What Happens During a Drain Relining Job? A Day-by-Day Guide

Most homeowners on the Central Coast have heard of drain relining but are unclear on what the actual process looks like. How long does it take? Do they need to vacate? What happens to their garden? This guide walks through a typical relining job from the first call to final sign-off, so you know exactly what to expect.

Quick answer (BLUF)

A standard residential drain relining job on the Central Coast takes one to two days from mobilisation to completion. Day one typically covers CCTV inspection, hydro-jet cleaning and liner preparation. Day two is the installation and cure. You can stay in your home throughout. There is no excavation and no significant garden disturbance unless an access point needs to be established.

Before the job: the assessment call and quote

The process starts before any crew arrives. When you call a Central Coast drain relining contractor, the initial conversation covers:

• The nature of the problem (recurring blockage, slow drain, wet patch)
• The property age and known pipe type (helps with preparation)
• Access points, where are the inspection openings or cleanouts?
• Whether a previous CCTV report exists

Based on this, the contractor will either schedule a combined assessment-and-quote visit or, if the job is straightforward, provide a preliminary range before arriving.

Day one, morning: CCTV inspection and drain mapping

The crew arrives with a CCTV drain camera and a hydro-jetter. The first step is always a camera inspection, even if one has been done recently. This is because the camera inspection at this stage serves a specific purpose: it maps the exact pipe run, identifies access points, confirms the pipe material and internal diameter, and documents all defects that the relining will address.

The inspector pushes the camera through from the nearest accessible cleanout or inspection opening. On older Gosford properties with terracotta pipes, this is sometimes a ceramic inspection shaft in the garden or a rodding eye near the house wall. On newer properties, it may be a PVC inspection opening.

The footage is recorded and reviewed on-site. The crew leader identifies:

• Total length of pipe to be lined
• Any sections that are partially collapsed or have significant debris that needs jetting first
• Lateral connections (branch lines joining the main run) that need to be re-instated after lining
• Whether any sections are beyond lining and need point repair or excavation

This inspection also confirms the job scope for the quote. If the camera reveals something unexpected, a section that is more collapsed than anticipated, or a pipe that runs under a slab rather than through garden, this is the moment when the quote is adjusted.

Day one, mid-morning: hydro-jet cleaning

Once the inspection is complete and the crew has a clear picture of the pipe, hydro-jet cleaning begins. The jetter runs at high pressure (typically 4,000-5,000 PSI for residential drain clearing) through the full length of the pipe run.

Jetting removes:

• Root infiltration (roots are cut away from joint entry points)
• Grease and fat accumulation on the pipe walls
• Silt and debris in any belly sections
• Scale and mineral deposits

This step is critical. The liner bonds directly to the host pipe wall, so the cleaner the surface, the better the bond. If roots are not fully cleared from joint entries, they can continue growing beneath the liner.

After jetting, the camera goes back through to confirm the pipe is clean and to take final measurements for liner sizing.

Day one, afternoon: liner preparation

While the pipe is being dried and prepared, the relining crew measures and prepares the liner. The liner is a felt or fibreglass tube pre-saturated with epoxy resin. It is sized to:

• Match the pipe’s internal diameter (slightly oversized so it presses against the host pipe wall when inverted)
• Cover the full run length being lined, plus a small overlap at each end

The resin is measured, mixed and impregnated into the liner fabric. This is temperature-sensitive work, on hot Central Coast summer days, the cure time shortens, and crews factor this into scheduling. In cooler months the cure takes longer.

Day two, morning: liner installation

Installation is done by one of two methods depending on equipment and access:

Inversion installation: The liner is pushed into the pipe and then turned inside out (inverted) using water pressure or compressed air. As it inverts, it presses outward against the host pipe wall, ensuring full contact and a uniform bond.

Pull-in-place installation: The liner is pulled through the pipe using a cable and then inflated with an internal bladder, pressing it flat against the pipe wall.

Both methods achieve the same result, the liner sits snug against the host pipe with no gap.

Once installed and inflated, the liner cures in place. Cure time depends on the resin system:

• Ambient cure: 4-8 hours at room temperature (standard for most residential jobs)
• UV cure: 30-90 minutes using a UV light train pulled through the liner (faster, increasingly common)
• Steam cure: 1-2 hours using hot steam injection (used for faster turnaround on some commercial jobs)

For most residential Central Coast jobs, expect the liner to be curing from mid-morning and ready to cut open by early afternoon.

Day two, late morning/afternoon: lateral reinstatement and final CCTV

If the relined section has any branch connections (laterals joining from side drains, toilet connections, laundry connections), these need to be reopened after the liner cures. The liner covers them during installation; a robotic cutter is used to re-cut the openings from inside the pipe.

Once laterals are reinstated, the final CCTV inspection runs. This is the quality assurance check, the camera goes through the full relined section to verify:

• Uniform liner contact with no gaps or wrinkles
• All laterals are correctly opened
• The liner ends are clean and sealed
• No defects introduced during installation

This footage becomes part of the job completion documentation and forms the basis of the warranty.

After the job: documentation and warranty

A good contractor provides a written job completion pack including:

• Pre-lining CCTV footage with a defect log
• Post-lining CCTV footage confirming quality
• Product certification for the liner and resin (including manufacturer warranty information)
• A written workmanship warranty (typically 10-25 years, backed by 50-year product warranty)

For investment property owners, this documentation is valuable at sale. For strata properties, it should be filed with the body corporate records.

What disruption should you expect?

Total water off time across the two days is typically 3-6 hours, divided across two visits.

FAQs

Can I stay in my home during drain relining?

Yes. There is no reason to vacate. The work is done from outside via inspection access points. You will need to avoid using the drain being worked on during cure time, but other drains and the rest of the plumbing remains functional.

Will my garden be dug up?

Not for the relining itself. If the existing cleanout is in the wrong location for access, the crew may need to establish a new access point, this can involve a small excavation (typically 300-500 mm diameter) to expose the pipe. This is much less disruptive than trenching.

What happens if the camera finds something unexpected on the day?

The crew will stop and discuss it with you before proceeding. Common examples: a section that is more collapsed than anticipated (may require a point repair before lining), or the pipe diameter changes mid-run (the liner needs to match). These situations are resolved on-site or rescheduled.

Is there anything I should do before the crew arrives?

Clear vehicle access to the side or rear of the property if possible, the jetter and camera van needs to get close. Identify where your water meter shutoff is. If you know where inspection openings are, mark them.