Plumbing & water

Books and taxes for sewer line replacement companies.

A pipe bursting job that runs for days, a street cut permit, a deposit collected up front, and financing on a bill that can run past ten thousand dollars. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.

Book a call What we handle
  • From $197 a month
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever
JuneExample month
$17,700
what you made

June came in at $17,700. The Oakdale Avenue job finished this month, so I moved the deposit taken back in May into June's income now that the line is actually in the ground.

  • Successware payoutTrenchless replacement jobs
  • Foundation Finance payoutFinanced replacements
  • City street cut permitPermits and bonds
  • Core & Main invoicePipe and lining materials
  • Equipment rental, bypass pumpRental equipment
Money in$74,500
Money out$56,800
Set aside for taxes$5,000
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

Sewer replacement books go wrong in the same few places.

A generalist sees a big check and a big bill. Your business is deposits collected weeks before the crew shows up, street cut permits and bonds, and a bursting rig that costs as much as a truck. When the books do not know that, a five-figure job can make one month look great and the next look empty.

  1. 1

    Deposits get counted as income too early

    A trenchless replacement often collects a third of the price as a deposit before the crew ever digs. Booked as income on receipt, the deposit month looks flush and the finish month, when most of the real cost lands, looks like a loss.

    What we doHolds the deposit against the job and moves it into income when the line is actually finished, so each month reflects the work that happened in it.
  2. 2

    Permit and bond costs disappear into one job total

    A street cut permit, a right-of-way bond, and inspection fees can run into real money on a single replacement, and lumped into the job cost you cannot tell if a permit-heavy job is still worth the price you quoted.

    What we doKeeps permit and bond costs in their own line, tied to the job, so you can see what city work actually costs you before you bid the next one.
  3. 3

    The bursting rig is not a supply purchase

    A pipe bursting head or a lining rig can cost tens of thousands of dollars. Filed as a supply run, it wrecks the month it is bought in and misses the write-off it usually qualifies for.

    What we doFlags large equipment purchases the day they post, logs them as equipment, and gets the accountant's call on how to write them off.
  4. 4

    Financing on a five-figure job is a real cost

    When a $12,000 sewer replacement gets financed, the lender's fee is not pocket change. Folded into the sale, you cannot see how much offering financing actually costs you across a year of big jobs.

    What we doBooks the full invoice as money in and the lender's cut as its own fee, so the real cost of financing large jobs is visible.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for a sewer replacement company.

Set up once for how you get paid and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.

Money in

  • Trenchless replacement jobsPipe bursting and cured-in-place lining, billed by the job.
  • Open trench replacementTraditional dig-and-replace jobs, kept apart from trenchless work.
  • Financed replacementsThe full job amount, with the lender's cut booked as a fee.
  • Job depositsTracked against the job until the line is finished.
  • Camera inspection and diagnosisStandalone sewer scopes billed before a repair is quoted.

Money out

  • Crew wagesKept apart so you can see labor against the jobs it ran.
  • Pipe and lining materialsLiner, resin, and pipe from the supply house.
  • Permits and bondsStreet cut permits, right-of-way bonds, and inspection fees.
  • EquipmentBursting rigs, lining equipment, and cameras, logged so they get written off right.
  • Rental equipmentBypass pumps and trench boxes rented for a single job.
  • Truck and fuelFuel, repairs, insurance, and loan interest for the fleet.
  • Disposal feesSpoil hauling and debris disposal.
  • Financing and card feesWhat the lender, Square, or Stripe kept before you got paid.

What we watch for you

  • Deposit backlog

    How much collected deposit money belongs to jobs not yet finished.

  • Permit cost per job

    What city permits and bonds run on average, so bids account for it.

  • Financing cost

    What lenders keep on financed replacements, which run high ticket.

  • The set-aside

    What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.

Ask Gus

Things sewer replacement owners ask Gus.

Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.

