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A camera run down the main sewer line from the house to the city connection or the septic tank, so the one part of the property nobody can see gets looked at properly. We offer it as an add-on to a full inspection only, never on its own — there is a reason for that, and it is the next section.
Carried out during your main inspection, which is the only way we offer it:
A sewer scope is an additional cost on top of the inspection it is added to, and it is not part of a standard inspection. Tap one to see when it makes sense.
The most common one. You are about to take on the lateral along with the house, and it is the one part of the property nobody can see from the surface. More about home buyer inspections
Find it before the buyer’s inspector does. A sewer problem discovered mid-transaction is a renegotiation; the same problem found before you list is a decision. More about pre-listing inspections
Tree roots do not stop growing and clay pipe does not get younger. If the house is older or there are mature trees over the run, it is worth looking. More about maintenance inspections
Same camera, same principle, on a building where a backed-up line stops a business trading rather than just ruining a weekend. More about commercial inspections
Add-on only
Plenty of companies will run a camera down your line as a stand-alone job. We will not, and we would rather say why than leave you wondering. A sewer scope is an add-on to a buyer, pre-listing, maintenance or commercial inspection, and it is an additional cost on top of that inspection.
Root intrusion means one thing in a house with mature trees and original clay pipe, and another in a house replumbed five years ago. The rest of the inspection is what makes the finding mean something.
The camera work happens while we are already there for the main inspection, and the findings land in the same report as everything else, with a link to the footage, rather than arriving separately days later.
Someone is at the property, the utilities are on and we are already inside. A stand-alone visit means arranging all of that again for one pipe.
A sewer scope sold on its own is a product. Sold as part of an inspection it is one more part of the property we have looked at, reported the same way as the roof and the panel.
Whose pipe is it
This is the part most people do not know until something goes wrong. The water authority looks after the sewer main under the street. Everything between that main and your house — the private lateral — is the property owner’s. It is buried, it is not part of a standard inspection, and nobody sees inside it without putting a camera down it.
The private lateral, from the house to the connection at the main. Repairs to it are the owner’s to arrange, and it usually runs under a lawn, a drive or a mature tree.
The sewer main itself, under the street. That is the water authority’s side of the line, and where their responsibility begins.
A standard inspection covers the visible plumbing inside the house. The buried run outside it is not in that scope, which is exactly why the camera exists as an add-on.
What we are looking for
None of these show up at the sink or the toilet until they are well advanced. That is the point of putting a camera down the line: the pipe tells you what it is doing long before the house does.
Roots find a joint or a hairline crack, get in after the water and keep growing. The most common thing we see, and mature trees over the run make it likely rather than possible.
Ground movement, freeze-thaw and age. A crack lets water and soil in, which is how a small defect becomes a blockage and then a void in the ground around it.
Sections that have shifted out of line with each other, usually as the ground around them settled. Each offset is a ledge for everything moving down the pipe to catch on.
A dip in the run where the fall has been lost, so water and solids sit instead of draining. Nothing looks wrong at the fixtures until the day it stops moving altogether.
The run has failed and lost its shape. This is the one nobody wants, and the one a camera finds well before the basement does.
Grease, scale, wipes, debris. Sometimes it is simply a clog; sometimes it is sitting on top of one of the defects above, which is why seeing it matters more than clearing it.
A snippet from one of our own sewer scope inspections — the kind of footage your report will link you to.
Why choose us
With more than 16,000 inspections completed and over 2,000 five-star reviews since 2009, we inspect across Southeast and Mid-Michigan seven days a week. Our inspectors are certified through InterNACHI, and we do not carry out any of the repair work we write up.
InterNACHI certified, including the sewer inspection credential.
Your report links to the video, not just a still or a summary. Share it with any plumber you like.
It happens during your main inspection, so nobody has to be at the house twice.
Including weekends, because closing dates do not wait for a Tuesday.
We do not dig, line or replace pipe. Nothing in the report is us quoting ourselves work.
What clients say
I recently hired Trademark for a full home inspection on a new purchase, including sewer scope and radon testing. It was a phenomenal experience from beginning to end. They were extremely thorough while also being prompt and diligent. Our inspector (Mitch) did a fantastic job explaining all the findings, and the digital report with photos and videos was superb.
Salina HamiltonOak Park, MIOra from Trademark did an incredible job with the inspection and sewer scope of the home I am in the process of buying. He was very thorough, explained everything to me from the start, and made it all super easy to understand which definitely helped to put me at ease a bit more. Highly recommend this company!
Mariah HartmanWestland, MIVery thorough with good suggestions. Get the sewer scope.
Nathan ZatolokinMichiganWe had Mitch inspect our prospective house and he was amazing. He was thorough, patient to answer my questions and provide feedback on what areas he would recommend having a follow up expert and why. The office was responsive and I was able to book multiple services to be done in the same visit (inspection, radon test, sewer scope).
