Sewer Line Repair and Installation in Bluffton, SC

Whose pipe

BJWSA looks after the main under the street. The sewer line from your house to the main is yours, which is why BJWSA offers optional protection plans for it. BJWSA’s 24/7 emergency line is (843) 987-9200.

How old the houses are

The median Bluffton home inside the town limits was built in 2012, and about 6 in 10 since 2010. In ZIP 29910 the median is 2007, and in ZIP 29909 (Sun City and Okatie) it is 2005 (as of 2024). Older lines are in the older streets.

Pipe life

R.S. Andrews puts Orangeburg pipe at about 50 years, cast iron at 75 to 100, clay and cement at up to 100, and PVC at more than 100.

Septic homes

Parts of Bluffton are still on septic. BJWSA’s Go2Sewer program is moving the Stoney Creek and Alljoy areas to sewer, with a grinder pump BJWSA maintains for an estimated $30 a month.

New line?

Ask BJWSA first whether sewer reaches the address. Its availability request form takes up to 10 business days to process. Howell-Chase says a municipal permit is required for a new sewer line.

Before digging

Call 811 at least 3 full working days ahead, and permits come from the Town of Bluffton inside the town limits (20 Bridge Street) and Beaufort County outside them.

One slow sink is a clog in that drain. Several fixtures backing up together, whole-house slow drainage, gurgling toilets, sewage smells, or a wet or sunken patch of yard along the line point to the sewer line itself. R.S. Andrews also lists cracks in walls and mold as signs of a broken line, and Ace’s Plumbing adds a sudden rise in rodents or insects. If the line only needs clearing, see drain cleaning in Bluffton; this page is for the line that is cracked, collapsed, root-filled or has to be replaced.

BJWSA, which provides water and sewer to most of Bluffton, looks after the main under the street. The line from your house to the main is yours, and BJWSA offers optional HomeServe protection plans for home exterior water and sewer service lines. If the backup is in the main, call BJWSA’s 24/7 emergency line at (843) 987-9200 before paying a plumber; if the camera shows the break on your side, hire one of the companies above.

A camera run is how you find out which side the problem is on. Ace’s Plumbing, Dyess and ALL Plumbing Company all inspect with a camera before they repair. The Bluffton utilities guide shows who provides sewer at your address.

Start with a camera. It shows whether the line has a crack, a root intrusion, a sag or a full collapse, and that decides between a spot repair and replacing the run. Companies here do it three ways. Traditional: dig to the damage and repair or replace the pipe; ALL Plumbing Company lists this and says it does no trenchless work. Trenchless: Howell-Chase describes pipe bursting through one small access hole, and Ace’s Plumbing offers trenchless replacement that avoids extensive excavation. Insertion or lining: Dyess describes pulling in a new pipe or a flexible liner through two small access holes, then running a flow test.

Trenchless is not always possible. Howell-Chase says an inspection decides whether it fits, and a line that is badly collapsed may still need a trench. Ask each company for the method it would use on your line and why, what happens to the driveway, oak roots and landscaping along the run, and how long the warranty lasts: Ace’s Plumbing lists a one-year work guarantee and Howell-Chase a one-year labor warranty on trenchless repair. Roots are common on the oak-shaded streets around Old Town Bluffton.

A new sewer line starts with a question for BJWSA: does sewer reach the address? Its Water and Sewer Availability Request Form takes up to 10 business days to process, and BJWSA’s office is at 6 Snake Road in Okatie. Howell-Chase lists sewer line installation as its own service, says the cost depends on the permit, the method, access and the distance to the sewer system, and says a municipal permit is required for a new line, which it offers to handle. R.S. Andrews and ALL Plumbing Company list repair and replacement, so ask whether they take a new connection.

Homes in the Stoney Creek and Alljoy areas can move from septic to sewer through BJWSA’s Go2Sewer program, which installs and maintains a grinder pump for an estimated $30 a month on the sewer bill. Septic tank pumping and drain fields are covered on the drain cleaning page.

Sewer line repair in Okatie is the same job as in Bluffton, and BJWSA’s office is in Okatie too. Howell-Chase, R.S. Andrews and ALL Plumbing Company say on their own sites that they serve Okatie. Their shops are 5.4 to 7.4 miles from Okatie Village in a straight line, and 5.6 to 7.2 miles from Sun City Hilton Head. Ace’s Plumbing and Dyess do not list Okatie, so ask before you book.

For sewer line installation in Okatie, first check whether the address is on BJWSA sewer or a septic tank, using the availability form above. The homes in ZIP 29909 are older than Bluffton’s town-limit homes: the median was built in 2005, and 29.1% since 2010 (as of 2024), so a camera inspection is worth the cost before replacing a line.

Four of the companies above say on their own websites that they serve Hardeeville: Howell-Chase, Ace’s Plumbing, R.S. Andrews and ALL Plumbing Company. For sewer line repair in Hardeeville, SC, that means a visit from Bluffton, about 11.7 to 12.7 miles from their shops to Hardeeville City Hall in a straight line. Dyess and Premier Coastal Plumbing do not list it.

Ridgeland is further, 17.1 to 20.6 miles, and Howell-Chase and Ace’s Plumbing both list Ridgeland as a town they serve. Hardeeville and Ridgeland are in Jasper County, and Jasper County’s utilities page lists the City of Hardeeville and the Town of Ridgeland as water and sewer contacts, so ask which utility serves the address before you hire anyone. The permit does not come from the Town of Bluffton or Beaufort County, so ask the company which office pulls it, and whether a trip charge applies.

Usually yes for a replacement or a new line. Inside the town limits, the Town of Bluffton’s permit application for remodels and minor projects lists plumbing among its work types and asks for the contractor’s SC LLR license number and Town business license number; the Growth Management office is at 20 Bridge Street. Outside the town limits, which covers much of the Bluffton mailing area, Beaufort County’s building codes office issues the permit. The plumber pulls it, so ask whether the quote includes it, and call 811 at least 3 full working days before anyone digs.

Repair and replacement prices depend on the length of the run, how deep it is, what sits on top of it (lawn, driveway, patio or slab), the method, the permit and how far the line is from the sewer main. A short spot repair is the smallest job; a full replacement under a driveway is the largest. At the clearing end, R.S. Andrews’ sewer page gives general ranges of $100 to $250 to snake a main line and $350 to $600 to hydro jet it, before any repair.

Ask each company for a written price that names the method, the permit, the digging and the patching, and what the warranty covers. ALL Plumbing Company gives an upfront price before work begins, Ace’s Plumbing free estimates with flat-rate pricing and 0% financing, and Howell-Chase lists financing and no service-call or dispatch fees. For other plumbing work, see the best plumbers in Bluffton and gas line repair in Bluffton.