Sewage coming up through the floor will bring a workday to a halt pretty quick.
That was the situation at a commercial property in the Nova Drive area of Broussard, Louisiana. The customer was cleaning up sewage, and the bathrooms couldn’t be used. They called 5 Star Plumbing to investigate the clogged main line.
The work eventually included sewer camera mapping, excavation, replacement of a pipe section, repairs to the manhole connection and interior channel, and backfilling. Here’s how the project came together.
First, we needed to know where the sewer lines ran
At a commercial property, there can be several cleanouts and underground connections to sort through before repair work begins.
Our crew ran a sewer camera through every accessible outside cleanout and mapped the system leading to the manhole. We also prepared an aerial map showing the cleanout locations, routes, and distance measurements.
That gave us a clearer picture of the property’s sewer layout as we moved into the repair.
The equipment on site included our sewer camera reel and jetting equipment. Both were part of the work documented for this Broussard project.
Excavating around the damaged manhole connection
Once we returned to excavate and assess the manhole, we had access to the pipe connection that needed attention.
Our crew removed a section of pipe leading into the manhole and transitioned to Schedule 40 PVC. The work photos show the exposed pipe ends during the repair and the connected PVC section with banded couplings.
At the manhole wall, we installed a connector boot and applied hydraulic cement around the damaged opening.
It’s the kind of work most people will never see once the excavation is filled back in. But the pipe connection and the opening through the manhole wall were important parts of this repair.
Repairing the channel inside the manhole
There was work to do inside the manhole, too.
Our crew applied hydraulic cement around the pipe entry and repaired the damaged interior channel. We sloped and smoothed that channel to guide sewer flow through the manhole.
The project photos show the cement repairs around the pipe opening and along the channel below it. Other photos document standing water, sediment, and fibrous debris in and around the system.
We’re calling that material fibrous debris because that’s what the images show. The photos alone don’t identify exactly what it was or establish that it caused the entire backup.
Backfilling the excavation and jetting after the repair
After the pipe and manhole work, we returned to backfill the excavation with flow fill and smooth the filled areas.
The plan was to return for gravel touch-up once the fill dried.
We also jetted the larger pipe after the repair to remove debris from the work. That step was documented separately from the pipe replacement and manhole repairs.
For the customer, this had started with sewage on the floor and bathrooms they couldn’t use. Below ground, the project involved several connected pieces of work: tracing the sewer layout, opening the excavation, repairing the pipe connection, reshaping the manhole channel, and filling the work area back in.
Questions about this Broussard sewer repair
What was repaired at the commercial property?
5 Star Plumbing replaced a section of sewer pipe leading into the manhole, repaired the pipe entry at the manhole wall, and repaired the interior flow channel. The excavation was then backfilled with flow fill.
Did the crew use a sewer camera?
Yes. We ran a sewer camera through every accessible outside cleanout and mapped the system leading to the manhole. An annotated aerial map documented the layout.
Was the entire sewer system replaced?
The documented replacement involved a section of pipe leading into the manhole. The project also included repairs to the manhole connection and interior channel.
Need commercial sewer repair in Broussard?
If your business has sewage backing up, bathrooms that won’t drain, or a main sewer line that needs attention, give 5 Star Plumbing a call.
We can discuss the problem and the next steps for your property. For commercial sewer line repair, sewer camera inspection, or manhole repair, contact A 5 Star Plumbing Co. online at a5starplumber.com/contact-us or call us at (337) 202-0246.