One of the worst things you can experience as a homeowner is a sewer backup. Sewer backups occur when an obstruction or damage prevents wastewater from flowing through your lateral sanitary sewer line – the main sewer line that connects your home to the municipal sanitary sewers. Due to the obstruction, wastewater will continue to fill your sewer lines and drain pipes until it eventually overflows.
The most common cause of sewer backups is a clog in your sewer line. Solid material builds up in the sewer pipe connecting your house to the municipal sewer line. This prevents wastewater from flowing out to the municipal sewer lines, eventually causing a backup. Sewer pipes can become clogged due to an excess of fats and oils, food waste, coffee grounds, hair, toilet paper, soap residue, or other materials flushed down the drain.
The easiest way to prevent a clogged drain is to keep toilets, sinks, and drains clean and use them as intended. Avoid flushing anything but toilet paper down toilets and properly dispose of tissues, cleaning wipes, diapers, paper towels, and hygiene products. Use a mesh trap with shower and bath drains to keep hair from going down the drain. Never pour grease, oil, or coffee grounds down your kitchen sink and only use your garbage disposal for food waste smaller than a pea. If you find signs that your home foundation needs repair then don’t waste your time.
Depending on the age of your home, your sewer pipe is likely made of PVC, cast iron, clay, or Orangeburg. While these materials are durable, they will not last forever. It’s common for sewer pipes to deteriorate or even collapse as they age. You must repair or replace your sewer pipe if it cracks or collapses.
While connecting gutters, downspouts, and sump pumps to storm sewers is okay, connecting them to your sanitary sewer line is risky. A significant amount of water can flow through gutters and a sump pump during heavy rainfalls or as snow melts. Sanitary sewers are intended to remove a much lower volume of wastewater from your house. Connecting storm water to your sanitary sewers increases the potential changes of a backup.
While you have some control over many causes of sewer backups, there very little you can do to prevent a municipal sewer backup. Municipal sewers face the same problems. They are prone to blockages and deteriorate over time.
Determining whether the problem is with your sewer lines or the municipal sewers isn’t always easy. Typically a municipal clog will affect multiple houses on your street, but that isn’t always guaranteed. A professional flood restoration Australia will be able to help locate the issue and advice on the best course of action.
The most difficult thing to deal with when you have water damage can be figuring out if you’re covered. Water contaminated with sewage backup should be considered an emergency situation and dealt with as quickly as possible. Therefore , we recommend you to call professional flood restoration. They are water damage restoration specialists with specialized training, equipment and protective gear to safely restore your home or business.