The Oakdale job finished but June looks worse than May. What happened?

May had the deposit, June had the real cost of finishing it. I moved the deposit into June's income so the month actually shows what the job made.

The city permit and bond on that last job cost more than I expected. Is that normal?

I have your permit costs from the last six jobs sitting in one line. Worth a look before you bid the next street cut job the same way.

I want to buy a new bursting head. Does that all come off this year?

Usually it can. I logged it as equipment, not supplies, and flagged it so the accountant makes the call with your whole year in view.

The tax side

The tax side of a sewer replacement business.

Most of what goes wrong here is timing and labels: deposits counted too early, equipment filed as supplies, and permit costs that disappear into a job total.

What your return has to get right

Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.

  • Bursting rigs and heavy equipmentBusiness equipment can usually be written off the year you buy it. Bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025. Whether to take it all now depends on the year you are having.
  • Contractor 1099sAnyone not on payroll who you paid $2,000 or more in 2026 gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps that list all year.
  • When income countsA deposit collected before work starts is not yet fully earned income. Gus tracks it against the job so it lands on the books when the work is actually done.
  • The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.

Deductions sewer line repair and trenchless replacement companies miss

Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.

  • Truck and equipment fuel
  • Liner and resin materials
  • Rental equipment fees
  • Street cut permits
  • Right-of-way bonds
  • Camera and locator repairs
  • Uniforms with your logo
  • Google local services ads
  • Dump and disposal fees
  • Phone and tablet for dispatch
  • License and bonding renewal
  • Financing and card fees

General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.

All year, not just April

A sewer replacement year, kept every month.

Big jobs come on their own schedule. Your taxes come on a schedule. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.

  1. January

    Plan the year

    Last year's return gets started, the 1099 list is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.

  2. April

    Filed. Done.

    Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.

  3. July

    Halfway check

    Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether the spring backlog of finished deposits changed the number.

  4. October

    Before frozen ground

    Open trench work slows once the ground freezes in colder climates. Before that, Gus looks at equipment you might buy and anything worth doing before December.

What you get

Starts at$197a month

What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.

Book a call
  • Monthly bookkeeping

    Every transaction sorted into categories set up for sewer line repair and trenchless replacement companies. You never categorize a thing.

  • An accountant checks every transaction

    Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.

  • Your business tax return, filed

    Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.

  • The monthly number

    What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.

  • Your own bookkeeper

    A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.

  • On your books all year

    Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.

  • Cancel any time

    No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.

Straight answers

Questions sewer replacement owners ask first.

How does Gus handle the deposit on a big job?

He tracks it against the job and moves it into income once the line is finished, so the month you collect the deposit and the month you finish the work both show what actually happened.

Can Gus handle replacements paid through Foundation Finance?

Yes. On a job this size, the lender's fee is real money. Gus books the full invoice as income and Foundation Finance's cut as its own cost, so the true price of the job is never understated.

Do I write off a bursting rig all at once?

Often yes. A rig like that usually qualifies to be deducted the year you buy it, though sometimes it makes more sense spread across a few years. Gus flags the purchase the day it posts and leaves the timing call to the accountant, who can see your whole year.

I run jobs in ServiceTitan. Do I need to give Gus access to it?

No. Gus never connects to ServiceTitan. He works from the bank statement, and on a job with a deposit and a final payment, he tracks both back to the same job on his own.

Can Gus track permit and bond costs separately?

Yes. Street cut permits, bonds, and inspection fees get their own line so you can see what city work actually costs you.

I have two big jobs from last quarter I never got around to logging. Is that a problem?

Not for Gus. Send the bank statements covering those jobs, deposits and all, and he will sort the deposits, the permits, and the costs into place so you can see what each job actually made.

Is a real accountant checking my books?

Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.

What does it cost, and can I cancel?

It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.

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We keep books for the business next door too.

What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for

Book a call

Pick a time. That's the whole signup.

Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.

  • $197 a month to start
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever