When a plumber tells you your sewer or drain line needs repair, the next question is usually how much of your property has to be torn up to fix it. For a lot of homeowners in Los Angeles, La Habra, and Anaheim, the honest answer used to be: quite a bit.
Pipe relining changes that. Instead of excavating to reach a damaged pipe, a licensed plumber rehabilitates it from the inside — inserting a liner, pressing it against the pipe wall, and curing it in place until it hardens into a new pipe within the existing one. No trenches through the yard. No cutting through the driveway. In most cases, no opening the floor at all.
Here’s what the process actually involves and why it’s become one of the more practical repair options for older Los Angeles homes.
The Method: Cured-In-Place Pipe (CIPP) Lining
The most widely used residential pipe relining method is called Cured-In-Place Pipe lining — CIPP for short. The name describes the process: a resin-saturated liner is inserted into the damaged pipe, inflated against the interior wall, and cured until it hardens into a smooth, structurally independent surface. The result is a new pipe inside the old one, without removing or replacing the host pipe.
The process moves through five steps.
Step 1: Camera Inspection
Before anything else, a high-definition camera goes through the pipe. A licensed plumber reviews the footage to identify exactly what’s there — cracks, root intrusion, joint separation, corrosion, or sections that have partially collapsed. This inspection determines whether the pipe is a viable candidate for relining or whether a different repair approach is needed. No reputable contractor skips this step.
Step 2: Hydro Jetting
The pipe is cleaned before the liner is installed. High-pressure hydro jetting clears scale buildup, grease deposits, root debris, and corrosion from the interior wall. A liner installed over a dirty or debris-covered surface won’t bond correctly. This step is not optional — it’s what makes the liner adhere properly.
Step 3: Liner Installation
A felt or fiberglass liner saturated with epoxy resin is inserted into the pipe through an existing access point — typically a cleanout, a small excavation at one end of the run, or in some cases through a fixture opening. The liner is pulled or pushed into position to cover the damaged section.
Step 4: Inflation and Curing
An inflatable bladder is inserted inside the liner and inflated, pressing the resin-saturated liner firmly against the interior pipe wall. The resin cures — hardening into a rigid, seamless surface bonded to the host pipe. Depending on the liner system, curing is accomplished through ambient temperature, steam, hot water, or UV light. UV curing is increasingly common because it significantly reduces the time the line is out of service.
Once curing is complete, the bladder is deflated and removed. The liner stays.
A-1 Total Service Plumbing performs trenchless pipe relining throughout Los Angeles, La Habra, and Anaheim. Call us to find out whether your pipe is a candidate. 833-340-6347