Chris PlaweckiOak Park, MIThe company is great. They take their time to address your concerns, answer all questions and make sure you are content. Ora was great to work with, thorough and addressed all questions and concerns. I will definitely request him whenever I need an inspector!
Zack OudeifMichiganMitch was great and thorough the our inspection. He provided explanations and suggestions throughout the service. Highly recommend!
Jaynie GMonroe, MI
Police, fire, rescue, military and educators — our way of saying thank you for your service. Enter code HERO at checkout.
Claim the Hero DiscountQualified and certified
Michigan does not license home inspectors, so the credential behind the report is worth checking. Each of these is issued by the organization named and verifiable with them directly, and kept current through continuing education.
The core credential from the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors. It commits the inspector to InterNACHI’s Standards of Practice and Code of Ethics, and to continuing education every year rather than a one-off exam.
The profession’s top-level board certification. It is earned through inspection experience and continuing education over time, not bought — which is why comparatively few inspectors in Michigan hold it.
National Home Inspector ExaminationThe independently written, psychometrically validated exam from the Examination Board of Professional Home Inspectors, used by most states that license home inspectors. Michigan licenses nobody and asks for no exam at all, so sitting it here is entirely voluntary — which is rather the point.
Certified through the Certified Commercial Property Inspectors Association, the standards body for commercial building inspections. Commercial work follows a different discipline to residential, and this is the credential that covers it.
The International Association of Certified Indoor Air Consultants sets the protocols for how mold is sampled, handled and reported. Following them is what makes a laboratory result defensible rather than just a number.
The same body certifies radon measurement separately, because the discipline is different: where the monitor sits, how long it runs and what counts as a disturbed test all decide whether the reading means anything.
Certification from the National Association of Mold Professionals, covering how mold is identified, sampled and documented — the difference between spotting a stain and understanding the moisture behind it.
Training in running a sewer line camera and, just as importantly, reading what it shows. Roots, bellies, breaks and blockages all look different on screen and are easy to misread without it.
Certified Residential ThermographerCertified by Monroe Infrared in thermal imaging. A thermal camera reveals what the eye cannot — moisture behind finishes, missing insulation and overheating electrical connections — but only if the person holding it is trained to interpret it.
Licensed by the Federal Aviation Administration to fly commercially. That is what makes aerial roof and property imagery legal to carry out and legal to hand you — and it means a steep or unsafe roof can still be inspected properly.
Our service area
We inspect across fourteen Michigan counties — Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Washtenaw, Livingston, Genesee, Saginaw, Shiawassee, Lapeer, St Clair, Monroe, Lenawee, Jackson and Ingham — covering Metro Detroit, Ann Arbor, Flint, Saginaw and the communities in between. Tap a county to see where we work.
Not sure if we cover your area?
Call 734-331-3269 or schedule your inspection now.
Common questions
The things buyers, sellers and owners ask us most before adding one.
A camera on a flexible push reel run down the main sewer line from the house toward the city connection or the septic tank, so the inside of the buried lateral can actually be seen. Your report carries a link to the footage.
No. We offer it only as an add-on to a home buyer, pre-listing, maintenance or commercial inspection. It is never sold as a stand-alone service.
Because a finding in a pipe means very little without the rest of the property around it. Run alongside a full inspection the camera work is put in context, the access is already arranged, and everything lands in one report rather than arriving separately.
The private lateral — the run from the house to the connection at the main — is the property owner’s. The water authority looks after the main itself under the street. That split is why the buried run is worth looking at before you take a property on.
Any time you are buying, selling or maintaining a property, and particularly if the house is older, has mature trees over the run, has original clay or cast iron pipe, or has any history of slow drains or backups.
Root intrusion, cracked or broken pipe, offset joints, bellies and low spots, collapsed sections, and blockages or buildup. Each one is described further up this page.
Draining fine tells you the line is not blocked today. It tells you nothing about roots that are partway in, a joint that has shifted or a belly holding water. Those are exactly the things that give no warning at the fixtures.
Whether a problem is there right now, or is not. We are home inspectors rather than plumbers: we establish and document the condition of the line, and if something is wrong we refer you to a licensed plumber. Diagnosing the repair, specifying the fix and pricing it are their trade, not ours.
Yes. The findings are written into your digital report, and the report includes a link to watch the footage itself — so you can view it yourself and pass it to any plumber or contractor you want a quote from.
The same inspection applies to the run between the house and the tank. What we do not do is inspect or evaluate the septic system itself — that is a separate trade and a separate specialist.
It happens. Not every property has a reachable cleanout, and some lines cannot be scoped safely. If we cannot make entry at all, there is no charge for the sewer scope — we tell you plainly, note it in the report and refer you to a licensed plumber. Once the camera is in the line the scope has been carried out and is payable, even if a collapse or a blockage stops it a few feet in: finding that is the result.
Add it when you book your inspection online, or call 734-331-3269 and ask for it. We inspect seven days a week including weekends.
Seven days a week. Say the word when you book.
