SewerScope.ca takes scope requests for every Calgary community and for nearby towns such as Airdrie, Cochrane, Okotoks, Chestermere, High River and Strathmore. Requests go through the HAUSE desk to independent providers, who confirm availability and any travel charge. For Calgary addresses, the City's public service line records give a City-side, build-era proxy for what the private line may be made of.
- Requests are accepted citywide; whether a provider can meet your date, and any travel charge outside the city, is confirmed at booking.
- The City's records cover only the City-owned stretch of each line, so community figures are a proxy for the private side, not a finding.
- Communities built in the 1960s and 1970s are mostly clay tile on the City side; many inner-city and 1950s areas mix cast iron, uncoded material and replacements.
- Towns outside Calgary set their own sewer rules; confirm responsibility with that municipality.
01 /Where can I request a sewer scope?
You can request a sewer scope for any address in Calgary and for the towns around it. The request goes to the HAUSE desk, which passes it to independent providers working in the area. HAUSE does not run inspection crews; the provider who accepts the job confirms the date, the price and any travel charge before anything is booked.
Earlier versions of this site listed a set of inner-city and established communities as priority areas. Those communities still matter, because they hold much of the city's older pipe, but a scope is just as available in Evanston or Mahogany as in Elbow Park. What changes by community is not access to a scope but how likely it is to find something.
| Town | Whose rules apply | Note for buyers |
|---|---|---|
| Airdrie | City of Airdrie | Confirm the private and municipal split with the city |
| Cochrane | Town of Cochrane | Travel charge may apply |
| Okotoks | Town of Okotoks | Travel charge may apply |
| Chestermere | City of Chestermere | Confirm the private and municipal split with the city |
| High River | Town of High River | Travel charge may apply |
| Strathmore | Town of Strathmore | Travel charge may apply |
The Calgary City records described below do not cover these towns. Each municipality sets and publishes its own rules on who owns which part of a service line, so check with the town before assuming the Calgary split applies.
02 /How can City data hint at what is under a Calgary street?
City data hints at what is under a street because the City records the material and installed date of its own section of every residential sanitary service line. The HAUSE analysis of that open dataset, fetched in September 2026, covers 367,397 active public lines. Citywide, 66.5 percent are PVC, 20.2 percent are coded TIL, generally read as clay tile, 3.3 percent are cast iron and 1.1 percent have been relined. The median install year is 1995, and 8.4 percent predate 1960.
| Community structure | Service lines | % clay tile (TIL) | % cast iron | % PVC | % relined |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inner City | 23,906 | 0.1 | 11.7 | 41.6 | 3.9 |
| 1950s | 46,833 | 23.1 | 18.5 | 22.7 | 3.8 |
| 1960s/1970s | 71,348 | 77.5 | 0.3 | 17.4 | 1.7 |
| 1980s/1990s | 70,484 | 9.1 | 0.0 | 87.6 | 0.2 |
| 2000s | 73,482 | 2.1 | 0.0 | 95.7 | 0.0 |
| 2010s and later, building out | 79,588 | 0.0 | 0.0 | about 99 | 0.0 |
The inner-city row is lower on clay tile than many expect. Much of its City-side record is coded OTHER or dates from replacement during redevelopment, which says little about an original private lateral under a 1920s house. For those older areas, a scope is the only way to know.
03 /What do the records show for established Calgary communities?
The table lists established communities that buyers often ask about, with the City's public-side figures for each. Median year is the median installed date on the City's records, which in redeveloped areas reflects newer replacements rather than the original houses.
| Community | Lines | Median year | % TIL | % CI | % PVC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Altadore | 2,239 | 2007 | 0 | 11.1 | 68.7 |
| Bowness | 3,571 | 1968 | 6 | 41.6 | 17.9 |
| Brentwood | 2,010 | 1962 | 92.5 | 0.2 | 3 |
| Charleswood | 1,344 | 1961 | 82.2 | 0.2 | 8.1 |
| Chinook Park | 494 | 1959 | 89.5 | 0.4 | 4.9 |
| Elbow Park | 1,224 | 1957 | 0.1 | 6.7 | 37.6 |
| Glenbrook | 1,716 | 1964 | 29.3 | 24.5 | 31.1 |
| Haysboro | 1,860 | 1958 | 78.4 | 1 | 4.1 |
| Inglewood | 1,037 | 1954 | 0 | 9.2 | 30.3 |
| Lakeview | 1,777 | 1963 | 88.1 | 0.4 | 8.1 |
| Mount Pleasant | 2,273 | 2004 | 0 | 8.7 | 45.6 |
| North Haven | 795 | 1964 | 85.5 | 1.8 | 8.6 |
| Ramsay | 882 | 1954 | 0.2 | 12.2 | 27 |
| Spruce Cliff | 489 | 1958 | 2.9 | 46.8 | 33.7 |
| Thorncliffe | 2,511 | 1962 | 44.7 | 5 | 4.9 |
| Westgate | 971 | 1958 | 45.5 | 0.2 | 6.1 |
Read the table in two ways. Communities like Brentwood, Lakeview and Chinook Park are dominated by clay tile on the City side, so a scope there is looking mainly for roots and joint problems. Communities like Inglewood, Ramsay and Elbow Park carry old median years but little clay tile on record, which usually means older uncoded material or scattered replacements, and a private side that could be almost anything.
04 /Which Calgary communities have already been relined?
Some older communities show a noticeable share of City-side lines already relined with cured-in-place liners. The City runs a sanitary lateral lining pilot in older communities that installs liners inside existing service pipes without excavation. On the City's records, Highwood, Glendale and University Heights each show about a fifth of lines coded CIPP, and Crescent Heights about 16 percent.
A relined City side is good news for the City's stretch, but it is not a statement about the private side, which may still be the original pipe. The Buyer Sewer Risk Check explains why a relining date should not be entered as the house's age.
05 /How do Calgary conditions affect a sewer scope?
- Winter. The camera works inside the pipe, so scopes run year-round. Surface marks on snow or frozen ground may use flags instead of paint, and any dig that follows can cost more in frost.
- Trees. Mature boulevard and backyard trees in established areas make root findings common; see common sewer line problems.
- Lanes. Many older lots are served from the lane, so the camera heads toward the back of the lot and the property line is at the rear.
- Infill. New houses on old lots may have a new private line tied to an older City section, or the reverse; the lookup and the scope together tell the story.
- City contact. For anything on the City side, Calgary residents call 311.
06 /How do I send a request for my area?
Send the full address or at least the community, your condition deadline, the package you want and what you know about the cleanout through the request form. For towns outside Calgary, mention the town so travel can be quoted. If time is short, check your book-by date with the Condition Deadline Scope Planner first.
FAQQuestions people ask
Can I request a sewer scope for a house in Airdrie or Okotoks?
Yes. Requests from surrounding towns are passed to providers who work there; availability and any travel charge are confirmed at booking.
Does the City of Calgary's service line data cover my private sewer line?
No. It covers only the City-owned stretch from the main to the property line. The private stretch may be a different material and age.
Which Calgary communities are most likely to have clay sewer lines?
On the City's records, communities built in the 1960s and 1970s, where about three-quarters of City-side lines are coded TIL, generally read as clay tile. Brentwood, Lakeview and North Haven are examples.
Are sewer scopes available in winter in Calgary?
Yes. The camera travels inside the pipe, which is buried below frost. Only surface marking and any excavation are affected by snow and frozen ground.
Why does an old inner-city community show little clay tile on the City's records?
Many older records are coded OTHER, and redevelopment has replaced some City sections. The original private lines under older houses can still be clay, cast iron or older materials.
