success in relining depends on the quality of the resin being used. In Sydney, we use epoxy resins for relining drain pipes both at home and in the office.
Epoxy resin is selected because it is resistant to shrinking when curing and forms a watertight and airtight seal in the pipes. Epoxy resin also has high resistance to extreme temperature changes, chemicals found in the house and mechanical forces from aggressive tree roots. All our materials conform to Australian Standards AS/NZS 3500.
Precision is key, and one must employ top-of-the-line plumbing tools for this task. Pipe lining without excavation is carried out in a systematic manner. If you wish to learn more about pipe relining, then you can refer to our guide on how pipe relining works.
Here are the standard steps we take to rehabilitate a drain:
Property owners are faced with deciding between either relining or digging up and replacing the pipe. Each one is right where it belongs in modern plumbing repair.
Comparison Table: Pipe Relining vs Pipe Replacement
| Feature | Pipe Relining | Traditional Replacement |
| Method | Trenchless (inserted internally) | Excavation (digging a trench) |
| Installation Time | 2 to 6 hours | 2 to 5 days |
| Property Damage | Minimal to none | High (destroys lawns, concrete) |
| Restoration Costs | Zero | High (landscaping, concreting) |
| Root Resistance | Excellent (seamless design) | Good (but joints can fail over time) |
| Suitability | Best for pipes under structures | Best for easily accessible, shallow pipes |
While trenchless techniques are what we recommend, it isn’t an answer for everything. There are certain cases where the better and sometimes the only option is to excavate and replace the pipe, including:
Usually, the price becomes the top priority for homeowners. In Sydney, pipe lining costs from $400 to $1,000 per metre.
Nevertheless, such pricing does not tell the whole story. In fact, many other factors determine the final quotation:
| Factor | Impact on Price |
| Pipe Diameter | Larger stormwater drains cost more to reline than standard 100mm sewer lines. |
| Accessibility | If we need to excavate a small access pit because no inspection opening exists, costs increase slightly. |
| Damage Severity | Extensive root intrusion requires heavy hydro jetting preparation before lining can begin. |
| Location | Jobs requiring difficult access in the Sydney CBD or narrow Inner West terraces may carry different labour costs compared to open properties in Western Sydney. |
Practical Insight: Many homeowners often ignore the restoration expenses while making comparisons between relining and traditional pipe replacement estimates. For instance, the cost of excavating the pipe from the driveway could be $3,000 for plumbing work, while $4,000 will be required to fix the damaged concrete. At this point, it becomes quite obvious how cost-effective relining can be.
The average home insurance coverage in Australia generally doesn’t provide any protection against repair costs caused by the gradual degradation of pipes or the damage caused by the roots of trees, because this is considered wear and tear.
Nevertheless, your coverage may protect you against the resulting damage. For example, if flooding due to the clogged drain causes damage to your floors, you will be able to claim for the floor replacement, but will need to take care of the pipe lining yourself.
Yes, for most people living in Sydney. For those whose drainage system is located near a retaining wall in Bondi, below a tiled heritage patio in the inner west, or under a driveway in Parramatta, then pipe relining will surely prove to be worthwhile.
Advantages vs Disadvantages
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
| Saves Your Garden: No digging means your landscaping remains untouched. | Upfront Cost: Can seem expensive if the pipe is very short or shallow. |
| Stops Tree Roots: The seamless epoxy liner gives roots zero entry points. | Reduces Diameter: The internal pipe diameter shrinks by a few millimetres. |
| Fast Turnaround: Repairs are usually completed on the same day. | Needs Structural Integrity: Cannot fix completely crushed or sagged pipes. |
| Increased Flow: The smooth inner resin prevents toilet paper and waste snags. | Specialist Equipment: Requires highly trained technicians, not DIY-friendly. |
It is important to know the disadvantages. The first one is that the inner diameter of the pipe decreases slightly in this process. However, as the epoxy lining produces an extremely smooth surface, the flow of sewage water increases in practice, as there is less friction than in the case of clay pipes.
Our trenchless technology is very versatile. We have the capability of relining pipes as small as 40 mm, which may include pool lines or bathroom branch lines—to pipes as large as 600 mm.
| Pipe Material | Suitability for Relining | Notes |
| Earthenware (Clay) Pipe | Excellent | Highly prone to cracking and root intrusion. Relining perfectly seals these old joints. |
| Cast Iron Pipe | Excellent | Often suffers from rust and scale. Hydro jetting cleans the rust before the liner seals it. |
| PVC Pipe | Very Good | PVC is durable but can crack under soil pressure or poor installation. Relining bridges these fractures. |
Can Every Pipe Be Relined?
Not at all. As stated earlier, we can’t reline a pipe that does not have enough structural integrity. This is especially true if a pipe is heavily misaligned in such a way that it drops below its adjacent portion of the pipe.
Is Excavation Always Avoided?
In nearly 90% of the work we do in Sydney, we do not have to dig. However, should you not have an easy access point at the surface, whether it is a check point or a boundary trap, then we would need to make just one small access point of about a square meter in size.
Lifespan and Warranty
When you invest in plumbing maintenance of this scale, you want peace of mind that it will last.
How Long Does Pipe Relining Last?
The resin used in the drain rehabilitation process is specifically formulated to provide high resistance. Tests carried out have shown that the cured-in-place pipes may last for about 50 years. The cured-in-place pipes are sometimes stronger than the host pipes made of PVC and clay.
What Warranty is Normally Provided?
We are proud of the workmanship provided at Emergency Drains. We offer a 30-year guarantee on our pipe relining work. In case of any problems like failures, cracks, or root intrusion into the relined pipes within 30 years, we will repair them.
Still unsure if you should reline or replace? Run through this quick checklist:
Repairing damaged sewers or stormwater drains can be an intimidating process, yet there are ways to repair this problem without compromising your property. For instance, in Sydney, sewer pipe relining offers you a solution that is both cost-effective and environmentally friendly by providing you with a second life of fifty years.
Do not let your underground pipes get damaged without doing something about it. It is likely that if you act fast enough, there is still a good chance that we will be able to help repair the pipes using our trenchless techniques.
For your professional opinion on this, give us a call at Emergency Drains. There will be no cost to call out our highly skilled plumbers who are armed with HD cameras.
Does pipe relining stop tree roots permanently?
A lining process creates a smooth, unbroken inside surface which effectively seals up the cracks and joints through which the tree roots are likely to penetrate. Being attracted to water, the roots will not be able to penetrate the epoxy seal, which is completely waterproof.
How long does the pipe relining process take?
The majority of pipe relining work that is carried out on houses in Sydney can be done within a single day. The resin that is used in the process will take only around 1 to 2 hours to dry.
Will relining reduce my water pressure or flow?
No. Even though the thickness of the liner decreases the inner diameter of the pipe by just a few millimetres, the epoxy coating helps in reducing friction. This means that wastewater will flow much faster in the modified pipe than in the original one.
Can you reline just a small section of a pipe?
Yes. We refer to this as sectional or patch repairs. If the CCTV drainage inspection reveals only one meter of crack under the patio, then it will be possible for us to place a patch repair there.
Is pipe relining noisy or messy?
Pipe relining, compared to conventional digging, is very clean and quiet. You will only hear the sound of our high-pressure hydro jetter during cleaning, but there are no jackhammers, no excavators, and no mounds of dirt covering up your yard.
