It’s easy to take little things for granted in every day life, especially when you can’t see them at work. But even though unseen forces often go unnoticed, it’s important not to forget about them entirely. Take sewer lines, for example. You probably make use of them at least once or twice a day, and they do more than transfer waste from place to place! They carry dirty water, clean water, and other sewage to treatment plants, homes, and every other building on the planet with plumbing.

Like all forms of pipes that run through your home and underground, sewers are in need of regular inspection and maintenance. While it takes more than a wad of paper or loose debris to clog them, that doesn’t mean they’re invincible or by any means immune to physical damage. The placement of sewer lines around homes and buildings has to be carefully thought out, and the material with which the pipes are made must be extremely durable.

A common problem for sewer lines is the placement of trees and other landscaping around them. Ideally, any tree on your property should be planted no less than 10 feet away from a sewer line to prevent what is called root intrusion. A tree’s roots can grow up to three times the width of its crown, and root intrusion occurs when a sewer line’s operation becomes compromised as a result of that growth. For this reason, among numerous others, routine sewer line inspection is required.

The best thing you can do to repair damage is to prevent it with regular inspection and maintenance. But on the off chance that the damage reaches your sewer lines before you do, repair isn’t far away! Fortunately, trenchless sewer line repairs have become more common, and allow replacement and repair without major damage to any property. Nearly 75% of home owners said that they would pay more for sewer replacement and repair if their landscaping could go unharmed. Trenchless sewer repair practices have been in use for almost 20 years, and are constantly improving, so there’s no need to fear for the life of your landscaping projects anymore.

If you’re not currently scheduling regular inspections for your sewer lines and plumbing, it’s not too late to start! Better late than never, especially when your property could risk damage at the hands of a broken or clogged pipe.