Ask your current insurance company about adding coverage. My company offers service line coverage which includes water, sewer, natural gas, electric, cable etc.

Hey there - I’ve wondered about the insurance too. I had to replace a sewer line in my last home (row home built in 1947) - roots had invaded the line and were causing lots of issues & backups in the basement (washer backing up when it drained). The replacement was all exterior - so to answer your question about interior lines - the company that did our sewer line didn’t touch anything on the interior. That doesn’t mean that roots and other problems can’t still get into the interior too.

What I’d recommend first is to hire a plumber to run a camera line through your sewer line - they usually do this through a clean out in the basement or may have to remove a toilet to do it if you don’t have a clean out in the interior. It is not all that expensive & they’ll be able to tell you what if any problems you are going to be facing. Then if indeed there is an issue waiting to happen you can make the judgement on the sewer line insurance. Before we bought our current house during the home inspection phase I hired a plumber to come out and run the camera through the sewer lines and luckily they didn’t find any problems- but it was well worth it knowing what’s going on in there!

HomeServe exterior line coverage is 100% worth it. My main exit line developed a hole, let your imagination run wild with that. Filed a claim, guy came out with an endoscope and found the hole, his company evaluated options, and within something like three weeks my drain was fixed, all covered by the policy.

Edit to add: as far as I can tell this insurance works the way insurance is supposed to work, by pooling risk. You look at it and wonder how they don't get killed by adverse selection, and I still sorta wonder that considering that it's not compulsory. But if you step back and look at how we finance fixing a city full of 100-year-old drains, the answer is everybody pays $10/mo and we fix them as they break.

Thanks, this was very helpful! I know exactly where the clean out is, don’t have any backups, and I do have a snake of modest length. But it’s that time of year again — the time I worry about whether I should’ve gotten X insurance coverage 😂

The real question I guess is, since there’s nothing alive anywhere near the drain lines, I guess there’s no risk of roots (we have a handful of city planted trees on the sidewalk but nothing in the alley in back). Is there anything else that I should be reasonably concerned that drano or a snake can’t fix between my house and where the city takes over?

Good to know, thank you!

Have a plumber come out and have a inspection done on it ie they will run a push camera down the line and they will be able to tell you if there is any issues ie cracked pipe offset joints etc that would be a problem in the future. That will cost depending on who you get $2-500. It will be cheaper in the long run to know what’s there. Also being a row home depending on how it’s built if your house connection is on street side you may only be responsible for 5’ of sewer line before the county or city take over if it’s in the alleyway it’s typically done from the cleanout or so many feet. Myself included do not deal with those type of insurance companies due to the fact that they want it done as cheaply as possible to the point of just wanting a joint fixed when the whole lines trashed and have actually tried to hassle me over the cost of pipe. Also easy insurance don’t dump grease down the drain and say no to flushable wipes.

Thanks!

Service line coverage is for your door to the street. Back up of sewage & drain is coverage from your door to inside your home.

Homeserve is subsidized by the city and if you are eligible for it, yes you should get it immediately.

This sounds like a good idea, get the system looked at first.

Another problem, is if your clothes washer does not have a lint trap, you need to use those metal mesh socks which attach to the gray water line in the slop sing. . I had a back up due to a lint build up Had to have the main sewer line in the house cleaned to the clean out to the yard. Also ask your plumber about installing a safety valve to prevent sewage backing up into the house.

I can't speak to the value of the insurance, but I will say that my sewer line collapsed a few years ago and it was Terra cotta. Cost about 7k to get it repaired. Because I didn't have insurance, I had to pay it all. Just what I wanted to spend my money on. Could have come from roots from my neighbor's tree. They had a silver maple, and they are notorious for destroying underground pipes.

Absolutely yes. Homeserve was $40/year in the city. They dug out and replaced a broken exterior clean out that blocked my sewer service. Nothing out of pocket from the plumbers that initially inspected the line to the crew that dug it out and replaced it.

Same here, ours was original terracotta and got destroyed by roots. Happened right after we bought our house and I spent $$$ landscaping. They had to dig out my entire yard and it’s been a clay pit since. In other news, anyone know a good landscaper who can level a rowhome yard for a reasonable price?

Make sure that extends beyond the footprint of your house. A lot of home insurance says it covers sewer but only means until it hits your exterior wall. Homeserve specifically covers the 10ish feet of pipe from your house to the street line which is an area the city does not cover.

I had a poor experience; it was determined that my problem was on the city side, but the city wouldn’t do anything because I didn’t have an exterior cleanout. HomeServe would not cover the cost of adding one.

The coverage I pay additionally for is "stoop to the curb". Each company could have different coverage so it's good to call and compare coverage and rates. Mine covers more than water/sewer, natural gas, underground electric and cable, which all serve my home, are covered.

That's great. Just wanted to make sure. I've seen people get duped.

If it’s a clay or cast iron pipe definitely get insurance. Pay attention to the fine print, some policies are very picky and don’t cover damage caused by a failed sewer, and/or have very low coverage amounts.

I’d say it’s worth it with the old homes. If it’s not replaced and not cast iron, it might be terra cotta? My insurance says that service line coverage covers anything under the yard, regular insurance covers anything inside the house and accessible (like a sewer pipe running along a basement wall), but anything buried in/below the concrete foundation is not covered by anything.

That is absolutely fucked

The chance of ever needing it is very low but also the cost is very low too. If u aren’t handy or good at finding specialized contractors then yes consider it, otherwise I would not get it

Tell me about it, cost me about $6k, though I did a full street to house sewer and water line replacement as the lines were terra cotta and galvanized pipe and would probably have to be done eventually. It was a whole thing.

Edit: also of like over a month of no sewer and booking a hotel on weekends so my husband and I could shower (thankfully it was mid-pandemic and no one had to smell us) it took the city like maybe two hours to fix the problem.

As they say in r/WSB… Bagholder spotted!

Not in a rowhome - But as a reference, last year my landlady replaced the drainage pipes (sorely needed). $21K total.

So act according to your aversion to risk vs expense

The lint trap thing is a good point. My washer drains into a deep sink which does have a rubber filter/stopper on the drain, but not an especially good one, and it clogs fast. I bet I can find one at Ace that’s easier to clean. Any recommendations?

Yes!

I also thought exterior line coverage (water and sewer) was a no-brainer. 30 years of insurance premiums is still cheaper than a single repair.

Get both the water and sewer line. In one year we had both go. Combined cost without insurance was $13,000 and that did not include landscape improvements after the work was done.

I have it. It's under 10 a month (have water and sewer both), so not bad.

I have a similar issue I fear but don’t want her to bump the rent up.

Something like this which you attach to the drain line with a zip tie

Thanks!

Call them and get it today. On our block, six houses have had to replace their line this year. They were all built in 1927. It's only a matter of time that the rest of the houses need it.

Agreed! We have both! We had out water main line blow up. They replaced it right away.

I buy a case of those metal mesh tubes which go over the Washer drain water hose in the slop sing. Each one lasts for about 4 loads.

https://www.amazon.com/Washing-Machine-Premium-Rustproof-Stainless/dp/B01ITKX9TG/ref=asc_df_B01ITKX9TG/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=167125770928&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=17600804153905065478&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9007921&hvtargid=pla-308479135370&psc=1