Ready to start a trenchless pipe repair service? If the answer is yes, then you’ll need the right equipment for CIPP lining. It’s a unique and highly specialized service, so the equipment you choose makes a big difference in the repairs you can offer. Here’s a comprehensive list of equipment you’ll need to get started with CIPP lining and pipe repair.

What is CIPP Equipment?

CIPP equipment makes it possible to rehabilitate existing sewers and pipelines without extensive digging and replacement. Most CIPP installations require an air compressor, a resin impregnation system, installation equipment, curing equipment, video inspection systems to check for proper installation, and tools for cleaning and prepping the pipeline before installation.

CIPP repair uses a resin-saturated felt liner inserted into the pipeline by pulling the liner into place or inverting it with pressurized air. The liner is then cured using heat or ultraviolet light, creating a new pipe within the original pipe. The cured liner provides a durable, corrosion-resistant surface to the pipeline and resists root intrusion, chemicals, and abrasion from sediment.

Essential Equipment for CIPP Lining

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While some of the equipment for CIPP lining depends on the type of lining method used, inversion CIPP repair requires 9 key types of equipment to perform.

Inversion Drum
Cable Machine
Air Compressor
CCTV System
Calibrated Roller
Vacuum Pump
Descaling and Cleaning Tools
Curing Equipment
Finishing Tools

Along with these essential pieces of equipment, you’ll also need special materials for CIPP repairs. Again, this material varies from one method to another, but they fall in three categories:

Resin and Activators
Liners
Calibration Tubes

Together, these materials make up the new pipe once curing is complete.

How Do You Install a CIPP Liner?

To better understand how all the equipment for CIPP lining works together, let’s run through the installation process for CIPP repair.

Inspection and Cleaning

Equipment Needed: CCTV camera system, cable machine, descaling and cleaning tools

Before any pipe can be repaired, you need to inspect the pipe to assess damage and intrusion. This is an opportunity to see what you’re up against, as well as a chance to determine if CIPP repair is the right solution for the job.

CCTV camera systems allow you to see inside the line without extensive excavation. Most systems capture both video and still images on demand. Along with image capture, the cable system can be used to measure the distance between the entry point and the camera’s location, allowing you to map out the entire pipeline.

Once you’ve inspected the line, it’s time to clean it out. A cable machine with an attached chain knocker can eliminate most of the debris, blockages, and tree roots that might be clogging or breaking the pipe. After the chain knocker, you can use a hydro jetting or sanding head to clear out the remaining debris. Sanders also help provide some abrasion to improve the CIPP liner’s adhesion.

CIPP Lining Prep

Equipment Needed: Vacuum Pump, Calibrated Roller, Inversion Drum

Materials Needed: Felt Pipe Liner, Resin

With the damaged pipe cleaned and prepped, it’s time to get the liner ready to install. Start by preparing the resin you’ll use for the repair. We’ll talk about the different types of resin and activators later.

The felt pipe liner will need to be saturated or impregnated with the resin. The calibrated roller helps evenly distribute the resin throughout the liner while the vacuum pump removes any air from the liner. If the air isn’t removed, you could end up with voids in your CIPP liner, resulting in potential points of failure.

The impregnated liner now goes into the inversion drum. This piece of equipment (which is available in various sizes) allows you to easily store the liner until you’re ready to install it. It’s also the main piece of equipment for CIPP lining repairs using the inversion method.

CIPP Installation

Equipment Needed: Inversion Drum, Air Compressor

With the liner in the inversion drum, you’ll use compressed air to invert the liner and install it within the damaged pipeline. The key to smooth installation is a properly secured liner (clamped onto the inversion drum’s nozzle) and an air compressor that can provide consistent and controllable pressurized air through the liner.

Once the liner is fully extended, turn off the air compressor. It’s time to cure the liner.

Curing

Equipment Needed: Calibration Tube, Manifold, Curing System

Curing equipment for CIPP lining is designed to provide temperature- and pressure-controlled conditions within the felt pipe liner while also allowing hot water, steam, or a UV lantern to pass through the liner.

To do this, you’ll use a calibration tube. This tube, which is also inverted into the damaged pipe, provides a membrane that keeps the liner properly shaped with pressurized air or water. Again, we’ll dive into the curing process more below.

The key to keeping the pressure consistent during curing is the manifold, which caps off the liner and calibration tube and keeps the air pressure consistent until the curing is complete. For hot water curing, that pressure is maintained with the curing system.

Finishing and Final Inspection

Equipment Needed: Cutting Tools, CCTV System, Cable Machine

Your newly installed pipe liner will have no holes, breaks, or joints when initially installed. You’ll need to cut out any lateral connections and remove excess pipe at the end of the pipe if connecting to the sewer main. The best way to do this is through a combination of cutting tools and the use of your CCTV camera system.

You may also need to sand and smooth portions of the new pipe liner to allow for minimal obstruction to flow. Use sanding heads for this.

Once all laterals and terminals are cut in and finished, a final visual inspection confirms the pipe’s condition. Now it’s ready for use again.

Types of Curing Materials and Equipment for CIPP Lining

As we mentioned above, part of your equipment and process depends on the type of curing materials you use for your trenchless repairs. We offer three types of resins for various jobs. Here’s what you need to know.

Vinylester Resin

This type of resin hardens with the addition of a powder activator. While it’s not as strong as epoxy resins, vinylester resins provide a reliable and waterproof solution for CIPP repairs.

Two-Part Epoxy Resin

Two-part epoxy resins have been the standard for decades. You’ll start by mixing the resins, which triggers activation, using different hardeners for different cure speeds (15, 30, and 60), allowing for faster cures on smaller jobs and slower cures on bigger jobs.

When you’re ready to impregnate the liner, mix the resin base and activator together. The chemical reaction between the two will start immediately. Once the liner is in place and the calibration tube is pressurized, the epoxy resin can start curing. Epoxy resins like this can cure with ambient temperatures (usually around 77 degrees Fahrenheit) or with hot water or steam.

A hot water curing system can decrease your wait time significantly. Instead of pressurized air, the resin cures with the aid of hot water that is circulated through the calibration tube at temperatures between 140 degrees and 180 degrees.

UV-Activated Resin

For the fastest curing times, UV-activated resin is your go-to material. This type of resin hardens almost instantly (around 90 seconds) when exposed to UV light. By shortening the time it takes to complete a repair using UV resin materials and equipment for CIPP lining, you can offset the additional cost of this type of system.

Training Your Team on Pipe Lining Equipment the Right Way

When you’re ready to start working with CIPP lining equipment, you’ll want to provide your teams with industry-leading training. Extensive and thorough training allows you to repair any pipe with confidence. And that’s what we do at T3 Lining Supply.

Not only do we offer some of the best materials and equipment for CIPP lining in the industry, but we also provide leading-edge training opportunities that fit any need. You can bring your team to either of our locations, or we can come to you. We even offer virtual training.

And if you already have the equipment, you can still train with us. We can help you get the most out of any equipment you use, even if it’s not something we sell.

Interested in CIPP lining equipment and training for your pipe repair or plumbing business? Contact us today to see how T3 can help you and your teams with industry-best trenchless pipe repair!

Equipment for CIPP Lining: The 9 Most Important Tools You Need