Ice pigging, sewer jetting starts July 7

by Eagle Staff
Published 7/2/25

The city of North Bend’s water and sewer systems will be undergoing a couple of maintenance operations in the coming days, some which may affect service, while others will not.

The city of North Bend will begin ice pigging the town’s water mains starting Monday, July 7. Ice pigging is a method of cleaning pipes by forcing an icy, slushy slurry through the pipes to pick up and carry out any debris.

The city’s water main pipes will be divided into sections with one section pigged at a time. The schedule of sections will be announced via the TextMyGov system before the process begins.

Residents who are not already receiving text messages from the city through TextMyGov can sign up by texting the number 91896 and putting “North Bend” in the message. Then reply YES to opt in. These texts will tell you when your neighborhood will be included in the ice pigging efforts.

During the ice pigging process, homes served by the mains will be asked not to use water, as the slurry could come through their pipes and into their homes if a faucet it turned on. The pigging process will affect a home for 2 to 4 hours before it can return to normal water usage.

The pigging process will start Monday at the water plant. Downtown will be worked on next Wednesday, July 9. Newer parts of town, such as the Flamme Addition on the west side and Pioneer Lake, will not undergo ice pigging.

Later this fall, certain sewer lines in town will be a slip lined, a process that seals up any cracks or leaks in the sewer pipes.
Prior to the slip lining, the pipes will need to be jetted and cleaned.

This process will also start Monday, July 7, and it should not interrupt any service.

The cleaning of lines can lead to air pressure building up in the pipes during the process. Most homes will have adequate plumbing vents and not be affected. Some homes may see the pressure causing drains to back up and water splashed out or an unpleasant odor coming from drains.

To guard against this potential problem, residents are advised to close their toilet seats and cover any floor drains with plastic and place a weight on the plastic. If unpleasant odors arise, run water into the drain to refill the drain traps.

Otherwise, water and drains may be used as normal during the jetting and cleaning process.

Residents will get notices placed on their doors when the sewer cleaning is being done in their area.

For questions call city hall, 402-652-3584, or PeopleService at 402-677-7929.

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