Sewer repair in Houston: a guide from the slab to the street

Why Houston sewer lines fail differently

Most of the country's sewer problems are roots in old clay pipe. Houston has those too, but the bigger story here is the ground itself. Harris County sits on gumbo clay — the Beaumont formation — that swells when it rains and shrinks hard in a dry August. A slab foundation rides up and down on it a fraction of an inch each cycle, and the cast iron drain lines cast into that slab in 1955 or 1968 do not flex. Joints pull apart, hubs crack, and the pipe rusts from the inside until the bottom of it is simply gone.

That is why the same problem turns up in Meyerland, Bellaire, Oak Forest, Westbury and Sharpstown all year: a slow drain that has been snaked three times, a sewer smell in a back bathroom, a foundation company that ran a hydrostatic test after leveling the house and found it losing water. The line under the slab is leaking into the clay, the clay is swelling, and the slab is moving again. Foundation repair and sewer repair in Houston are the same problem seen from two sides.

Outside the slab, it is roots. Live oak, pecan and water oak roots follow moisture to any joint that has separated, and in the 1970s–90s subdivisions from Katy to Pearland that means the original PVC or ABS joints that the clay has racked out of line. Then there is flooding. Harvey, the Tax Day flood and every bad May since have put the city's mains under surcharge, and when a main is full, your lateral has nowhere to drain. Water comes up the lowest fixture in the house.

The main sewer repair jobs in Houston, TX

Sewer line repair — a spot repair on a section that has cracked, separated or bellied, when the rest of the line is sound. The contractor locates the break with a camera, digs or tunnels to that point only, and replaces it in schedule 40 PVC. A typical Houston spot repair is $1,500–$4,000.

Sewer line replacement — open trench from the house to the property line when the whole yard lateral is done. Most Houston replacements run $4,000–$15,000 depending on length, depth and what is on top of it.

Trenchless sewer repair — cured-in-place lining or pipe bursting when the line runs under a driveway, a pool deck, a mature live oak or a neighbor's fence. $6,000–$20,000, no trench, usually done in a day or two.

Sewer camera inspection — the first step on any sound quote. $250–$500, with the recording and a written report. Hydrostatic testing for foundation work and pre-purchase inspections are often done on the same visit.

Under-slab sewer repair — tunneling under the foundation to replace cast iron, or rerouting the drains around the slab when a tunnel would be longer than the house is wide. This is the job Houston homeowners get quoted wildly different numbers for, and the page explains why.

Hydro jetting and drain cleaning are often the answer rather than a repair. If the camera shows grease, scale or a root mass in a pipe that is otherwise sound, that is a cleaning job at $350–$900, not a replacement — our guide to sewer line cleaning in Houston covers how often it is worth doing. Not every sewer repair needs a shovel, and not every sewer line repair needs a whole new line.

How to choose a plumber for sewer work in Houston

Texas is stricter about sewer work than most people expect. Anything that touches the drain, waste and vent system of a house — including the yard lateral out to the property line — is plumbing under Texas law, and it has to be done by plumbers licensed by the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners, working under a Responsible Master Plumber (RMP). The RMP's license number is supposed to appear on the company's trucks, advertising and paperwork. Ask any sewer contractor Houston homeowners are considering for that number, and look it up on the TSBPE website before you sign. A company without one cannot legally pull the City of Houston plumbing permit a replacement needs, and the work will not pass the inspection that follows.

Beyond the license, a plumber worth hiring will run a camera before pricing, give you the recording, put the price on one itemized page with the permit listed, and not ask for a large deposit before the permit is pulled.

How this site works

This is a free local guide, not a plumbing company, and it does not perform sewer work. Calls and estimate requests go to an independent local plumbing contractor partner who inspects the line, writes the quote and performs the work. You are never obligated to hire, and you should check that contractor's license the same way you would check anyone else's.

Areas this guide covers

Inside the Loop, Bellaire and West University, Meyerland and Braeswood, Oak Forest and Garden Oaks, Spring Branch and Memorial, then out to Katy and Cypress, north to Spring, Humble and The Woodlands, south through Pasadena, Pearland and Friendswood, and Sugar Land and Missouri City in Fort Bend County — sewer problems across Houston, TX and the suburbs around it. Bellaire and Sugar Land have their own pages because the problems there are specific: Bellaire is under-slab cast iron, and Sugar Land is 1980s laterals under Fort Bend clay.

What it costs, before you call

The pricing page has the full tables. The short version for Houston in 2026: camera inspection $250–$500, hydro jetting $350–$900, spot repair $1,500–$4,000, open-trench replacement $4,000–$15,000, trenchless $6,000–$20,000, under-slab tunnel work $8,000–$25,000 for a typical 1960s ranch. Those are typical market ranges, not a quote. A camera visit turns them into one written number for your house; ask how long that price holds.