In short
- Sewer camera inspection runs $400–$660 in a Canada-wide HomeStars guide; Ottawa firms set the price once they hear the job.
- Some Ottawa firms include a camera on larger drains and bill it extra on small ones.
- The lateral belongs to the homeowner from the property line to the house and to the City from the property line to the street.
- A video with a measured distance is the document you need if the fault turns out to be on City property.
Typical prices in Ottawa
| Job | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sewer camera inspection | $400–$660 | Canada-wide HomeStars guide, seen 29.10.2026 |
| Sewer line cleaning | $230–$590 | Canada-wide guide; often follows the camera |
| Sewer main line repair | $1,310–$5,250 | Canada-wide guide; what the camera result can lead to |
| Household sewer line work (trenchless or open) | $3,500–$20,000 | One Ottawa firm’s page; $60–$200 per foot |
Sources. HomeStars, Guide to Plumbing Costs in Canada, seen 29.10.2026. Mr. Rooter Plumbing of Ottawa, trenchless sewer line repair, seen 29.10.2026 (one firm’s figures). Mr. Rooter, drain cleaning cost in Ottawa, seen 29.10.2026. Mr. Rooter, signs you need main sewer line repair, seen 29.10.2026. Mr. Rooter, drain inspection, seen 29.10.2026. City of Ottawa: Responsibility for sewer laterals, Responsibility for the repair costs, What to do if your basement has flooded, seen 29.10.2026.
When a camera earns its fee
A cable or a jetter clears a blockage. A camera tells you why it formed. Reasons to book one: the same drain blocked twice, several fixtures gurgle at once, a floor drain backs up, sewage odour in the basement, wet patches on the lawn, or a home purchase where the sewer line is old.
The technician feeds the camera head down the clean-out, or through a toilet flange or floor drain when there is no clean-out, and watches the live picture. Roots, cracks, sags, offset joints, scale and lost objects all show up. A locator on the lawn then marks where the head stopped, so the fault gets a spot on the ground as well as a distance.
What the video can show
One Ottawa firm names the common findings: blockages, leaks from cracked or broken pipes, tree root infiltration, corrosion, structural issues and sediment build-up. Pipe material is worth knowing, and the question on buying an older house, on this page, gives the firm’s service-life figures by material. It also ties cast iron and other steel-based sewer pipes installed in the 1950s or earlier to rust and root penetration.
Those are one firm’s figures. Your own video is the proof for your own house.
Price and what moves it
The Canada-wide HomeStars guide puts a sewer camera inspection at $400–$660. We found no Ottawa firm that prints its own number, so the company sets the price after it hears the job. One Ottawa firm says a camera is usually included for larger drains and not always on small ones. When the camera comes with a cleaning, the inspection may be folded in. Ask which applies.
Longer lines, awkward access and a second visit for repair estimating all add time. A quote should say what the number covers: the video, a written summary and a measured distance to each defect.
Property line and who pays
Here the camera does a second job. Ottawa splits the lateral at the property line: the house side is yours, the street side is the City’s. The measured distance on the video tells you which side a defect sits on. City-owned tree roots, or damage on City property, shift the cost to the City, and reimbursement is claimed through its Claims Unit, capped at what the City would pay its own contractor. The full split is on the sewer line repair page.
For a claim, keep three things: the video file, the distance from the clean-out to the defect, and a dated note from the company naming the pipe material.
After the camera
Findings lead to one of three paths: cleaning (see hydro jetting), repair or relining (see sewer line repair), or a protective device (see backwater valve). Canada-wide, the HomeStars guide gives $1,310–$5,250 for a sewer main line repair, and one Ottawa firm gives $3,500–$20,000 for a household sewer line, or $60 to $200 per foot. The drain cleaning cost page puts the cleaning figures beside them.
Who you are dealing with
The desk itself owns no camera. Your request goes to a single independent plumbing company in Ottawa, and that company runs the inspection, sets its fee and writes the report. Ask on the first call whether the video file is yours to keep, and in what format.
Questions to ask the company
- Do I get the full video file, or just a few photos?
- Will the report give the distance from the clean-out to each defect?
- Does the report name the pipe material and the condition of the joints?
- If you find a fault, do you price the repair separately and in writing?
- Is the camera price credited if I book the cleaning or repair with you?
Have this ready for the call
- Why you want the inspection: repeat backups, roots, a purchase or an insurance request
- Where the clean-out is: usually a capped stub set in the basement floor toward the front of the house, close to the water meter. Clear a metre around it
- The year the house was built and any past sewer work or relining paperwork
- A list of which drains were slow and when the last backup happened
- For a purchase, the seller's or agent's consent for access and the timing of the conditional period
Questions people ask
Can a camera tell me whether the problem is mine or the City's?
It can show where the defect sits. The company measures the distance from the clean-out, and you compare that with where your property line crosses the lateral. If the defect lies on the City side, ask for the video and a written note, and report it to 3-1-1. The City’s Claims Unit handles reimbursement.
Is a camera worth doing before buying an older house?
It shows pipe material and condition before the sale closes. One Ottawa firm ties cast iron and other steel-based sewer pipes installed in the 1950s or earlier to rust and root penetration. The same firm lists approximate service lives in years: Orangeburg about 50, cast iron 75 to 100, clay and cement up to 100, and PVC over 40.
What can the camera find besides a clog?
One Ottawa firm lists blockages from food, soap scum, grease or foreign objects, leaks from cracked or broken pipes, tree root infiltration, corrosion, structural issues and sediment build-up. Another of its pages says a leaking sewer attracts roots, so a root finding often points to a joint or crack to fix.
Why does one company bill the camera and another include it?
One Ottawa firm says cameras are usually included for larger drains and do not always come with the standard rate on small ones. Ask whether your drain is in the included group and whether the cost is credited when the cleaning goes ahead.
Should the line be filmed before a backwater valve goes in?
The valve is cut into the same lateral the camera films, so a crack, sag or root mass near the planned spot changes the job. A video taken first lets the company price the valve and any pipe repair together, and shows the condition the City inspector will see at the open trench.
