A fiberglass liner is saturated with epoxy, pulled into your existing sewer, and cured hard in place. When it is finished you have a new pipe inside the old one, formed as a single piece from the house all the way to the city main.
No seams matters more than it sounds. Nearly every sewer failure we dig up started at a joint, whether that is a separated clay tile or a glued PVC coupling that was never seated properly. A liner has none.
The top image shows the inside of a deteriorated sewer pipe before CIPP lining. Root intrusion, cracked joints, and debris buildup are visible. The bottom image shows the same pipe after lining. New structural surface, seamless, and fully sealed.
Drag the handle to compare. The yard above this pipe was never touched.
The liner was installed through existing cleanout access. The lawn, driveway, and landscaping were not disturbed.
Camera inspection, cleaning, liner installation, UV curing, final camera confirmation. Start to finish in a single visit.
The new pipe surface is seamless, root-resistant, and corrosion-free. No joints for roots to re-enter.
Most lining contractors cure with steam or hot water. We cure with ultraviolet light. It is the same principle as a dental filling: the material goes in soft, the light passes over it, and it hardens on command.
The pull-back speed on the light head is calculated for every job from the pipe diameter, the temperature, and the condition of the light head itself, down to whether a single bulb has burned out. A steam cure has no equivalent to that. You hold temperature for the recommended time and hope it took.
Hammerhead, start to finish. Built in Wisconsin outside Madison, so parts and service are a drive away rather than a shipment from overseas.
Blue Light UV. A light head is drawn back through the pipe on a controlled pull rate, with a camera on the head to confirm placement before the cure begins.
Fiberglass scrim in 4 inch and 6 inch, saturated with epoxy and pressed through by machine so the resin fully wets the material.
Picote high speed cleaner. Chains first to cut out root intrusion, then a sanding head to take the pipe wall back to clean material.
Blue LED light at 444 to 457 nanometers cures the resin as the head is drawn back. Up to five times faster than steam or hot water, and it does not wait on the weather.
A steam or hot water cure needs ambient heat to work. In frozen Northland ground that gets hard enough that some lining contractors in this region simply stop for the winter. January through March, the service is not available from them.
A UV cure does not depend on ground temperature the same way. The light supplies the energy. That is the practical reason we can schedule a lining job in the middle of a Duluth winter.
Sewer lines do not wait for spring. Neither should the fix.
Camera in first. Liner in second. Camera again before we leave.
We run the camera before anything else. It tells us the length, the material, the condition, whether the line has lost its round shape, and whether it can be lined at all. You watch the screen with us. Free on service calls.
A Picote high speed cleaner goes in. Chains first to cut roots out at the wall, then a sanding head to take the pipe back to clean material. A liner bonded to roots and buildup is a liner that fails, so this is where a lot of the job happens.
The liner is cut to the length of the run and the epoxy is poured in, then pressed through the fiberglass by machine so the resin fully wets the material with no dry spots.
The liner is placed, then the Blue Light head is drawn back through it at a rate calculated for the diameter and conditions. The camera on the head confirms placement before the cure starts.
We run the camera one more time to confirm full coverage, a sound seal, and clear connections. You see the before and the after.
Clay, cast iron, concrete, and PVC all line well provided the pipe still holds its basic shape. One material does not.
The common setup around here is 4 inch cast iron leaving the foundation that transitions to 6 inch clay somewhere on the way to the main. That transition is a problem for a standard liner, which inflates to one fixed diameter and stops.
For most residential work we use a flex liner instead. It follows the shape of the pipe it is in, pressing into the actual contour of the line rather than holding one diameter. It handles a size change in a single continuous piece.
There is an honest limit. A narrow section stays narrow after lining, because the liner follows the pipe. If a previous contractor forced a smaller pipe into a larger one, we will tell you straight, and depending on what the camera shows we may recommend pipe bursting instead so you end up with one consistent full size line.
When a sewer line still maintains its general shape and alignment, CIPP lining allows us to install a new structural pipe inside the existing one. The result is a seamless, root-resistant pipe designed to provide 50+ years of service while avoiding major excavation and preserving your yard, driveway, landscaping, and hardscapes.
When a sewer line has lost its shape, contains major bellies, or is completely collapsed, replacement becomes the better option. Our first choice is typically pipe bursting because it allows us to install a completely new pipe while minimizing disruption to the yard.
Driveways and sidewalks stay completely untouched.
Turf, gardens, irrigation, and trees left intact.
Most trenchless repairs are wrapped in a single day.
Not seeing yours? Call and ask. We will tell you if lining is wrong for your line.
Call 218-409-6356Most residential sewer lining projects run $5,000 to $15,000 or more depending on the length of the run, the pipe material, access, and how much cleaning the line needs before it can be lined. We do not quote lining over the phone. The camera inspection comes first, and it is free on service calls.
Yes. We cure with UV light rather than steam or hot water, so the cure does not depend on ground temperature the way a thermal cure does. Some lining contractors in this region stop lining from roughly January through March because their systems need ambient heat. We line year round.
Most residential lining jobs are completed in a single day. That is a direct result of the curing method. A steam or hot water cure on a cold day can require heat held in the line for 24 hours or more, and the sewer cannot be used during any of it.
Yes. Roots enter old pipe at joints and cracks. The finished liner is continuous from one end to the other with no joints to push through. We also cut the existing roots out with chains and sand the pipe wall before the liner goes in, so nothing is left behind it.
We back our lining work with a 10 year warranty. The liner material itself is tested to a 50 year service life.
