Key takeaways
- CIPP creates a new pipe inside the old one.
- The liner goes in through existing access points, so little or no digging.
- Hot water, steam or UV light cures the resin.
- A camera inspection decides whether a pipe can be lined.
The short answer
CIPP stands for cured-in-place pipe. A flexible liner soaked in resin is installed inside a damaged pipe and hardened so it becomes a new, seamless pipe within the old one. It repairs cracks, leaking joints and root intrusion without trenching up your yard or street.
What the liner is made of
Most liners are a felt tube or a glass-fiber fabric, coated on one side with a plastic film and saturated with a thermoset resin, typically polyester, vinyl ester or epoxy. The resin is what hardens. The felt or fiber carries it and gives the finished pipe its structure.
How it gets installed
After a camera inspection and a thorough cleaning, the liner is either inverted (turned inside out, using water or air pressure) or pulled into the pipe through a cleanout or manhole. It is pressed against the old pipe wall, then cured. Afterward, connections are reopened with a robotic cutter and a final camera run checks the result.
When CIPP is a good fit
Lining suits pipes that are still roughly round and in place: cracked, corroded, leaking at joints or invaded by roots. It is not suited to pipes that have fully collapsed or have severe bellies holding water. In those cases a spot dig or pipe bursting may be the better answer, and an honest contractor will say so.
What it does not fix
A liner does not correct grade, so a belly will still hold water. It also cannot hold a collapsed pipe open. That is why the camera inspection comes first, before any price or promise.
Related services
Ready for a firm answer on your own pipe? Try the Pipe Problem Finder or call 800-224-9245 for a free camera inspection.