MAWSS left a cleanout cap kit at my house. How long do I have?

Seven days to put the cap on. The policy also gives the owner 30 days to install the cap and notify MAWSS. If the cap isn't installed within those initial 30 days, its policy bills a monthly penalty for up to 90 days and then shuts off service at the address. MAWSS hands out the kit only once per ownership, so a cracked riser that won't hold a cap needs a plumber, not a second kit.

Where exactly does Mobile want the two-way fitting?

On the lateral, at the point where the service lateral joins the building sewer, outside the right-of-way, and before the pipe makes any vertical or horizontal offset. That's a City of Mobile amendment to the 2021 plumbing code. Ask the plumber to mark the spot on the camera footage before anyone digs.

Can a plumber just pull a toilet instead of adding a cleanout?

Not for the junction cleanout. The 2021 code says the cleanout serving the house-to-sewer junction can't depend on removing a toilet. It matters for later work too: HomeGuide notes that jetting costs least when there's a cleanout, and that homes without one need a toilet pulled or a hole dug.

My old cleanout is buried under the lawn. Is that allowed?

A buried cleanout doesn't meet the current code for new or replaced work, which says cleanouts below grade must come up to grade with the plug at or above the surface. Raising it also lets you see at a glance whether the cap is still on, which MAWSS checks for.

Sewer Cleanout Installation in Mobile, AL

Cleanout price: HomeGuide's national guide puts adding a sewer cleanout at $500 to $2,000.
Missing cap clock: MAWSS policy gives 7 days to replace a missing cap after it leaves a cap kit, and 30 days to install the cap and notify MAWSS before monthly penalties start.
Where the city wants one: Mobile's plumbing code requires a two-way cleanout where the private lateral meets the building sewer, outside the right-of-way.
Spacing and size: the 2021 plumbing code adds one within 10 feet of the house junction and every 100 feet, the same size as the pipe up to 4 inches.

Mobile Sewer Line Replacement passes cleanout requests to a plumber. In Alabama, only a master plumber may contract for plumbing work. Ask the quote to spell out the fitting cut into the lateral (Mobile's code sets the lateral at 4 inches or larger), the riser brought up to grade with a plug on top, or a traffic-rated assembly where cars drive over it.

Sewer Cleanout Installation Jobs on a Private Lateral

A cleanout is a capped pipe rising from the sewer line to the surface, the door a camera, cable or jetter goes through. MAWSS's lateral diagram shows two on the private side of a typical house: a building cleanout near the wall and a property-line cleanout near the street.

New white PVC two-way sewer cleanout fitting with two capped risers in an open trench near a lawn edge

Two-Way Cleanout Where the Lateral Meets the House Line

This is the fitting Mobile asks for by name (the FAQ below gives its exact location). The code's default cleanout only allows cleaning in the direction of flow; a two-way fitting opens both ways, toward the house and toward the street.

Building Cleanout Beside the Foundation

The 2021 plumbing code that Mobile adopted wants a cleanout at the junction of the building drain and building sewer, or just upstream of it. Required cleanouts can't be hidden: the code asks for 18 inches of clear space in front of the opening for 6-inch and smaller pipe.

Extra Cleanouts on a Long or Bent Run

MAWSS describes private laterals as generally 50 to 150 feet long. The code adds a cleanout at least every 100 feet on a building sewer under 8 inches, and at any horizontal turn sharper than 45 degrees. A long lateral that doglegs around a tree or a slab can need a third opening.

Cracked white PVC sewer cleanout riser with its cap missing, sitting in green lawn grass

Broken Riser Top or Lost Cap

An open riser is a straight path for rainwater into the sewer, which is why MAWSS asks owners to replace missing or broken caps. If a mower has snapped the riser below the threads, a new cap has nothing to hold onto, and the riser itself needs repair. MAWSS's 2025 fee schedule lists its unauthorized stormwater inflow charge at $30 a month for a non-rental home and $90 for other properties.

Traffic-Rated Cleanout in a Driveway or Walk

Where a cleanout sits under car or truck traffic, the code calls for a cleanout assembly built to ASME A112.36.2M. In a walk with no trim cover, the plug is countersunk flush with the surface so nobody trips on it.

Gloved hands holding a sewer camera monitor showing a cracked clay pipe joint with roots, beside an open cleanout in a lawn

Why Mobile homeowners, landlords and businesses call Mobile Sewer Line Replacement

One licensed plumber gets the request, not a bidding list
No charge to you for the introduction
Ask to keep the camera video from before and after
Alabama plumbing licenses can be checked online

Sewer Cleanout Cost: Depth, Pipe and What Sits on Top

HomeGuide's $500 to $2,000 range covers a lot of ground, and the guide doesn't split it by job. The one add-on it does price is concrete: removal runs $3 to $8 a square foot extra, which matters for a cleanout in a driveway or patio. For history only, MAWSS's 2014-2017 lateral program contract listed a 4-inch cleanout at $125 each, one contractor's unit price inside a full replacement, not a standalone job.

Ask the quote to say:

how deep the lateral is at the cleanout spot, and how that was found;
whether the plumbing permit is included (permit details are on the trenchless replacement page);
whether the new cleanout will be used to film the line before the hole is closed.

With a new opening in place, a camera inspection can show whether the cleanout is the whole job or the first step of a bigger repair.

MAWSS and the Cleanout on Your Lateral

The private lateral, and every cleanout on it, belongs to the property owner. MAWSS's policy manual tells customers to follow the City Plumbing Code by installing proper cleanouts and backflow preventers on their lines, so a cleanout is part of what a lateral should have, not an upgrade. If a MAWSS smoke test or camera run turned up more than a missing cap, the 180-day defect letter rules apply; the sewer line repair page walks through them. A house that sits low against the street may also need a backwater valve, and the code wants its working parts left reachable, so ask where the access lid will sit.