In most cases yes, using a flex liner that follows the shape of the existing pipe rather than holding one fixed diameter. That covers the common Duluth setup of 4 inch cast iron transitioning to 6 inch clay. The honest limit is that a restriction stays a restriction after lining, so if the line has been narrowed we may recommend pipe bursting instead.
Clay tile, cast iron, concrete, and PVC all line well provided the pipe still holds its basic shape. Orangeburg is the exception, since it deforms as it fails and a liner will follow that bad shape. We have also lined PVC lines where the glued connections failed and digging would have meant tearing up parking lot or roadway.
When the pipe has fully collapsed, when there is a significant belly holding water because the line lost its grade, or when the connection at the city main requires excavation regardless. In those cases we move to pipe bursting or a targeted dig. The camera inspection is what tells us which situation you are in.
We install CIPP lining throughout Duluth, Superior, Hermantown, Proctor, Cloquet, Two Harbors, and Esko. Because we cure with UV light rather than steam, we are also able to line year round, which is not true of every lining contractor in this region.
Straight answers on cost, process, and what to expect. No bait-and-switch, no hidden fees.
Camera inspections on service calls are free. If you need a standalone pre-purchase or point-of-sale inspection with a full written report, that starts at $250. The camera is always the first step. It tells us exactly what is going on before we recommend any repair, so you are never paying for work you do not need.
Additional drive time may apply for locations outside our standard service area.
Most residential pipe bursting projects run $12,000 to $20,000+ depending on pipe length, depth, and access conditions. Pipe bursting replaces your entire sewer line with new HDPE pipe without major excavation, which means far less restoration cost compared to traditional dig-and-replace. Consultations and estimates are always free.
Free consultation and on-site estimate included.
Sewer pipe lining (cured-in-place pipe, or CIPP) typically runs $5,000 to $15,000+. The range depends on the length of pipe being lined and how much prep work the condition of the line requires. Lining is often the most cost-effective solution for cracked or root-infiltrated pipe. We insert a resin liner that cures in place and lasts 50 years, usually in a single day.
Single-day installation in most cases. No major excavation required.
Water line repairs start at $5,000+. Full replacements typically run $10,000 to $15,000+ depending on line length and site conditions. We use trenchless methods where possible to minimize yard disruption and reduce restoration costs.
Trenchless options available depending on existing pipe condition.
Point repair starts at $3,500+. It is the targeted fix. When the camera shows a single isolated problem like a collapse or a bad joint, we address just that section instead of replacing the whole line. Faster turnaround, lower cost, and your existing pipe stays in place everywhere else.
Ideal for isolated damage. Lower cost than full-line replacement.
Every job is different. Get an exact number for yours, no commitment required.
Get a free estimate →Trenchless sewer repair is a method of fixing or replacing damaged sewer lines without digging a trench across your yard. Instead of excavating the full length of the pipe, we access the line from one or two small entry points. Depending on the condition of the pipe, we can line it from the inside using CIPP (cured-in-place pipe) technology, or we can burst the old pipe outward and pull a new one through in its place. Most jobs are completed in a single day with minimal disruption to your lawn, driveway, and landscaping.
The most reliable way to know is a camera inspection. We run an HD camera through your line and show you exactly what is happening and where. Common signs that something is wrong include slow drains throughout the house rather than at a single fixture, gurgling sounds when toilets or other drains are used, sewage smell in the yard or basement, wet patches in the lawn without an obvious water source, and backups that clear temporarily and then return within a short time. Any of these symptoms is a reason to schedule a camera inspection.
Homes built before 1965 in Duluth and Superior typically have clay tile or cast iron sewer lines. Homes built between 1945 and 1965 may have Orangeburg pipe, which is made from compressed paper pulp and coal tar and is past its useful life in almost all cases. Homes built after 1980 almost certainly have PVC. Clay, cast iron, and Orangeburg are all past or near the end of their expected service life. A camera inspection confirms the material and condition of your specific line before we recommend anything.
Yes. Superior is part of our core service area. We cross the bridge regularly and treat Superior the same as Duluth for scheduling and response time. Superior sewer service is managed by the City of Superior, while water service is handled by Superior Water, Light and Power. We coordinate permit applications and utility contacts as part of every project in Superior.
A properly installed CIPP liner has an expected service life of 50 years. The liner is UV-cured inside your existing pipe, creating a seamless new pipe within the old one. Because the liner has no joints, it eliminates the gaps where roots typically enter clay and cast iron pipe. Once cured, the liner carries the load and the original host pipe effectively becomes the outer shell.
Yes. The City of Duluth has operated an Inflow and Infiltration (I&I) reduction program since 2012 that provides grants and financial assistance to homeowners who make qualifying improvements to reduce groundwater from entering the sanitary sewer. The City of Superior has a similar program. Contour is on the approved contractor list for both programs. Qualifying improvements often include house trap removal, lateral repairs, and disconnecting foundation drains or downspouts from the sanitary system. Learn more about financial assistance programs.
The thing people say most: they couldn't tell we were ever there.

You may not have to pay for all of this.
Duluth, Superior, and the surrounding region run more than 30 programs that help homeowners pay for sewer and water line repair. Grants, cost-share, and zero percent deferred loans that you do not repay monthly.
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Most programs require owner-occupancy.
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Based in Duluth at 4958 Rice Lake Rd. We service homes and businesses across Northern Minnesota and Wisconsin. Enter your address to see how quickly we can be there.
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A camera inspection takes 30 minutes and tells you exactly what's wrong and what every option costs. Most people are relieved by that conversation.
No commitment · Same-week availability · Serving Duluth and the surrounding region