Lakewood's sewer service comes from the city's own utility or one of many sanitation districts, depending on the address, but the lateral from your house is a private plumbing matter. A camera inspection shows what is inside that line, from root intrusion at old joints to a collapsed section, so a repair can be planned instead of guessed. Call the number on this page to be connected with a local plumber in Lakewood.
Lakewood's sewer picture
Lakewood has no single sewer provider. The city's provider list names Lakewood Water and Sewer Utility along with Northwest Lakewood, East Lakewood, Daniels, East Jefferson County and Wheat Ridge sanitation districts, West Alameda Heights Sanitation Service and several water and sanitation districts. The city's My Neighborhood tool tells you which one serves a particular address, and that is the office to call if a problem turns up at the main.
Age is the other big factor. The median Lakewood home was built in 1977, and about 56% were built before 1980. Older laterals in neighborhoods around Belmar, along West Colfax or below Green Mountain may be clay or cast iron, materials that last a long time but develop cracked hubs, offset joints and root entry as decades pass. Mature trees make that more likely.
Snake alone or snake plus camera
| Approach | What you get | Best when |
|---|---|---|
| Cable or jetting only | Flow restored, cause unknown | First clog in years, obvious cause such as a dropped object |
| Clearing plus camera | Flow restored and the defect seen and located | Repeat backups, older clay or cast iron, buying or selling |
| Camera only | Condition record of a line that is flowing | Pre-purchase checks, planning a remodel, after a repair |
Signs pointing at the lateral
- Water backs up into a lower-level shower or floor drain
- Toilets bubble when other fixtures drain
- Every drain in the house slows at once
- Sewage smell in the basement or near the cleanout
- The same main line clog keeps coming back
Timing and season
Roots grow aggressively in the warm months and seek out moisture at pipe joints, so slow drains that worsen through summer are a classic sign in tree-lined parts of Lakewood. Winter brings its own issue: dry, freezing weather can make the ground shift slightly, and a line that was marginal may start to back up. If you are buying a home, schedule a camera inspection before the inspection deadline in your contract, not after closing. If a repair is needed, most plumbing work in Lakewood requires a permit from the City of Lakewood Building Department, applied for through eTRAKiT, and the plumber doing the work typically handles it.
Sewer Camera Inspection questions in Lakewood
How do I find out which district handles my sewer?
Can the camera tell what my sewer pipe is made of?
Will roots from street trees show up on camera?
Do I need a permit if the camera finds a broken line?
More plumbing services in Lakewood
Sewer Camera Inspection nearby
Sources
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