Your Commercial Sewer Inspection Report, Explained

A report is not the video. It is the video plus a record that lets someone who was not there understand the pipe. Property managers receive these reports and then have to decide what to spend. Here is what to look for, and what to ask for before you accept it.

The header. Who did the survey and with what certification, the date, the direction the camera traveled, the pipe size, shape and material and whether the line was cleaned first. NASSCO's header checklist lists all of these as mandatory fields. If the report does not say whether the line was cleaned, you cannot tell if buildup was hiding a defect.

The log. Every observation, such as a crack, a joint offset, roots, deposits or a lateral connection, with its distance from the start of the pipe. NASSCO's specification expects locations within two feet of the measured length. That accuracy is what lets a repair crew find a defect without guessing.

The grade. Each finding gets a severity from 1 to 5. Public specifications such as Mesa's require every defect to be coded to NASSCO's PACP system. Private work does not have to follow it, but a report in that format is easier to compare and to share with an engineer.

The limits. Where the camera stopped and why, and what was not inspected. A report that never says what it missed is hiding something.

The video. The full file, with footage counted on screen. Mesa's specification warns that videos that end mid-segment may be rejected, which is a useful test for any private report: does it cover the whole run?

PACP separates two kinds of defect, and your response is different for each.

• Structural defects: cracks, fractures, holes, collapse and offsets. You repair or replace, and higher grades go first.
• Operational and maintenance defects: roots, grease, scale and deposits. You clean on a schedule, then re-check.

NASSCO says that a pipe with both gets a structural assessment first, because conveyance problems are removed during repair or replacement. Also check the worst grade, not just an average. A line with many minor findings and one serious one will average to a middling score, and the serious one is the part that fails.

1. 1Triage by worst structural grade. The highest-grade structural findings go first.
2. 2Split the list. Repairs get quotes. Maintenance items go on a cleaning schedule with a re-inspection interval.
3. 3Quote from the footage. Give every contractor the same video and distance log, so the quotes cover the same work. A repair quote should name the footage it covers.
4. 4Repair, then re-inspect. A follow-up video after repair confirms the work. Mesa's public specification calls for one.
5. 5File it. Keep the report with your property records and the cleaning log. In Phoenix the owner is responsible for the private line, so the record is yours.

See how to read PACP codes, root intrusion grades and crack, fracture and break terms.

You get the video recording and a written report that explains what we saw, with the findings tied to location, and when it matters we mark depth and location on the surface. If the line needs work, you get a free estimate and an upfront price before work starts. We will not push a repair that the video does not support. See sewer camera inspection and sewer repair.

A report is a record of one day. It will not predict a failure next year, and it will not reveal a defect the camera could not reach. If your concern is a smell, the right tool may be smoke, not video. If the line has never been cleaned and was full of grease, ask for the post-cleaning pass. See camera inspection after jetting and commercial sewer smoke testing.

Ask: Was the line cleaned first? Is the full video included and can I keep it? Are distances logged on every finding? Are grades structural and maintenance separate? What did the camera not reach? For budget planning on a multi-building site, see apartment community camera inspection. HQ offers 24/7 emergency service and free estimates.