How to Hire a Sewer Contractor in Maryland

Who licenses sewer contractors in Maryland

The Maryland State Board of Plumbing, within the Department of Labor's Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing, licenses apprentices, journey plumbers and master plumbers. Only an insured master plumber may contract to perform plumbing services, and the master must display the license number on each job vehicle. State law requires the master to carry general liability and property damage coverage, with the certificate on file with the board. Maryland treats the house connection on private property as plumbing, so lateral repair and renewal are master-plumber work, and the two large utilities reinforce that: WSSC Water has the master plumber expose the main and call for the tap, and Baltimore City requires a master licensed by the city or state. Verify the master in the Department of Labor's online license search, which shows status and expiration, and ask for the insurance certificate.

Permits and inspections

The permit depends on who owns the sewer. In Montgomery and Prince George's counties, WSSC Water issues the service connection permit through its ePermitting system and inspects the connection; the county issues the right-of-way permit for any street cut. In Baltimore City, the Department of Public Works issues the sewer connection permit and its inspectors view the trench, while the Department of Transportation permits the street opening. Other counties run the sewer permit through their utilities departments with a county plumbing inspector on the trench. Expect an inspection of the open trench and connection before backfill; where the line is lined, the post-lining video stands in. Miss Utility, Maryland's one-call center, must be notified two business days before digging. The master plumber pulls the permit.

Who owns the pipe under the street

Maryland splits three ways. In WSSC territory, every foot of service pipe built from an existing main is the property owner's responsibility, and the utility maintains only the tap on the main, so a break under a Silver Spring or Bowie street is the owner's to fix. Baltimore City draws the line at the property line: its Department of Public Works inspects and repairs the public portion of the lateral and notifies the owner when the defect sits on the private side. Most other counties, including Baltimore County and Anne Arundel, appear to follow the property-line convention, though a few leave the whole house connection to the owner; confirm with the county utilities office before paying for street work. Maryland has no statewide point-of-sale lateral inspection law.

What is under Maryland, and why it shapes the bid

Maryland's geology changes at the fall line. Baltimore, Columbia, Rockville and Frederick sit on Piedmont clay and saprolite, a decomposed rock that digs easily until it turns to hard gneiss a few feet down, so rock allowances belong in bids there. Annapolis, Waldorf, Salisbury and the Eastern Shore are coastal-plain sand with a shallow water table that floods a trench and requires pumping. Baltimore rowhouses from the 1890s through the 1930s have terra cotta laterals, often sharing a common run under the alley with a neighbor; post-war suburbs used clay and cast iron, with Orangeburg in some 1950s tracts and PVC after about 1975. Frost reaches about two and a half feet, so laterals are moderate in depth.

For the lining methods themselves, the Sewer Pipe Lining Maryland pipe lining guide goes into what fails in the ground here and which method fits.

What a Maryland sewer bid must include

• The Maryland master plumber's name and State Board of Plumbing license number, which must match the name on the permit.
• The WSSC service connection permit, the Baltimore City DPW sewer permit or the county equivalent, with who applies.
• The county or city right-of-way permit for any street cut, with pavement restoration to the utility's standard.
• Rock excavation in the Piedmont or dewatering on the coastal plain as separate unit-priced items.
• Confirmation that the utility inspector will see the connection before backfill, plus a camera recording.

The full checklist, for any state, is on what a sewer bid should include.

Red flags in Maryland

• A company with no Maryland master plumber in the State Board of Plumbing's license search, since only a master may contract for plumbing.
• A WSSC-area bid that expects the utility to pay for the street segment, when WSSC assigns the whole service pipe to the owner.
• A Baltimore City bid for the public side of the property line without first asking the city to inspect it.
• No Miss Utility ticket before the dig.

Finding a sewer contractor in Maryland

Maryland does not yet have a verified contractor listed on this site, which is why the number on this page rings the national line. Call it or send the form with the property address and what the symptoms or the camera are showing, and we will locate a qualified sewer contractor near you, screen them the same way we screen every listing, and make the introduction. There is no charge for that. You can also search the CIPP Verified Installer directory yourself.

Estimates are free. Call now. (855) 804-1434

Where Maryland property owners ask for help most

The rules above apply statewide; the communities below are the ones that generate the most questions.

Maryland sewer contractor questions

Who can legally renew a sewer line in Maryland?

An insured Maryland master plumber, or a company that employs one and puts that master's license number on the permit and the trucks. The State Board of Plumbing licenses masters, journey plumbers and apprentices; only the master may contract for the work. Verify the number in the Department of Labor search.

Who owns the sewer under the street in Montgomery County, Maryland?

You do. In WSSC Water territory the service pipe from the house to the main is the property owner's responsibility for its full length, and WSSC maintains only the tap on the main. A break under a Silver Spring street is therefore a private repair under a WSSC permit.

Does Baltimore City fix part of my lateral?

Yes, the public portion. Baltimore's Department of Public Works inspects laterals from the cleanout and repairs or lines the segment in the public right-of-way, then notifies the owner if the defect is on the private side. Call the city before paying a Maryland contractor for street work.

What permits does a lateral job need in Maryland?

A sewer connection permit from the utility that owns the main, such as WSSC, Baltimore City DPW or the county utilities department, plus a right-of-way permit from the county or city for any street cut. The master plumber pulls both, and the inspector views the connection before backfill.

Why do Maryland bids carry rock or dewatering allowances?

Geography. West of the fall line, Baltimore and Frederick laterals sit in saprolite over hard rock, so a trench can hit gneiss a few feet down. East of it, in Annapolis or Salisbury, the water table is near the surface and the trench floods. A Maryland bid should say which it expects.

The short version for Maryland

In Maryland, camera first, then ask the utility where your responsibility ends, because WSSC, Baltimore City and the counties each answer differently. Verify the master plumber with the State Board of Plumbing. Compare bids that name the same permit, allowances for rock or groundwater, and restoration. Have the inspector see the connection before backfill, and keep the video with the permit.

Estimates are free. Call now. (855) 804-1434

Sources checked for this page: labor.maryland.gov/License/pl/plnolic.shtml · onestop.md.gov/licenses/master-plumber-gas-fitter-license-5d... · www.wsscwater.com/work-us/permit-services/service-connection... · publicworks.baltimorecity.gov/node/8623