Horizontal Directional Drilling and Boring Services
Trenchless Utility Installation Beneath Roads, Driveways & Landscapes
What Is Horizontal Directional Drilling?
Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) is a trenchless construction method that allows utilities to be installed underground without ripping open roads, destroying driveways, or decimating landscaping. SewerTime deploys precision-guided HDD rigs across Phoenix, Cave Creek, and greater Maricopa County to bore conduit paths beneath active infrastructure with zero surface disruption.
Pilot Bore, Reaming & Pullback: How Trenchless Boring Works
HDD works in three phases. First, a steerable pilot bore is driven along a calculated arc beneath the obstacle — whether that's a four-lane road, a residential driveway, or a landscaped commercial property. Our locating crew tracks the drill head in real time, keeping the bore path on target through Arizona's variable subsurface conditions.
Once the pilot bore reaches the exit point, a back-reamer is pulled back through the path, enlarging the hole to the required diameter. Then the product pipe or conduit is attached and pulled through in one continuous pass. The surface stays completely undisturbed throughout.
Our rigs are equipped with mud-motor assemblies and carbide cutting heads suited for the range of soils found in Maricopa County — from sandy fill to compacted caliche and hardpan — so we're not limited to easy conditions.
Phase 1: Pilot Bore
A steerable drill head is driven along a calculated arc beneath the obstacle. Real-time electronic locating ensures the bore path stays on trajectory through variable soil and rock conditions.
Phase 2: Back-Reaming
A reamer assembly is pulled back through the pilot hole, enlarging it to the required diameter while bentonite drilling fluid stabilizes the bore walls and flushes cuttings.
Phase 3: Product Pullback
The utility pipe, conduit, or casing is fused to a swivel and pulled through the enlarged bore in one continuous operation. Zero excavation. Zero surface damage.
Why HDD Dominates Open-Cut Trenching in Phoenix
Open-cut trenching across an active roadway in Phoenix means traffic control plans, lane closure permits, asphalt saw-cutting, backfill compaction, and repaving — a time-consuming and expensive process. HDD eliminates all of that. The drill enters on one side and exits on the other, with the pavement left completely undisturbed.
Beyond road crossings, HDD is the only viable method for installing utilities beneath established landscapes, irrigation systems, pool decks, and parking lots without destroying the surface investment. For commercial properties in Scottsdale, Tempe, and North Phoenix, this translates directly into avoided downtime and eliminated restoration costs.
- Water & Sewer Lines — Install new water mains and gravity sewer laterals beneath roads and driveways without excavation
- Fiber Optic & Electrical Conduit — Thread telecommunications and power conduit under parking lots, intersections, and canal crossings
- Gas Line Installation — Bore natural gas distribution piping beneath landscaping and hardscape without surface disruption
- Hard Ground Boring — Mud-motor assemblies and carbide tooling capable of boring through caliche, hardpan, and compacted desert soils
- Road Crossings Without Lane Closures — Eliminate traffic control plans, repaving costs, and the bureaucratic overhead of municipal lane closure permits