Should I get a sewer scope on an older home?
On an older home in the Denver metro, yes, almost always. It is a couple hundred dollars to see the one expensive system a standard home inspection cannot reach.
Why older Denver metro lines are a gamble
Most homes built before the 1980s have clay or cast iron sewer lines. Clay pipe came in short sections with a joint every few feet, and tree roots find those joints. Cast iron corrodes and scales from the inside over decades. Some mid-century homes even have Orangeburg, a compressed tar-paper pipe that deforms and fails.
Denver's older neighborhoods combine mature trees with original lines, which is exactly the combination behind most of the problems I see.
There is also the ownership question. In most Denver metro cities, the homeowner owns the sewer lateral all the way to the city main, sometimes including the section under the street. If it fails, the repair bill is yours, not the city's.
What a scope actually is
A waterproof camera on a flexible cable, fed through a cleanout from the house all the way to the city tap. It takes about 30 to 60 minutes, and the sewer scope video is always included with your report, along with a written summary of anything worth knowing.
What it finds
Tree roots growing in through pipe joints
Cracks and separated or shifted sections, called offsets
Bellies, where the line sags and holds water and debris
Corrosion and scale buildup inside cast iron
Collapsed or failing sections
Grease and debris blockages
Old repairs, and what shape they are in
The math
A sewer scope typically runs $100 to $300. A full sewer line replacement in the Denver area typically runs $5,000 to $15,000 or more, depending on length, depth, and what sits on top of the line, since driveways and landscaping add to the digging.
Finding a problem before closing turns it into a negotiation: cleaning, repair, or a credit from the seller. Finding it after closing turns it into your emergency. That is the whole argument for the scope.
One honest caveat
A scope shows the line's condition on the day it is run. It cannot predict exactly how long an aging line will last. But it replaces guessing with video, and video is what you want before you sign.
If you are in the Denver metro
I am Bard Nielsen, owner of Golden Peak Inspection in Golden, CO. I offer sewer scopes as an add-on to the home inspection or on their own, across the Denver metro. Call or text 303-803-5412.