Stafford upgrades sewer repair strategy to avoid road closures

This year, Stafford County will improve sewer infrastructure using a new technique, inversion lining, to avoid the usual destructive and lengthy road closures.

With over 500 miles of underground sewer pipes, these road closures are standard when it comes time to replace or repair aging sewer pipes.

Inversion lining is a trenchless pipe rehabilitation technique that has several advantages for taxpayers.

• On average, it costs 30 percent less than the alternative.
• It is an environmentally-friendly repair that expands the life of existing pipes by making them more resistant to chemicals and corrosion.
• Installation time is much shorter, causing less disruption to residents.
• It is also safe for customers after installation is complete.

What to Expect

Stafford County crews will be lining pipes throughout the county over the next twelve months. Here is what you can expect if you see crews lining pipes in your neighborhood:

• You may hear a loud popping sound as the lining expands through the sewer pipes.
• You may notice an odor that smells similar to glue from the resin used to coat the new interior pipe wall surface.
• You may see steam rising from within the manholes.
• The process typically takes an average of five to six hours per pipe section to complete.
• While crews are working in your area, residents are asked to reduce water usage as much as possible while the pipe liner cures.
• You will see crews and vehicles along the roadways. Please exercise caution while driving around them.

How Inversion Lining Works

This no-dig, cured-in-place pipe relining system works by essentially creating a pipe within a pipe.

The liner is saturated with epoxy resin and is turned inside-out and then installed through maintenance holes.

Through pressurized air, the liner is pushed through the pipe, and then steam is moved through the pipe liner, causing the resin to harden and create a structural, tight-fitting liner inside of the host pipe.