# PipeBursting.ca

> Pipe bursting explained from the pit up — how the head breaks the old line, when it fits, when it does not, and what it costs. PipeBursting.ca is part of the HAUSE Sewer network — an independent Canadian information and service-request network (not a contractor). Contact: sewers@hause.ca, 403-679-3100.

Pipe bursting is a trenchless method for replacing a buried pipe. A cone-shaped head is pulled through the old pipe from a launch pit to a receiving pit, breaking it and pushing the fragments into the soil, while a new continuous pipe, usually fused HDPE, follows in the same path. It suits broken or undersized brittle pipe and can install a larger pipe, but it keeps the old route and grade.

## Guides

### Basics
- [What is pipe bursting, and how does it actually work?](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/what-is-pipe-bursting/): What is pipe bursting? A plain explanation of how a bursting head breaks an old sewer or water pipe underground and pulls a new HDPE line in behind it.

### Compare
- [Pipe bursting vs lining: when replacing beats relining](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/pipe-bursting-vs-lining/): Pipe bursting vs CIPP lining and sliplining, from the bursting side: pipe condition, size, connections, pits and cost ranges, with a decision table.
- [Pipe bursting vs open cut (and directional drilling): which way to replace a line](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/pipe-bursting-vs-open-cut/): Pipe bursting vs open cut trenching and directional drilling: depth, surface, grade, connections and cost ranges for replacing a sewer or water line.

### Methods
- [HDPE pipe for bursting: wall thickness, butt fusion and the rest before tie-in](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/hdpe-pipe-and-fusion/): Why pipe bursting uses HDPE pipe: dimension ratio (DR) choices, how butt fusion joints are made, stretch and rest, bend limits and how long HDPE may last.
- [Upsizing by pipe bursting: how far to go and what it costs the ground](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/pipe-bursting-upsizing/): Pipe bursting upsizing explained: one-size and two-size upsizes, expander oversize, how much soil is displaced per metre, and when a bigger pipe is worth it.
- [Static, pneumatic and split bursting: how the heads differ and when each is used](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/static-vs-pneumatic-pipe-bursting/): Static vs pneumatic pipe bursting, plus split bursting and hydraulic expansion: how each head delivers force, what it suits, and what to ask an installer.
- [Which pipe materials can be burst, and which ones fight back?](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/which-pipes-can-be-burst/): Which pipes can be burst: how clay, cast iron, concrete, Orangeburg, asbestos-cement, PVC, ductile iron, copper and lead behave under a pipe bursting head.

### Planning
- [Choosing a pipe bursting contractor: the survey, the quote and the warranty](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/pipe-bursting-contractor-survey/): How to choose a pipe bursting contractor: what a proper site survey covers, questions to ask, red flags in a quote, and what the warranty should include.
- [Pits and site layout for pipe bursting: where the holes go and why](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/pipe-bursting-pits-and-layout/): Pipe bursting pits explained: launch and receiving pits, service and obstruction pits, lay-down room for fused pipe, shoring, locates and the site plan.
- [Pipe bursting risks and problems: ground movement, nearby utilities and stuck heads](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/pipe-bursting-risks-and-problems/): Pipe bursting problems and limits: surface heave, vibration, clearance to gas and water lines, stuck heads, groundwater, and how installers plan around each.
- [Does pipe bursting follow a sag? Grade, bellies and alignment explained](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/pipe-bursting-sags-and-grade/): Does pipe bursting fix a sag or belly in a sewer line? Why the head follows the old grade, when a sag shrinks or worsens, and how installers correct it first.

### Projects
- [Commercial, multi-unit and municipal pipe bursting](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/commercial-and-municipal-pipe-bursting/): Pipe bursting sewer mains and commercial or multi-unit building sewers: manhole runs, bypass pumping, service reconnections, difficulty classes and bids.
- [Bursting a house sewer lateral: what happens, day by day](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/sewer-lateral-pipe-bursting/): Sewer lateral pipe bursting day by day: camera survey, permit and locates, pits, the pull, reconnection at both ends, inspection and restoration.
- [Bursting water lines: house services, lead pipe and water mains](https://pipebursting.ca/guides/water-line-pipe-bursting/): Pipe bursting for water lines: replacing copper, galvanized and lead services and cast iron, PVC or ductile iron mains with potable pipe and testing.

## Tools, costs and reference
- [Pipe bursting cost: what drives a bursting quote in 2026](https://pipebursting.ca/costs/pipe-bursting-cost/): Pipe bursting cost in Canada for 2026: planning ranges in CAD for a sewer lateral, per metre and per pit, plus the site factors that move a bursting quote.
- [Pipe Bursting Fit Check](https://pipebursting.ca/tools/pipe-bursting-fit-check/): Is your sewer or water line a pipe bursting candidate? Score host material, depth, soil, utilities, connections and camera findings, and see the likely method.
- [Upsizing & Displacement Calculator](https://pipebursting.ca/tools/upsizing-displacement-calculator/): Calculate how much soil a pipe bursting head pushes aside: expander size, litres displaced per metre and per run, and the upsizing ratio, drawn to scale.
- [Pipe bursting in Calgary: which lines are candidates, and what to check first](https://pipebursting.ca/calgary/): Pipe bursting in Calgary: City data on clay tile sewer service lines by community, who owns which part, locates, permits and what makes a Calgary line a candidate.
- [Pipe bursting glossary](https://pipebursting.ca/glossary/): Pipe bursting terms in plain English: static, pneumatic and split heads, expanders, pits, HDPE, DR, butt fusion, upsizing, heave, bypass and more than 70 others.
- [Pipe bursting questions, answered briefly](https://pipebursting.ca/faq/): Pipe bursting FAQ: how it works, which pipes qualify, upsizing, pits, sags, utilities, timelines, permits, costs and hiring, in short answers.

## Network
- [PipeCleaning.ca](https://pipecleaning.ca/): The Canadian field manual for cleaning drain and sewer pipes — by method, by material, by house.
- [SewerQuotes.com](https://sewerquotes.com/): What sewer work should cost, what a fair quote contains, and how to compare three of them.
- [SewerInspector.ca](https://sewerinspector.ca/): Sewer camera inspections, explained frame by frame — before you buy, renovate or dig.
- [DrainAugering.ca](https://drainaugering.ca/): Find the clog, pick the right cable, and know when augering is the wrong tool.
- [SewerCleaners.ca](https://sewercleaners.ca/): Hiring a sewer cleaner, keeping the line clear, and stopping backups before they start.
- [SewerRoots.ca](https://sewerroots.ca/): Tree roots in sewer lines — why they get in, which trees are worst, and how to stop them for good.
- [SewerJetting.ca](https://sewerjetting.ca/): Hydro jetting, pressure by pressure — what it clears, what it can break, and when it is worth it.

## Optional
- [Full text for language models](https://pipebursting.ca/llms-full.txt)
- [Editorial standards](https://pipebursting.ca/about/)