Definition
A waterproof camera run through your sewer line to document its actual condition — roots, bellies, offsets, and pipe material — before you buy a home or approve a repair.
What does the camera actually find?
The five conditions that decide everything: root intrusion at joints, bellies (sags where water and solids pool), offset or separated joints, pipe material — clay, Orangeburg, cast iron, or modern PVC — and collapsed sections. Each has a different fix and a different urgency, which is why a scope with recorded footage beats any diagnosis made from symptoms alone.
When is a scope worth the money?
Three moments: before buying any home older than about 1980 (sewer replacement can cost more than a roof, and sellers don't disclose what nobody has seen); after a second backup in a year, because repeat clogs are a symptom, not a condition; and before approving any major sewer repair — the footage is your proof the quoted problem exists where and as described.
What should a trustworthy scope include?
The recorded video itself (not a verbal summary), on-screen footage counter locating each finding's distance from the cleanout, the surface-located depth and position of problem spots for accurate repair pricing, and a written condition report. If a company scopes and won't hand over the footage, treat the diagnosis as unverified.
In the Puget Sound
Puget Sound's big-tree neighborhoods — and their clay side sewers from the pre-1970s build-out — make root intrusion the region's default sewer finding; Seattle also requires side sewer permits and records that a scope helps reconcile.
Related terms
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Trade: Plumbing