The Pipe MostPrograms Ignore.
Service-lateral inspection that documents the condition of the connections between the main and the property, often the largest untracked source of infiltration and inflow in a collection system.
Definition
What It Is
Lateral inspection documents the condition of the service lateral, the pipe that connects an individual property to the public sewer main. Inspection is performed either with a lateral-launch camera, a system that travels the mainline and deploys a secondary camera into the lateral at the tap, or with a push camera from a cleanout or access point. Defects, root intrusion, offset joints, and infiltration are documented and coded to the NASSCO Lateral Assessment Certification Program (LACP). Laterals matter disproportionately: they often represent the majority of a system's pipe length, frequently cross the public/private ownership line, and are a leading and under-tracked contributor to infiltration and inflow that drives sanitary sewer overflows. Methods & data: Lateral-Launch CCTV · Push Camera · LACP Coding · Tap/Connection Condition · I&I Source Detection.
Signals
When You Need It
- An I&I or SSO reduction program needs laterals assessed, not just mains and manholes.
- Peak wet-weather flows exceed what main-and-manhole defects alone can explain.
- A regulatory action plan, consent order, or SSES requires lateral condition data.
- You're scoping a lateral rehabilitation program and need to rank the worst connections first.
- A property transfer, redevelopment, or point-of-sale program requires documented lateral condition.
Method
How We Do It
- Step 01
Determine Access Strategy
We trace the infiltration to its actual source. Coding the lateral and the tap tells you which connections to fix first, instead of rehabilitating mains and still chasing wet-weather flow. Access is chosen per site, lateral-launch from the main vs. push from a cleanout.
- Step 02
Inspect The Lateral & The Tap Connection
The lateral run and the connection at the main are both documented, the tap is often where the infiltration actually enters.
- Step 03
Code Defects & Infiltration To NASSCO LACP
Defects, root intrusion, offsets, and infiltration are coded to the NASSCO Lateral Assessment Certification Program, the industry-standard protocol for lateral condition data.
- Step 04
Locate & Grade I&I Sources
Infiltration and inflow sources are located along the lateral and at the connection, then graded so you can rank by contribution, not by guesswork.
- Step 05
Deliver Coded Report With Prioritized Findings
You receive an LACP-coded report with a ranked list of the worst-contributing laterals, ready for rehabilitation scoping or regulatory submittal.
Deliverables
What You Get
- A NASSCO LACP-coded condition record for each inspected lateral.
- Documented infiltration sources at the lateral and the tap connection.
- A ranked priority list of the worst-contributing laterals.
- A defensible basis for a targeted lateral rehabilitation scope.
- Data that strengthens an I&I program where main-and-manhole work alone has stalled.
- [CONFIRM: deliverable formats, LACP report, video, GIS-ready data, database export.]
Engineering
Capabilities & Specs
- Inspection Method
- [CONFIRM: lateral-launch camera systempush cameraor both.]
- Coding Standard
- NASSCO LACP (Lateral Assessment Certification Program). [CONFIRM: SES codes to LACP.]
- Operator Certification
- [CONFIRM: operators hold CURRENT NASSCO LACP/PACP certification. Do not publish 'certified' unless verified.]
- Launch Capability
- [CONFIRM: lateral-launch range from the maine.g. up to X ft into the lateralIF offered.]
- Diameter Range
- [CONFIRM: lateral diameter range serviced.]
- Pipe Materials
- [CONFIRM: claycast ironPVCOrangeburgand other materials serviced.]
- Deliverable Formats
- [CONFIRM: coded LACP reportvideodatabase exportGIS-ready.]
Answers
Frequently Asked Questions
A sewer lateral is the pipe that connects an individual property, a home, a business, an institution, to the public sewer main in the street. Across a typical collection system, laterals make up the majority of total pipe length, they're usually the oldest and least-maintained component, and they're a leading contributor to infiltration and inflow. If you're not assessing laterals, you're leaving the largest piece of the I&I picture undocumented.
Two methods. A lateral-launch camera travels the mainline on a crawler and deploys a secondary camera into the lateral at the tap, so the inspection happens without ever entering the property. A push camera is fed from a cleanout or other access point on the property side. The choice depends on site access, lateral length, and what the program needs to document, many systems use both. [CONFIRM: which methods SES offers.]
Laterals are typically older than the mains, often made of clay or cast iron, and connect to the main at a joint that's a known weak point. They run under yards, driveways, and landscaping where ground movement, root intrusion, and unsealed cleanouts are common. Add up thousands of laterals across a system and the cumulative defect surface dwarfs the mains, which is why I&I reduction programs that ignore laterals usually plateau.
It depends on the jurisdiction. In many places ownership is split, the utility owns the portion in the public right-of-way and the property owner owns the portion on private property, but the exact boundary, and who is responsible for repair, varies by city, county, and utility. We can document lateral condition either way; the ownership question is a policy and program-design question for the utility and its legal counsel, not a universal rule.
NASSCO LACP, the Lateral Assessment Certification Program, is the industry-standard protocol for coding lateral defects. It defines how observations are described, classified, and graded so that condition data from any certified operator can be compared, prioritized, and used as defensible input to a rehabilitation program. It's the lateral-side companion to PACP (mains) and MACP (manholes).
SSO reduction programs that only inspect mains and manholes typically hit a ceiling, wet-weather flow stays high because the infiltration is entering through laterals and tap connections that were never looked at. LACP-coded lateral data closes that gap. It identifies which laterals are actually driving the problem, supports a ranked rehabilitation scope, and gives the program defensible numbers to show regulators that flow reductions are tied to documented defect repair.
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