A clogged pipe can be cleared. A collapsed pipe needs to be replaced. The symptoms look the same.
This is the most important distinction in drain service — and it is one you cannot make without looking inside the pipe. From the outside, both a severe grease clog and a collapsed pipe section produce the same result: drains stop working. The camera inspection is the only way to know which you are dealing with.
What a clogged pipe looks like on camera
The camera travels normally until it reaches the blockage. The blockage appears as a mass of material — grease, roots, debris — that the camera cannot pass through. The pipe wall behind the blockage and in the approach section looks intact. This is a situation jetting can address.
What a collapsed pipe looks like on camera
The pipe wall has physically failed. The camera may show the pipe wall caving inward, a section of pipe that has buckled or broken apart, soil intrusion from outside the pipe, or a point where the camera simply cannot advance because the pipe is no longer there. The geometry of the pipe is wrong — not just blocked, but structurally absent.
The danger of jetting a collapsed pipe
Running a high-pressure jetter into a collapsed or severely compromised pipe section can: dislodge material that was holding a partial collapse together (making the collapse complete), push high-pressure water through cracks in the pipe wall into the surrounding soil, or cause additional pipe wall failure under the pressure.
This is why we camera inspect before every job. We are specifically looking for structural problems that change the approach.
What happens when we find a collapse
We stop. We show you exactly what the camera is seeing. We explain what it means. We hand you the footage. We refer you to a plumbing contractor who can assess repair options — whether that is trenchless pipe repair, partial pipe replacement, or full lateral replacement. We do not charge you for a jetting job we cannot do.
Call Sunburst Environmental at 678-799-4389 for same-day service across Metro Atlanta and North Georgia, or request a free estimate online.